git shame [--[no]-color] [--remote REMOTE] [--[no-]show-commands] [--[no-]show-report] [--[no-]show-merged] [--[no-]show-unmerged] [--users [email protected], [email protected], ...]

Projects can accumulate a significant number of remote topic branches. Which are active? Which are safe to delete? Who "owns" them?

git shame knows, and can help you clean these branches up (see EXAMPLES).

• --color

  Colorful output. This is automatically set when output is a TTY and the colored gem is installed.

• --no-color

  Turn off colors. This is the default when output is not to a TTY.

• --remote REMOTE

  Specify a remote branch. The default is origin.

• --show-commands

  Output shell commands to delete remote branches. This is off by default.

• --no-show-commands

  Do not output shell commands. This is the default.

• --show-report

  Output a report of remote branches, grouped by their "owners", ordered by staleness (time of most recent commit), showing their merged/unmerged status relative to the currently checked out branch. This is on by default.

• --no-show-report

  Don't show a report. You may want to use this in conjunction with --show-commands and pipe the output to sh(1) (be careful!)

• --show-merged

  Show merged branches in report and command output. This is on by default.

• --no-show-merged

  Do not show merged branches in report and command output.

• --show-unmerged

  Show unmerged branches in report and command output. This is on by default.

• --no-show-unmerged

  Do not show unmerged branches in report and command output.

• --users [email protected], [email protected], ...

  By default, git shame's output includes all branches regardless of ownership. You may limit report and command output to branches "owned" by certain users, specified by a list of one or more email addresses separated by commas.

Before running any of these, make sure your local repo is up to date relative to your remote. Run git pull and git remote --prune. As the merged status is relative to the currently checked out branch, be sure to git checkout the branch you typically merge into (often this is master or develop depending on the project's workflow).

• git shame

  Running with no options generates the standard report. The report groups branches by "owner", which git shame defines as the user who made the last commit to it. It's prettier if you have the colored gem installed.

• git shame --no-show-report --show-commands --show-merged --no-show-unmerged

  This will output shell commands to delete all remote branches considered safe to delete (that is, they have been merged into the current branch). Resist the urge to pipe the output to sh(1)! Sanity check it first.

Daniel Rench

git(1), git-branch(1), git-remote(1), git-shame on github