branch-cleaner

What problem does it solve?

This Skill helps developers safely prune stale git branches both locally and on remote repositories, preventing accidental deletions and maintaining branch hygiene.

Core Features & Use Cases

• Identify local branches that have been merged into the base and those that have not
• Identify remote branches that are merged or stale
• Respect protected patterns (base branch, current branch, and user-specified keepers) before deletion
• Provide explicit, confirmable delete or prune commands and a clear audit trail
• Use cases: cleaning up release or feature branches after merging, auditing branch hygiene during release cycles

Quick Start

Sync with remotes and inspect

• Run: git fetch --prune
• Check status: git status Identify candidates
• Local merged into base: git branch --merged <base>
• Local not merged: git branch --no-merged <base>
• Remote merged: git branch -r --merged <base> Review and delete
• Exclude protected: keep <base>, current, and user patterns
• When ready, run the appropriate delete commands for the chosen branches