Drift Commit And Push Skill

Use this skill for repository-safe commit and push workflows in Drift.

When To Use

• Prepare a commit after code changes
• Choose the correct conventional commit type
• Check whether a push is allowed
• Verify pre-push gates before pushing to main
• Decide which supporting artifacts must be updated with the code change

Core Rules

1. Do not push autonomously. A push requires explicit maintainer approval.
2. Never commit blocked paths. Anything under tagesplanung/ is excluded from pushes.
3. Use conventional commits. Release automation depends on feat:, fix:, and BREAKING: semantics.
4. Releases are CI-automated. Do not run manual release flows in normal operation; do not handcraft versioning beyond commit semantics.
5. Run lightweight validation before commit; run full validation once per push cycle.
6. Do not bypass hooks by default. Environment-variable bypasses are emergency-only and must be justified.

Step 0: Run The Drift Policy Gate

Before preparing a commit or push, run the mandatory admissibility gate for the underlying task. If the task is not admissible, stop instead of committing polished but policy-invalid work.

Use the gate format from .github/instructions/drift-policy.instructions.md.

Step 1: Classify The Change

Choose the commit type from the actual impact:

• fix: for bug fixes and regressions
• feat: for new user-visible capabilities
• refactor: for internal restructuring without behavior change
• docs: for documentation-only changes
• test: for tests-only changes
• chore: for maintenance work
• BREAKING: or a BREAKING CHANGE: footer for incompatible changes

If the change touches signals, scoring, output formats, or architecture boundaries, an ADR under docs/decisions/ is required before implementation unless the change is only a bug fix or pure refactoring. Stop and satisfy that requirement before committing.

Step 2: Inspect The Working Tree

Review exactly what will be committed:

git status --short
git diff --stat
git diff

Check for unrelated files and leave them out of the commit.

Step 3: Satisfy Change-Coupled Requirements

Apply the repository gates before pushing, and usually before committing if they affect the same logical change:

• src/drift/signals/, src/drift/ingestion/, or src/drift/output/ changed: update the correct audit artifacts in audit_results/, and keep all four audit files present.
  • Signal added or materially changed: update fmea_matrix.md, fault_trees.md, and risk_register.md
  • Input or output path / trust boundary changed: update stride_threat_model.md and risk_register.md
  • Precision or recall changed by more than 5 percentage points: update fmea_matrix.md and risk_register.md
• feat: commit planned: include tests, at least one empirical artifact in benchmark_results/ or audit_results/, a versioned evidence file in benchmark_results/, and update docs/STUDY.md if it exists.
• feat: or fix: commit planned: satisfy the changelog gate. In normal operation this means including a CHANGELOG.md update in the push; emergency bypass requires explicit maintainer approval and reason.
• pyproject.toml changed: ensure uv.lock is updated too.
• New public function under src/drift/: add a docstring in the same diff if it is a lowercase def without a leading underscore.

Release-specific note for src/drift/** changes:

• Keep commit semantics correct (feat:, fix:, BREAKING:). CI uses python-semantic-release to derive version/tag/release.
• Do not trigger manual release commands unless CI is unavailable and maintainer explicitly requests fallback execution.

Step 4: Run Validation

Minimum expectation before commit (fast feedback):

make test-fast
# Windows / PowerShell:
.\scripts\check.ps1 test-fast

For very fast local loops, prefer targeted checks first:

make test-dev
# or rerun only previous failures
make test-lf
# Windows / PowerShell equivalents:
.\scripts\check.ps1 test-dev
.\scripts\check.ps1 test-lf

If smoke confidence is needed locally, use the split profiles instead of always running the full matrix:

make smoke-pr
# optional full matrix
make smoke-nightly

Before push, the repository standard is:

# Linux / macOS / Git Bash:
make check

# Windows / PowerShell (mandatory — do NOT call make directly):
.\scripts\check.ps1

Windows agents: make is not available in PowerShell. Always use .\.scripts\check.ps1 <target>. This delegates to Git Bash and writes the same SHA cache, so git push afterwards skips the expensive CI re-run inside VS Code.

Important for speed: do not duplicate full-matrix runs.

• Use exactly one full validation run per push cycle:
  • either run make check manually before push,
  • or rely on the pre-push hook's mandatory full checks.
• Do not run make check and then immediately push if the hook will rerun the same matrix anyway, unless maintainers explicitly asked for preflight output.
• For commit-only checkpoints, fast tests are sufficient; keep full validation for push readiness.

Step 5: Create The Commit

Stage only the intended files:

git add <paths>
git commit -m "fix: concise summary"

Good commit subjects are:

• specific
• outcome-oriented
• scoped to one logical change

Examples:

fix: prevent detached release tag lineage regressions
feat: add evidence gate for feature pushes
docs: clarify pre-push audit requirements

Step 6: Evaluate Push Readiness

Before any push, confirm all of the following:

• explicit maintainer approval to push exists
• no blocked paths are included
• the relevant pre-push gates are satisfied
• full validation is green for this push cycle (either manual make check preflight or the pre-push hook run)
• the branch and target are intentional

Useful checks:

git diff --name-only origin/main HEAD
git log --oneline origin/main..HEAD

Emergency bypasses exist for individual gates, for example DRIFT_SKIP_CHANGELOG=1, DRIFT_SKIP_DOCSTRING=1, DRIFT_SKIP_RISK_AUDIT=1, DRIFT_SKIP_VERSION_BUMP=1, and DRIFT_SKIP_LOCKFILE=1. Use them only with explicit maintainer approval and a documented reason.

Step 7: Push Only With Approval

If and only if approval exists:

git push origin main

Do not use bypasses like DRIFT_SKIP_HOOKS=1 unless the maintainer explicitly requests an emergency override and the reason is documented.

Review Checklist

• Commit type matches actual change impact
• Only intended files are staged
• Drift Policy Gate was satisfied for the underlying task
• Required artifacts changed together with the code
• Validation was run at the appropriate level
• Push approval was explicitly granted before pushing

References

• .github/copilot-instructions.md
• .github/instructions/drift-policy.instructions.md
• .github/instructions/drift-push-gates.instructions.md
• .github/instructions/drift-quality-workflow.instructions.md