Clean Complete Branches

Overview

Clean up branch work safely after pull requests are complete. This skill covers:

• local worktree folders;
• local branch refs;
• matching origin/* remote branches on GitHub.

Use the bundled script for detection and cleanup. It dry-runs by default and requires --apply before removing anything.

Workflow

1. Check the Repository

Start from any worktree for this repository:

git status --short --branch
git worktree list
git fetch origin main --prune

Resolve the active worktree root before running bundled scripts so the command also works when started from a subdirectory:

REPO_ROOT="$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)"

Do not overwrite, revert, or remove local changes. If a worktree has uncommitted changes, leave it alone and mention it in the final update.

2. Preview Complete Branches

Run the script in dry-run mode first:

python3 "$REPO_ROOT/.agents/skills/clean-complete-branches/scripts/clean_complete_branches.py"

The script treats a branch as complete only when:

• the branch is not protected, such as main, master, develop, dev, release, or gh-pages;
• the branch has no open GitHub PR;
• Git says the branch is already contained in origin/main, or GitHub reports a merged PR for that branch into main;
• any checked-out worktree for that branch has no uncommitted changes.

If GitHub CLI is unavailable or unauthenticated, the script still uses Git's merge check. Squash-merged PR branches usually need GitHub CLI evidence because their exact commits may not be ancestors of main.

3. Apply Cleanup

After reviewing the dry-run output, remove only the listed safe candidates:

python3 "$REPO_ROOT/.agents/skills/clean-complete-branches/scripts/clean_complete_branches.py" --apply

By default, --apply removes safe worktree folders and local branch refs. To also delete matching GitHub remote branches, add --delete-remotes:

python3 "$REPO_ROOT/.agents/skills/clean-complete-branches/scripts/clean_complete_branches.py" --apply --delete-remotes

The script does not merge PRs, close issues, or delete protected branches.

4. Validate the Result

Confirm the cleanup:

git worktree list
git branch
git branch -r
git status --short --branch

Keep the final update practical: list what was removed, what was skipped, and whether GitHub remote branches were deleted.

Safety Rules

• Never remove main, the current worktree, dirty worktrees, detached worktrees, or branches with open PRs.
• Never use rm -rf for registered Git worktrees. Use git worktree remove.
• Do not delete GitHub remote branches unless the user asked to clean GitHub too and the script has shown them as complete in dry-run output.
• Do not close GitHub issues or merge pull requests as part of cleanup.