Prepare Pull Request Workflow

Complete workflow for preparing PR branches: stash changes, create branch, review changes, run quality checks, commit, and push.

Workflow Steps

1. Repository State Detection

First step: Detect current state before any operation.

git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD  # Returns branch name, or "HEAD" when detached
git symbolic-ref -q HEAD         # Exit 0 if on branch, 128 if detached HEAD

States:

On branch: git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD returns branch name (e.g. main, feat/foo)
Detached HEAD: Returns HEAD. Check with git symbolic-ref -q HEAD (non-zero exit = detached)

Detached HEAD handling: Warn user: "当前处于 detached HEAD 状态，无法创建分支。请先 git checkout main 或 git checkout <branch> 切换到有效分支。"

2. Stash and Create Branch

Main branch detection: Auto-detect default branch.

# Option A: From remote (most accurate)
git remote show origin 2>/dev/null | grep "HEAD branch" | cut -d' ' -f5

# Option B: Try main first, fallback to master (when remote unreachable)
git rev-parse --verify main &>/dev/null && MAIN=main || MAIN=master

Stash with untracked files: Include untracked and ignored (optional) for complete snapshot.

git status  # Confirm uncommitted changes exist
git stash push -u -m "temp: stash before creating branch"   # -u = --include-untracked
# Use -a (--all) only if user explicitly needs ignored files

Avoid creating branch on existing feature branch: If current branch is NOT main/master, confirm before overwriting.

CURRENT=$(git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD)
# If CURRENT matches feat/*, fix/*, etc. → STOP and ask:
# "当前在 feature 分支 <CURRENT>。创建新分支会切换离开。确认要基于 main 创建 <new-branch>？(y/n)"
# If user says no → abort or offer branch-from-current

Branch existence check (local + remote):

# Before: git checkout -b <branch-name>
git rev-parse --verify <branch-name> &>/dev/null && echo "local exists"
git ls-remote --heads origin <branch-name> | grep -q . && echo "remote exists"

# If exists: ask user — delete local/remote, use different name, or checkout existing

Workflow:

git stash push -u -m "temp: stash before creating branch"
git checkout $MAIN
git pull origin $MAIN
git checkout -b <branch-name>   # Only after existence check passes
git stash pop

Stash pop conflict handling:

git stash pop
# If conflict: git reports "CONFLICT (content): Merge conflict in <file>"
# Actions:
# 1. Inform user: "stash pop 发生冲突，请手动解决 <files>"
# 2. After resolve: git add <resolved-files> && git stash drop  # drop the stash entry
# 3. Do NOT run stash pop again — stash entry may be partially applied
# 4. If user wants to abort: git reset --hard HEAD && git stash drop (discards stash, restores working tree)

Branch naming: Infer from changes if not specified. Use prefixes: feat/, fix/, refactor/, docs/, style/, test/, chore/.

3. Review Changes

git diff
git diff --name-only  # Get modified files list

Check for unnecessary modifications:

Identify formatting-only changes (whitespace, line endings, indentation)
If only formatting detected, ask user: keep, revert, or proceed

4. Run Code Quality Checks

Only on modified files - never format entire project.

Detect tools from project config:
- JS/TS: package.json scripts, .eslintrc*, eslint.config.*, .prettierrc*
- Python: pyproject.toml, .ruff.toml, .flake8, .pylintrc, requirements.txt

Run checks on modified files only:

# Example: JS/TS
npx eslint <modified-file>
npx prettier --check <modified-file>

# Example: Python
ruff check <modified-file>
black --check <modified-file>

Handle results:
- Pass → proceed to commit
- Fail → offer auto-fix on modified files only, or manual fix
- No tools → inform and proceed

Critical: Only run checks configured in project. Never modify files user didn't change.

5. Generate Commit Message

git log --oneline -10  # Detect commit language from history

Language detection:

Most commits in Chinese → use Chinese
Most in English → use English
Mixed → prefer recent commits' language

Conventional Commits format:

<type>(<scope>)[!]: <subject>

<body>

Types: feat, fix, docs, style, refactor, perf, test, build, ci, chore, revert

Breaking changes: Add ! after type(scope): <type>(<scope>)!

Guidelines:

Subject: max 50 chars, imperative mood
Body: max 72 chars per line, explain "why" and "how"
Footer: issue references or breaking changes

Examples:

Chinese:

feat(ui): 添加按钮组件

- 新增 ButtonPart 类型支持
- 实现 part-button 组件

English:

feat(ui): add button component

- Add ButtonPart type support
- Implement part-button component

Breaking change example:

feat(auth)!: change login method

Login now requires token instead of password

6. Commit and Push

Commit only modified files: Do not git add . — add only files user actually changed.

# Get changed files: modified (tracked) + staged
git diff --name-only
git diff --name-only --cached
# Combine and dedupe, then add only these:
git add <file-1> <file-2> ...
git commit -m "<commit-message>"
# Untracked new files: ask user if they should be included before adding

Push — check remote first:

# Verify remote exists and is reachable
git remote -v
git ls-remote origin &>/dev/null || echo "Remote unreachable"

# If remote unreachable: warn user, do not push
# If branch exists on remote: ask — force push (avoid), rebase, or use different branch
git push -u origin <branch-name>

Critical: Never use --force or -f flag when pushing. If push fails due to conflicts, pull and rebase/merge instead.

Example

Scenario: Adding a new button component (user may be on main or another branch like feat/other-pr)

# 1. Detect state
git rev-parse --abbrev-ref HEAD          # Check branch / detached HEAD
git rev-parse --verify main &>/dev/null && MAIN=main || MAIN=master

# 2. Stash (include untracked), create branch
git stash push -u -m "temp: stash before creating branch"
git checkout $MAIN && git pull origin $MAIN
# Check branch exists: git rev-parse --verify feat/add-button-component
git checkout -b feat/add-button-component
git stash pop  # Handle conflicts if any

# 3. Review changes
git diff
git diff --name-only  # Output: src/components/Button.tsx

# 4. Run checks on modified files only
npx eslint src/components/Button.tsx
npx prettier --check src/components/Button.tsx

# 5. Generate commit (detected Chinese from git log)
git log --oneline -10
git add src/components/Button.tsx       # Only modified files, not git add .
git commit -m "feat(ui): 添加按钮组件

- 新增 ButtonPart 类型支持
- 实现 part-button 组件"

# 6. Push (check remote first)
git ls-remote origin &>/dev/null
git push -u origin feat/add-button-component

Important Notes

Repository state: Detect branch vs detached HEAD first. Detached HEAD → cannot create branch, must checkout first
User on feature branch: If on feat/, fix/, etc., confirm before switching to main to create new branch
Stash: Use -u (--include-untracked) so new files are stashed
Stash pop conflicts: Inform user, resolve manually, then git stash drop. Do not pop again
Branch exists: Check local + remote before checkout -b. If exists → delete, rename, or checkout
Main branch: Auto-detect main or master via git rev-parse --verify
Commit: Only add modified files from diff, not git add .
Remote before push: Run git ls-remote origin to verify reachable. If unreachable, do not push
Force push: Never use git push --force or -f. If push fails, pull and rebase/merge instead
Empty changes: Notify user if no changes after stash pop
Formatting-only changes: Ask user to confirm if detected
Code checks: Only on modified files, only configured tools, never format untouched files

prepare-pull-request