Jujutsu

Git-compatible VCS focused on concurrent development and ease of use.

Trigger: commit, save changes, push, rebase, squash, describe, jj, or any VCS operation when .jj/ directory exists.

⚠️ Precedence Rule

When a repository contains a .jj/ directory, this skill takes precedence over git-based workflows. Never use git add, git commit, or git push in a jj-managed repo. All version control operations MUST use jj commands.

Detection: Check for .jj/ directory at repo root. If present → use jj. If absent → fall back to git.

Git Mental Model Translation

User Says	Git Equivalent	Jj Command
"commit" / "commit my changes"	git add . && git commit -m "msg"	jj commit -m "msg" (changes are already tracked)
"save and start new work"	git commit -m "msg"	jj commit -m "msg"
"push"	git push	jj git push
"create a branch"	git checkout -b name	jj bookmark create name -r @
"stash"	git stash	Not needed — just jj new and come back later
"amend" / "add to last commit"	git commit --amend	jj squash
"rebase"	git rebase	jj rebase -d destination
"see what changed"	git diff / git status	jj diff / jj st
"log" / "history"	git log	jj log

Commit Workflow (When User Says "Commit")

Jujutsu has no staging area. All file changes are automatically part of the current change. The "commit" workflow is:

# This describes the current change AND creates a new empty change to continue working
jj commit -m "feat: add new feature"

# That's it. No `add`, no `stage`. One command.

Important behaviors:

• jj commit -m "msg" = describe current change + create new empty change (equivalent of git commit)
• jj desc -m "msg" = only update description, stay on same change (use when user says "describe", not "commit")
• If user says "commit" without a message, ask for one — then use jj commit -m "message"
• Use conventional commits format: type(scope): description

Key Commands

Command	Description
jj st	Show working copy status
jj log	Show change log
jj diff	Show changes in working copy
jj new	Create new change
jj desc	Edit change description (stay on same change)
jj commit	Describe + create new change (= git commit)
jj squash	Move changes to parent
jj split	Split current change
jj rebase -s src -d dest	Rebase changes
jj absorb	Move changes into stack of mutable revisions
jj bisect	Find bad revision by bisection
jj fix	Update files with formatting fixes
jj sign	Cryptographically sign a revision
jj metaedit	Modify metadata without changing content

Project Setup

jj git init              # Init in existing git repo
jj git init --colocate   # Side-by-side with git

Basic Workflow

jj new                   # Create new change
jj desc -m "feat: add feature"  # Set description
jj log                   # View history
jj edit change-id        # Switch to change
jj new --before @        # Time travel (create before current)
jj edit @-               # Go to parent

Time Travel

jj edit change-id        # Switch to specific change
jj next --edit           # Next child change
jj edit @-               # Parent change
jj new --before @ -m msg # Insert before current

Merging & Rebasing

jj new x yz -m msg       # Merge changes
jj rebase -s src -d dest # Rebase source onto dest
jj abandon              # Delete current change

Conflicts

jj resolve              # Interactive conflict resolution
# Edit files, then continue

Templates & Revsets

jj log -T 'commit_id ++ "\n" ++ description'
jj log -r 'heads(all())'    # All heads
jj log -r 'remote_bookmarks()..'  # Not on remote
jj log -r 'author(name)'    # By author

Git Interop

jj bookmark create main -r @  # Create bookmark
jj git push --bookmark main   # Push bookmark
jj git fetch                 # Fetch from remote
jj bookmark track main@origin # Track remote

Advanced Commands

jj absorb               # Auto-move changes to relevant commits in stack
jj bisect start         # Start bisection
jj bisect good          # Mark current as good
jj bisect bad           # Mark current as bad
jj fix                  # Run configured formatters on files
jj sign -r @            # Sign current revision
jj metaedit -r @ -m "new message"  # Edit metadata only

Tips

• No staging: changes are immediate — never use git add in a jj repo
• Use conventional commits: type(scope): desc
• jj undo to revert operations
• jj op log to see operation history
• Bookmarks are like branches
• jj absorb is powerful for fixing up commits in a stack
• When user says "commit", always use jj commit -m "msg"

Related Skills

• gh: GitHub CLI for PRs and issues
• review: Code review before committing