Git + PR Flow Cheat Sheet

git, github

Daily pre-flight

Always start from staging and sync with remote:

git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging

  • Makes sure local staging includes:

    • All merged PRs from GitHub
    • My work, rebased on top

  • If there are conflicts, fix, git add, then:

git rebase --continue

My normal work on staging

git checkout staging          # if not already
# edit in VS Code
git status                    # see changes
git add .                     # or specific files
git aic                       # my epic ai-commits cli-app (@taksumaq/aicommits)
git push origin staging

This keeps origin/staging as the source of truth for staging + deploys.

When a collaborator opens a PR

Decide merge vs close

This is the real decision point. Once merged, origin/staging now “wants” those changes.

Sync that decision locally

After merging/closing the PR:

git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging

  • If merged:

    • Pull brings in the merged commits.
    • My local work is rebased on top.

  • If closed:

    • Pull is usually a no-op (already up to date).

Then I keep working as usual (commit + push).

Testing a PR locally

Example PR branch collab-feature-x → staging.

Getting the PR branch locally

git fetch origin
git checkout -b collab-feature-x origin/collab-feature-x
  • Now I’m on a local copy of the PR branch.
  • I can run dev server, test, read copy, etc.

If I’m good with it → merge into staging

git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging          # make sure staging is current
git merge --no-ff collab-feature-x         # merge PR branch into staging
git push origin staging                   # update GitHub

GitHub will auto-detect that the PR’s commits are now in staging and mark the PR as merged.

Otherwise → don’t merge

  • Locally, I can drop the branch:
git branch -d collab-feature-x

Using GitHub CLI (gh) for PRs (optional, terminal-native)

From inside the repo:

List PRs

gh pr list

View a PR

gh pr view 12          # PR #12

Checkout a PR branch locally

gh pr checkout 12

(This is equivalent to git fetch + git checkout -b ... origin/....)

Merge a PR from terminal

gh pr merge 12 --merge
  • --merge → normal merge commit
  • After this, sync locally:
git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging

Close (reject) a PR from terminal

gh pr close 12

Cleaning up branches

After a PR is merged / closed

Delete remote branch:

git push origin --delete collab-feature-x

(or use the “Delete branch” button on GitHub after merge).

Prune remote-tracking refs locally:

git fetch --prune origin

Delete local branch:

git branch -d collab-feature-x

Quick “safe sync” patterns

Before starting any work

git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging

After merging PRs on GitHub

git checkout staging
git pull --rebase origin staging

When things feel off

  1. Make backup branch:
git branch backup/local-snapshot-YYYYMMDD

  1. Then pull --rebase, conflict fixes, etc.

  2. Delete backup later if happy:

git branch -d backup/local-snapshot-YYYYMMDD