git-safety

Git Safety Rules for AI Agents

🚫 CRITICAL: Protected Branch Rules

AI agents must NEVER commit to or push to protected branches under any circumstances.

Protected Branches

• main - Primary production branch
• latest - Latest stable release
• release/* - Release branches (e.g., release/v2.0.0)

This is a non-negotiable rule that applies to all scenarios:

Prohibited Actions

• ❌ Direct commits - Never run git commit while on a protected branch
• ❌ Direct pushes - Never run git push origin <protected-branch> or git push while on a protected branch
• ❌ Force pushes - Never run git push --force or git push -f targeting protected branches
• ❌ Merging into protected branches locally - Never run git merge <branch> while on a protected branch
• ❌ Rebasing protected branches - Never run git rebase while on a protected branch
• ❌ Resetting protected branches - Never run git reset while on a protected branch

Required Workflow

1. Always create a feature branch before making any changes
2. Verify current branch before any git operation using git branch --show-current
3. Create Pull Requests for all changes - let the review process handle merging

Pre-Push Checklist

Before executing any push command, AI agents must:

1. ✅ Confirm current branch is NOT a protected branch (main, latest, release/*)
2. ✅ Verify the remote and branch target

Error Recovery

If accidentally on a protected branch with uncommitted changes:

1. Stash changes: git stash
2. Create new branch: git checkout -b <appropriate-branch-name>
3. Apply changes: git stash pop
4. Continue work on the new branch

Rationale

• Protected branches represent production-ready or release code
• All changes must go through code review via Pull Requests
• Direct pushes bypass CI/CD checks and team review
• Mistakes on protected branches can affect the entire team and deployment pipeline