So I wrote a bash script which allows you to have multiple staging areas. WARNING: This is beta software. I use it for my own use, but please be careful. I cannot take any responsibility!!!
To continue or create a stage:
# gitstage [staging area name]
This puts an existing stage into the index (if the stage exists) and then executes git gui.
To list the current staging areas:
# gitstage
The workflow scenario I use is generally something like this
1. Run git gui
2. Realise that I need to split the commit into 2... duhhhh
3. Close git gui without commiting
4. Run gitstage commit1, which creates a staging area called 'commit1' and then opens the git gui again
5. Make note of what I've staged so far in the git gui Commit Message textbox
6. Close the git gui.
- gitstage will now creates a commit of the currently staged index
- gitstage also puts any messages you were writing in the git gui in .git/gitstage/commit1.msg
7 Run gitstage commit2, which creates another staging area and opens git gui.
8. Add other files/hunks/lines to the new staging area in the gui
9. Repeat steps 4-8 multiple times. Each time you swap the messages you write will be kept
10. Committing: click commit in the gui and close the gui
- this then removes the staging area
- commit any other remaining staging areas
- end of work flow
The approach I originally took was to store the staged commits as patches, but that means the working directory gets modified, which I didn't like. The new approach actually commits the staged commit and tags it with stage-[name]. The stage- prefix is used for stage names.
To switch to a previous stage I reset back to before the commit and then cherry pick all the revisions after that. As it goes along, it also re-tags all the stages. Then the last commit is cherry picked into the index only.
A few 'nice to haves':
To switch to a previous stage I reset back to before the commit and then cherry pick all the revisions after that. As it goes along, it also re-tags all the stages. Then the last commit is cherry picked into the index only.
A few 'nice to haves':
- It'd be nice to streamline this in an actual gui, but I like git gui and I don't have time so this works for me! :-).
- A bunch of command line tools which does something similar would be good too.
You can download the script here: http://github.com/ustramooner/gitstage
Put it in your home ~/bin or in /usr/local/bin and make it executable.
Put it in your home ~/bin or in /usr/local/bin and make it executable.
It is a shame that git doesn't natively support multiple staging areas. Like you, I end up with a pile of edits that need a number of commits. I'll commit feature A, then feature B, then crap... this part should have gone into feature A. Putting everything into separate staging areas before committing anything would be really nice.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I would love to stick debug and local config changes in a separate staging area to keep them out of the way.