| # Cherry-Pick Commits Between Branches |
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| Cherry-pick recent commits from a source branch to a target branch without switching branches. |
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| ## Instructions for Copilot |
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| 1. **Confirm branches with the user** |
| - Ask the user to confirm the source and target branches |
| - If different branches are needed, update the configuration |
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| 2. **Identify unique commits** |
| - Run: `git log <target-branch>..<source-branch> --oneline --reverse` |
| - **IMPORTANT**: The commit count may be misleading if branches diverged from different base commits |
| - Compare the LAST few commits from each branch to identify actual missing commits: |
| - `git log <source-branch> --oneline -10` |
| - `git log <target-branch> --oneline -10` |
| - Look for commits with the same message but different SHAs (rebased commits) |
| - Show the user ONLY the truly missing commits (usually just the most recent ones) |
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| 3. **Confirm with user before proceeding** |
| - If the commit count seems unusually high (e.g., 400+), STOP and verify semantically |
| - Ask: "I found X commits to cherry-pick. Shall I proceed?" |
| - If there are many commits, warn that this may take time |
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| 4. **Execute the cherry-pick** |
| - Ensure the target branch is checked out first |
| - Run: `git cherry-pick <sha1>` for single commits |
| - Or: `git cherry-pick <sha1> <sha2> <sha3>` for multiple commits |
| - Apply commits in chronological order (oldest first) |
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| 5. **Handle any issues** |
| - If conflicts occur, pause and ask user for guidance |
| - If empty commits occur, automatically skip with `git cherry-pick --skip` |
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| 6. **Verify and report results** |
| - Run: `git log <target-branch> -<number-of-commits> --oneline` |
| - Show the user the newly applied commits |
| - Confirm the branch is now ahead by X commits |
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| ## Key Git Commands |
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| ```bash |
| # Find unique commits (may show full divergence if branches were rebased) |
| git log <target>..<source> --oneline --reverse |
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| # Compare recent commits on each branch (more reliable for rebased branches) |
| git log <source-branch> --oneline -10 |
| git log <target-branch> --oneline -10 |
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| # Cherry-pick specific commits (when target is checked out) |
| git cherry-pick <sha1> |
| git cherry-pick <sha1> <sha2> <sha3> |
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| # Skip empty commits |
| git cherry-pick --skip |
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| # Verify result |
| git log <target-branch> -<count> --oneline |
| ``` |
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| ## Common Scenarios |
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| - **Empty commits**: Automatically skip with `git cherry-pick --skip` |
| - **Conflicts**: Stop, show files with conflicts, ask user to resolve |
| - **Many commits**: Warn user and confirm before proceeding |
| - **Already applied**: These will result in empty commits that should be skipped |
| - **Diverged branches**: If branches diverged (rebased), `git log` may show the entire history difference |
| - The actual missing commits are usually only the most recent ones |
| - Compare commit messages from recent history on both branches |
| - Cherry-pick only commits that are semantically missing |
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| ## Workflow Style |
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| Use an interactive, step-by-step approach: |
| - Show output from each command |
| - Ask for confirmation before major actions |
| - Provide clear status updates |
| - Handle errors gracefully with user guidance |
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