git-clean-gone-branches

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Clean up local branches whose remote tracking branch is gone. Use when the user says "clean up branches", "delete gone branches", "prune local branches", "clean gone", or wants to remove stale local branches that no longer exist on the remote. Also handles removing associated worktrees for branches that have them.

3installs

Sourceeveryinc/compound-engineering-plugin

Added on2026-03-27

NPX Install

npx skill4agent add everyinc/compound-engineering-plugin git-clean-gone-branches

SKILL.md Content

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Clean Gone Branches

Delete local branches whose remote tracking branch has been deleted, including any associated worktrees.

Workflow

Step 1: Discover gone branches

Run the discovery script to fetch the latest remote state and identify gone branches:

bash

bash scripts/clean-gone

scripts/clean-gone

The script runs

git fetch --prune

first, then parses

git branch -vv

for branches marked

: gone]

. It uses

command git

to bypass shell aliases and RTK proxies.

If the script outputs

__NONE__

, report that no stale branches were found and stop.

Step 2: Present branches and ask for confirmation

Show the user the list of branches that will be deleted. Format as a simple list:

These local branches have been deleted from the remote:

  - feature/old-thing
  - bugfix/resolved-issue
  - experiment/abandoned

Delete all of them? (y/n)

Wait for the user's answer using the platform's question tool (e.g.,

AskUserQuestion

in Claude Code,

request_user_input

in Codex,

ask_user

in Gemini). If no question tool is available, present the list and wait for the user's reply before proceeding.

This is a yes-or-no decision on the entire list -- do not offer multi-selection or per-branch choices.

Step 3: Delete confirmed branches

If the user confirms, delete each branch. For each branch:

Check if it has an associated worktree (

command git worktree list | grep "\\[$branch\\]"

)

If a worktree exists and is not the main repo root, remove it first:
```
command git worktree remove --force "$worktree_path"
```
Delete the branch:
```
command git branch -D "$branch"
```

Report results as you go:

Removed worktree: .worktrees/feature/old-thing
Deleted branch: feature/old-thing
Deleted branch: bugfix/resolved-issue
Deleted branch: experiment/abandoned

Cleaned up 3 branches.

If the user declines, acknowledge and stop without deleting anything.

Important: Use

command git

Always invoke git as

command git

in shell commands. This bypasses shell aliases and tools like RTK (Rust Token Killer) that proxy git commands, ensuring consistent behavior and output parsing.