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/merge Command

Merge branches into main branch using appropriate merge strategy.

Usage

# Merge feature branch
/merge feat/new-feature

# Merge bug fix
/merge fix/authentication-bug

# Merge with specific strategy
/merge feat/new-feature --strategy squash

Arguments

ArgumentTypeRequiredDefaultDescription
<branch>stringNo-Branch name to merge
--strategystringNomergeMerge strategy: merge, squash, rebase
--no-ffflagNofalseForce merge commit (no fast-forward)

Merge Strategies

Merge (Default)

# Standard merge
/merge feat/new-feature

# Creates merge commit if not fast-forward
git checkout main
git merge feat/new-feature

When to use:

  • Default for most merges
  • Preserves complete git history
  • Good for feature branches

Squash Merge

# Squash all commits into one
/merge feat/new-feature --strategy squash

# Example:
git checkout main
git merge --squash feat/new-feature

When to use:

  • Feature with many small commits
  • Want clean history
  • Feature is self-contained unit

Rebase Before Merge

# Rebase then merge
/merge feat/new-feature --strategy rebase

# Example:
git checkout feat/new-feature
git rebase main
git checkout main
git merge feat/new-feature

When to use:

  • Want linear history
  • Feature branch has diverged
  • Many commits to clean up

Workflow

1. Prepare Main Branch

# Switch to main
git checkout main

# Update from remote
git pull origin main

# Verify clean state
git status

2. Merge Feature Branch

# Merge branch
git merge feat/new-feature

# Check for conflicts
git status

3. Resolve Conflicts (if any)

# If conflicts:
# 1. Edit files with conflicts
# 2. Resolve conflicts
# 3. Stage resolved files
git add .

# 4. Continue merge
git commit -m "Merge branch 'feat/new-feature'"

4. Delete Feature Branch

# Delete local branch
git branch -d feat/new-feature

# Delete remote branch (if pushed)
git push origin --delete feat/new-feature

Conflict Resolution

Conflict Markers

# Git adds conflict markers:
<<<<<<< HEAD
# Main branch code
=======
# Branch code
>>>>>>> feat/new-feature

Resolving

1. Review both versions
2. Choose correct code or combine
3. Remove conflict markers (<<<<<<<, =======, >>>>>>>)
4. Stage file: git add <file>
5. Continue: git commit

Example

// Conflict:
<<<<<<< HEAD
function authenticate(email: string, password: string): Promise<User> {
  const user = await User.findByEmail(email);
  if (!user) throw new Error('User not found');
  return user.verifyPassword(password);
}
=======
function authenticate(email: string): Promise<User> {
  const user = await User.findByEmail(email);
  return user;
}
>>>>>>> feat/new-feature

// Resolution (combine):
function authenticate(email: string, password: string): Promise<User> {
  const user = await User.findByEmail(email);
  if (!user) throw new Error('User not found');
  return user.verifyPassword(password);
}

Best Practices

Choosing Merge Strategy

✅ DO:

  • Use merge for preserving history
  • Use squash for clean feature history
  • Use --no-ff for always creating merge commit
  • Ask team about merge strategy conventions

❌ DON'T:

  • Always force merge (--force)
  • Merge without testing
  • Ignore conflicts (leaving broken state)
  • Skip reviewing merge commits

Pre-Merge Checklist

Before merging, verify:

# Code quality
npm run typecheck  # TypeScript
npm run lint          # Code style
npm run test          # Tests
npm run build         # Production build

# Branch status
git log main..feat/new-feature --oneline  # See what you're merging
git diff main...feat/new-feature          # See exact changes

Post-Merge Checklist

After merging, verify:

# Tests still pass
npm run test

# No regressions
npm run build  # Check build works

Examples

Feature Merge

# Merge feature
/merge feat/user-profiles

# Merge commits feature branch with 15 commits into one
/merge feat/user-profiles --strategy squash

Bug Fix Merge

# Merge bug fix
/merge fix/login-timeout

# Merge without fast-forward (keeps history clean)
/merge fix/login-timeout --no-ff

Hotfix Merge

# Merge hotfix (urgent)
/merge hotfix/security-vulnerability --no-ff

# Tag after merge
git tag v1.0.2-hotfix
git push origin main --tags