repo-gitignore

Codex form of the /repo:gitignore command. Other commands appear as $repo-<verb> skills. Helper scripts and .claude/ paths below are relative to the repository root and exist when the Claude Code surface is installed alongside this one.

$repo-gitignore — Gitignore Audit

Check that gitignore rules are appropriate for this repository. Catches files that shouldn't be ignored and build artifacts that should be.

Usage

$repo-gitignore                  # Full repo — apply clear rule fixes, report as you go
$repo-gitignore data/            # Check one subtree
$repo-gitignore --ask            # Review findings and confirm before editing

Context First

Determine whether the repo is public or private before judging rules (gh repo view --json isPrivate --jq .isPrivate, or ask the user if there is no GitHub remote). The right answer differs:

• Private repos often want data files, docs, and notes tracked — flag rules that hide them.
• Public repos often want those same files ignored — flag tracked files that look like they leaked in (credentials, dumps, personal notes are critical findings either way).

What It Checks

1. Over-Ignored Files

Flag gitignore rules that exclude things that look like real content:

• Data files (.yaml, .json, .csv) that aren't build output
• Documentation or notes
• Configuration that isn't secrets

Always keep ignored, in any repo:

• .env files and anything credential-like
• node_modules/, .venv/, __pycache__/
• Build output (dist/, build/, target/, *.pyc)
• IDE files (.vscode/, .idea/)
• OS files (.DS_Store)

Tracked files that match an ignore rule

git ls-files -ci --exclude-standard lists tracked files that also match an ignore rule. That listing is not a reason to drop the rule. Ignore rules never apply to tracked files, so the tracked files are unaffected by the rule — re-renders or edits of them still show as modified. The rule only hides new, untracked files under that path. Dropping it surfaces those instead, dirtying the primary checkout (and, in a Loom-managed repo, handing a sweep's quarantine step a pile of files to stash away).