try-claudekit/.claude/commands/git/checkout.md

description, allowed-tools, category, argument-hint

description	allowed-tools	category	argument-hint
Smart branch creation and switching with conventional naming	Bash(git:*), Read	workflow	<branch-type/branch-name | branch-name>

Git Checkout: Smart Branch Management

Create or switch to branches with intelligent naming conventions and setup.

Current Branch Status

!git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "(no branch)"

Available Branches

!git branch -a 2>/dev/null | head -20

Branch Creation Task

Based on the arguments provided: $ARGUMENTS

Parse the branch specification and create/switch to the appropriate branch.

Supported Branch Types

• feature/ - New features and enhancements
• bugfix/ - Bug fixes (non-critical)
• hotfix/ - Urgent production fixes
• release/ - Release preparation branches
• chore/ - Maintenance and cleanup tasks
• experiment/ - Experimental features
• docs/ - Documentation updates
• test/ - Test-related changes
• refactor/ - Code refactoring

Branch Naming Rules

1. If argument contains /, use as-is (e.g., feature/user-auth)
2. If argument is single word, suggest adding a prefix
3. Convert spaces to hyphens
4. Lowercase all characters
5. Remove special characters except hyphens and slashes
6. Validate branch name is git-compatible

Workflow

1. Parse the branch argument:

   • If empty, show current branch and available branches
   • If contains /, treat as type/name format
   • If single word without /, ask for branch type or suggest feature/

2. Validate branch name:

   • Check if branch already exists locally
   • Check if branch exists on remote
   • Ensure name follows git conventions
   • Warn if name is too long (>50 chars)

3. Create or switch branch:

   • If branch exists locally: git checkout <branch>
   • If branch exists only on remote: git checkout -b <branch> origin/<branch>
   • If new branch: git checkout -b <branch>

4. Set up branch configuration:

   • For hotfix branches: Base off main/master
   • For feature branches: Base off current branch or develop
   • For release branches: Base off develop or main

5. Report status:

   • Confirm branch switch/creation
   • Show upstream tracking status
   • Suggest next steps (e.g., "Ready to start working. Use /git:push to set upstream when ready to push.")

Examples

# Create feature branch
/git:checkout feature/user-authentication

# Create hotfix from main
/git:checkout hotfix/security-patch

# Switch to existing branch
/git:checkout develop

# Create branch without prefix (will prompt)
/git:checkout payment-integration

Special Handling

For hotfix branches:

• Automatically checkout from main/master first
• Set high priority indicator
• Suggest immediate push after fix

For feature branches:

• Check if develop branch exists, use as base
• Otherwise use current branch as base

For release branches:

• Validate version format if provided (e.g., release/v1.2.0)
• Set up from develop or main

Error Handling

• If branch name is invalid, suggest corrections
• If checkout fails, show git error and provide guidance
• If working directory is dirty, warn and suggest stashing or committing