git-workspace-review

Git Workspace Review

When NOT To Use

• Writing the commit message (use sanctum:commit-messages)
• Running the full pre-PR gate (use sanctum:pr-prep)

Verification

Run git status after review to verify workspace state matches expectations.

Testing

Run pytest plugins/sanctum/tests/test_git_workspace_review.py to validate review workflow.

Usage

Use this skill before workflows that depend on repository state, such as commit message generation, PR preparation, or release notes. Run it once per session or whenever staged changes are modified.

Required Progress Tracking

1. git-review:repo-confirmed
2. git-review:status-overview
3. git-review:code-quality-check
4. git-review:diff-stat
5. git-review:diff-details

Mark each item as complete as you finish the corresponding step.

Step 1: Confirm Repository (repo-confirmed)

Run pwd to confirm you are in the correct repository directory. Execute git status -sb to view the current branch and short status, then capture the branch name and upstream information.

Step 2: Review Status Overview (status-overview)

Analyze the git status -sb output for staged and unstaged changes. Stage or unstage files so that subsequent workflows operate on the intended diff.

Step 3: Check Code Quality (code-quality-check)

Run make lint from the repository root to validate code quality before committing. It checks ruff format, runs the per-plugin ruff check, and runs bandit. It rewrites nothing: a check that edits the tree cannot report the diff it was asked to find. When it fails it names make fix, which is the mutating pair (ruff format plus ruff check --fix). The root Makefile defines no format target, and the plugin Makefiles that define one only apply inside their own directory.

Fix any errors immediately. Do not bypass pre-commit hooks with --no-verify. This check identifies issues early and avoids late-stage pipeline failures.

Step 4: Review Diff Statistics (diff-stat)

Run git diff --cached --stat for staged changes (or git diff --stat for unstaged work). Note the number of files modified and identify hotspots with large insertion or deletion counts.

When sem is available (see leyline:sem-integration), also run sem diff --format plain --staged to display an entity-level summary alongside the stat output. This shows which functions, classes, and methods changed rather than just line counts.

Step 5: Review Detailed Diff (diff-details)

Run git diff --cached to examine the actual changes. For unstaged work, use git diff. Identify key themes, such as Makefile adjustments or new skill additions, to provide context for downstream summaries.

Exit Criteria

Downstream workflows rely on this context without re-running git.

• The branch name and upstream are recorded from git status -sb
• git diff --cached --stat lists exactly the files intended for the next commit, with nothing intended left unstaged
• make lint exits 0, or each failure it reports is fixed or named to the user
• The key themes of the staged diff are written down for the summary that follows

Supporting Modules

• Git commands reference - diff, status, branch operations for sanctum workflows

Troubleshooting

If pre-commit hooks block a commit, resolve the reported issues instead of using --no-verify. make lint fixes styling automatically and surfaces the logical failures that remain. If merge conflicts occur, use git merge --abort to return to a clean state before retrying.