create-worktree

name

create-worktree

description

Spin up an isolated git worktree at `.worktrees/<branch>/` with auto-allocated UI/API/DB ports, a generated `.env`, installed deps, a per-worktree Postgres container, and migrations applied — so multiple branches run side-by-side without colliding on ports or databases. On first ever run in a repo, refactors hardcoded port literals to env-driven config (with approval) before creating the first worktree. Trigger phrases — "new worktree", "create a worktree", "spin up a worktree", "parallel branch", "work on two branches at once", "/create-worktree". Skip for — non-Node projects without docker-compose, bare `git worktree add` requests where the user explicitly does not want extra setup, monorepos with multiple apps (this skill assumes one app per repo), and Windows hosts (port range and `docker compose` invocation assume macOS/Linux).

User-question protocol: Whenever this skill needs the user to pick between options, confirm an action, or answer a multiple-choice prompt, you MUST call the AskUserQuestion tool to render a proper interactive picker. Do NOT print numbered options as plain text and wait for the user to type a number — that produces a degraded UX. Free-form questions (open-ended typing) may be asked in prose, but any time you would write "1) … 2) … 3) …", use AskUserQuestion instead.

create-worktree

Process skill. Each phase has an exit condition; do not proceed until it's met. On any failure after Phase 2, run the rollback in Recovery.

Before you start — confirm the assumptions

This skill assumes a specific shape. Before running, confirm:

• Single-app repo — one dev server, one API server, one Postgres. Monorepos with multiple apps need a different approach.
• Postgres lives in docker-compose.yml — not a hosted DB, not SQLite, not a Postgres on the host.
• The dev server reads its port from env, or can be made to — Phase 0 will refactor if not.

If any answer is "no" or "not sure," stop and surface the mismatch to the user — do not improvise around it.

Phase 0 — Detect first-run

Preconditions (abort with a clear message if any fail):

• uname -s is Darwin or Linux — Windows (MINGW*/MSYS*/CYGWIN*) is not supported.
• command -v docker resolves — the skill needs Docker on PATH.
• docker-compose.yml or compose.yml exists at repo root — Postgres-via-compose is assumed.

Then check whether the repo is already port-parameterized. The repo passes if all of these are true:

• .env.example exists and contains entries for the dev UI port, the API port (if applicable), and the Postgres port — names like VITE_PORT, PORT, API_PORT, DATABASE_URL (with ${...} style port) or POSTGRES_PORT.
• vite.config.* reads its port from process.env (not a hardcoded literal).
• docker-compose.yml (or compose.yml) uses ${POSTGRES_PORT:-5432}:5432 style mapping, not a bare 5432:5432.
• package.json dev/start scripts do not pin --port 3000 or similar literals (or they read $PORT).

If any check fails → MANDATORY READ references/first-run-refactor.md. Run that workflow, get user approval on the diff, commit on the current branch, then continue. Do NOT load that file otherwise.

Exit: all four checks pass.

Phase 1 — Allocate ports

MANDATORY READ references/port-allocation.md — contains the hash algorithm, safe port range, free-port probing, and .worktrees/ports.json registry format.

Output of this phase: {branch, ui_port, api_port, db_port, container_name, db_name} written to the registry. Do NOT load this file in any other phase.

After the registry write, show the user the allocated ports + container name in one line and proceed unless they object. This is a soft gate — no explicit approval needed, but they can interrupt before resources are created.

Exit: registry entry written; all three ports verified free via lsof -i:$PORT returning empty.

Phase 2 — Create the worktree

BRANCH="<sanitized-branch-name>"
BASE="${BASE:-main}"
mkdir -p .worktrees
git worktree add ".worktrees/$BRANCH" -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"

The new branch defaults to branching from main. If the user wants it from current HEAD or another ref, ask first — do not silently use HEAD.

If the branch already exists, drop -b and the base ref. If .worktrees/$BRANCH already exists, abort with: "worktree already exists at .worktrees/$BRANCH — delete it first or pick a different branch name."

Add .worktrees/ to .gitignore if not already present.

Exit: git worktree list shows the new entry.

Phase 3 — Generate .env

Guard against overwriting hand-edited values:

if [ -f ".worktrees/$BRANCH/.env" ]; then
  echo "abort: .env already exists at .worktrees/$BRANCH/.env — delete it first or pass --force. It may contain secrets you added by hand."
  exit 1
fi
cp .env.example ".worktrees/$BRANCH/.env"

Then rewrite the copied .env, substituting:

• UI port var → $ui_port
• API port var → $api_port
• Postgres port var → $db_port
• DATABASE_URL → postgresql://postgres:postgres@localhost:$db_port/$db_name
• Any POSTGRES_DB / POSTGRES_USER / POSTGRES_PASSWORD defaults → keep as-is unless user customized them

Verify by grepping the file for any remaining placeholder-looking values (changeme, your-..., <...>). If found, surface them to the user before continuing — they may need real secrets.

Exit: .env exists in the worktree with concrete port values and a unique DATABASE_URL, and no pre-existing .env was overwritten.

Phase 4 — Install dependencies

Detect manager from lockfile (bun.lock* → bun, pnpm-lock.yaml → pnpm, yarn.lock → yarn, else npm) and run <mgr> install in the worktree dir. Report the manager picked.

Exit: install exits 0.

Phase 5 — Start the per-worktree Postgres container

Use a unique compose project name so containers, volumes, and networks are namespaced per worktree:

cd ".worktrees/$BRANCH"
docker compose -p "$container_name" --env-file .env up -d

The -p flag is what isolates this worktree's containers from the main checkout's containers. The host port comes from $db_port in .env.

Wait for Postgres to accept connections (poll pg_isready or docker compose -p $container_name exec ... pg_isready, max 30s).

Exit: pg_isready returns 0, OR docker compose ps shows the db service healthy.

Phase 6 — Run migrations

Detect the migration command in this priority order:

1. package.json script named db:migrate, migrate, or db:push → run it
2. drizzle.config.* exists → npx drizzle-kit migrate (or push if no migrations dir)
3. prisma/schema.prisma → npx prisma migrate deploy
4. None detected → report to user, skip

Run in the worktree dir so .env (and thus DATABASE_URL) resolves to the new container.

Exit: migration command exits 0, or skip is reported.

Phase 7 — Report

Print a single block:

Worktree ready: .worktrees/<branch>/

Ports:
  UI:       http://localhost:<ui_port>
  API:      http://localhost:<api_port>
  Postgres: localhost:<db_port>  (db: <db_name>)

Container project: <container_name>

Next steps:
  cd .worktrees/<branch> && <pkg-manager> run dev
  # tear down later: docker compose -p <container_name> down -v && git worktree remove .worktrees/<branch>

Recovery

If any phase after Phase 2 fails, run rollback in reverse:

1. docker compose -p $container_name down -v (removes container + volume)
2. git worktree remove --force .worktrees/$BRANCH
3. git branch -D $BRANCH (only if Phase 2 created it; check git reflog)
4. Remove the registry entry from .worktrees/ports.json

Then surface the failing phase's error to the user. Do not retry automatically.

NEVER

• NEVER share Postgres or compose resources across worktrees (same compose project name, same DATABASE_URL, same DB name, or same host port) Instead: Always pass -p $container_name to docker compose derived from the branch slug, AND substitute $db_port + $db_name per allocation in .env. Verify with grep DATABASE_URL .worktrees/*/.env showing distinct ports. Why: Without -p, docker compose up adopts containers from the main checkout, swaps their port mapping, and silently breaks the main dev env. With shared DATABASE_URL, two worktrees run migrations against each other's schemas and corrupt both branches' state. Same root cause: collision on shared resources — both halves of the isolation must hold.

• NEVER skip Phase 0's first-run refactor on the assumption "it probably works" Instead: Run all four detection checks. If any fails, do the refactor — even if the user is impatient. Why: A single hardcoded 5173 in vite.config.ts defeats the entire skill: the second worktree's UI silently binds to the same port and one of them serves stale assets.

• NEVER pick ports in the macOS ephemeral range (49152–65535) or under 1024 Instead: Use the 20000–32000 range defined in references/port-allocation.md. Why: macOS hands out ephemeral ports from 49152+ for outbound connections; a worktree bound there will randomly fail to start when the OS has already claimed its port.

• NEVER run migrations from the main checkout against a worktree's database Instead: cd .worktrees/$BRANCH first so the migration tool reads the worktree's .env. Why: Migration tools resolve DATABASE_URL from the cwd's .env; running from the wrong dir migrates the wrong DB and the failure mode (wrong-schema errors at runtime) is hard to diagnose.

• NEVER delete .worktrees/ports.json to "reset" Instead: Run the registry-prune step described in references/port-allocation.md — it removes only entries whose worktree dirs no longer exist. Why: Wholesale deletion drops live allocations; the next worktree's hash collides with a running one and Phase 1's free-port check still passes (because the port is in use by , which is expected) — chaos ensues.