git-branch-management

name	git-branch-management
description	Niels's custom branch lifecycle commands — create, update, merge, squash, and delete branches with automatic datestamp suffixes. Use these instead of plain `git checkout -b` or `git push`.
allowed-tools	["bash"]

Git branch management

Branch lifecycle commands

Branches always get a datestamp suffix (e.g. my-branch-2026-04-22-10-00-00). Always use these commands instead of plain git checkout -b or git push.

Goal	Command
Create a new branch and push it	git create-branch <name> [base]
Update a branch from base (rebase + force push)	git update-branch [branch] [base]
Fast-forward merge into base, delete branch	git merge-branch [branch] [base]
Squash all commits then merge into base	git squash-and-merge-branch [branch] [base]
Squash all commits on current branch (stays on branch)	git squash-branch [branch] [base]
Delete branch locally and remotely	git delete-branch [branch] [base]

All commands default [branch] to the current branch and [base] to the remote HEAD branch (usually main).

Usage guidance

• When creating any branch for a PR, always use git create-branch <name>.
• Do not use branch prefixes (e.g. feat/, fix/, chore/, niels/). Pass a plain descriptive name; the datestamp suffix is added automatically.
• When updating a branch with upstream changes, use git update-branch.
• Before merging, prefer git squash-and-merge-branch to keep a clean history.