Git Worktrees

Create isolated workspaces for feature work without stashing or switching branches.

When to Use

• Starting new feature while current work is in-progress
• Need to test on main without losing local changes
• Parallel development on multiple features
• Hotfix while feature branch is dirty

Process

Step 0: Detect Existing Isolation

GIT_DIR=$(cd "$(git rev-parse --git-dir)" 2>/dev/null && pwd -P)
GIT_COMMON=$(cd "$(git rev-parse --git-common-dir)" 2>/dev/null && pwd -P)

If GIT_DIR != GIT_COMMON → already in a worktree. Skip creation.

Step 1: Create Worktree

# Check if .worktrees is gitignored
git check-ignore -q .worktrees 2>/dev/null

# Create worktree
git worktree add .worktrees/feature-name -b feature-name

# Enter it
cd .worktrees/feature-name

Step 2: Setup

# Auto-detect and install dependencies
[ -f package.json ] && npm install
[ -f Cargo.toml ] && cargo build
[ -f requirements.txt ] && pip install -r requirements.txt
[ -f go.mod ] && go mod download

Step 3: Verify Baseline

# Run tests to ensure clean start
npm test / cargo test / pytest / go test ./...

Cleanup

# From main repo root
git worktree remove .worktrees/feature-name
git worktree prune
git branch -d feature-name

Quick Reference

Rules

• Always verify .worktrees/ is in .gitignore before creating
• Always run baseline tests
• Don't create nested worktrees
• Don't remove worktrees you didn't create