| name | pre-commit-cleanup |
| description | Clean up a patch before review or commit by removing AI-style slop, checking test value, validating key paths, and surfacing remaining risks. |
Pre-Commit Cleanup
Use this skill when a patch is mostly implemented and should be tightened before the user reviews it or considers committing.
1. Inspect the patch first
- Review the current diff or changed files before editing.
- Compare the new code and tests against nearby file and repo conventions.
- Identify whether the main risks are code slop, test slop, correctness issues, or unfinished validation.
2. Remove low-value code noise
- Delete comments that restate obvious code.
- Remove unnecessary defensive branches, wrappers, or indirection.
- Simplify nested logic when early returns or direct expressions are clearer.
- Eliminate type escapes or placeholder abstractions that exist only to force progress.
3. Remove low-value test noise
- Prefer tests that protect real behaviour, meaningful branches, and regression-prone paths.
- Remove or avoid tests that only pad counts, duplicate nearby coverage, or assert library/framework behaviour rather than local logic.
- Keep multiple tests when they cover distinct outcomes, edge cases, or branches that matter.
- Preserve confidence in real behaviour under test rather than maximising raw test count.
4. Check for obvious review issues
- Look for correctness risks, missing edge cases, and maintainability problems that would likely come up in review.
- Fix small high-confidence issues directly.
- If a larger design issue appears, report it instead of quietly rewriting the patch.
5. Preserve behaviour
- Keep public behaviour unchanged unless a clear bug is found.
- If cleanup reveals a real bug, fix it minimally and say so explicitly.
- Avoid broad rewrites during cosmetic cleanup.
6. Validate
- Run focused validation for the changed behaviour.
- Re-read the final diff for consistency with local style and repo patterns.
Output
- Slop patterns removed (code and tests)
- Tests kept, added, removed, or rewritten and why
- Any behaviour-affecting fix made during cleanup
- Validation performed
- Remaining risks or questions before commit or review
