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git-hooks-automation

Master Git hooks setup with Husky, lint-staged, pre-commit framework, and commitlint. Automate code quality gates, formatting, linting, and commit message enforcement before code reaches CI.

Documentation

Git Hooks Automation

Automate code quality enforcement at the Git level. Set up hooks that lint, format, test, and validate before commits and pushes ever reach your CI pipeline — catching issues in seconds instead of minutes.

When to Use This Skill

  • User asks to "set up git hooks" or "add pre-commit hooks"
  • Configuring Husky, lint-staged, or the pre-commit framework
  • Enforcing commit message conventions (Conventional Commits, commitlint)
  • Automating linting, formatting, or type-checking before commits
  • Setting up pre-push hooks for test runners
  • Migrating from Husky v4 to v9+ or adopting hooks from scratch
  • User mentions "pre-commit", "commit-msg", "pre-push", "lint-staged", or "githooks"

Git Hooks Fundamentals

Git hooks are scripts that run automatically at specific points in the Git workflow. They live in .git/hooks/ and are not version-controlled by default — which is why tools like Husky exist.

Hook Types & When They Fire

HookFires WhenCommon Use
pre-commitBefore commit is createdLint, format, type-check staged files
prepare-commit-msgAfter default msg, before editorAuto-populate commit templates
commit-msgAfter user writes commit messageEnforce commit message format
post-commitAfter commit is createdNotifications, logging
pre-pushBefore push to remoteRun tests, check branch policies
pre-rebaseBefore rebase startsPrevent rebase on protected branches
post-mergeAfter merge completesInstall deps, run migrations
post-checkoutAfter checkout/switchInstall deps, rebuild assets

Native Git Hooks (No Framework)

# Create a pre-commit hook manually
cat > .git/hooks/pre-commit << 'EOF'
#!/bin/sh
set -e

# Run linter on staged files only
STAGED_FILES=$(git diff --cached --name-only --diff-filter=ACM | grep -E '\.(js|ts|jsx|tsx)$' || true)

if [ -n "$STAGED_FILES" ]; then
  echo "šŸ” Linting staged files..."
  echo "$STAGED_FILES" | xargs npx eslint --fix
  echo "$STAGED_FILES" | xargs git add  # Re-stage after fixes
fi
EOF
chmod +x .git/hooks/pre-commit

Problem: .git/hooks/ is local-only and not shared with the team. Use a framework instead.

Husky + lint-staged (Node.js Projects)

The modern standard for JavaScript/TypeScript projects. Husky manages Git hooks; lint-staged runs commands only on staged files for speed.

Quick Setup (Husky v9+)

# Install
npm install --save-dev husky lint-staged

# Initialize Husky (creates .husky/ directory)
npx husky init

# The init command creates a pre-commit hook — edit it:
echo "npx lint-staged" > .husky/pre-commit

Configure lint-staged in package.json

{
  "lint-staged": {
    "*.{js,jsx,ts,tsx}": [
      "eslint --fix --max-warnings=0",
      "prettier --write"
    ],
    "*.{css,scss}": [
      "prettier --write",
      "stylelint --fix"
    ],
    "*.{json,md,yml,yaml}": [
      "prettier --write"
    ]
  }
}

Add Commit Message Linting

# Install commitlint
npm install --save-dev @commitlint/cli @commitlint/config-conventional

# Create commitlint config
cat > commitlint.config.js << 'EOF'
module.exports = {
  extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'],
  rules: {
    'type-enum': [2, 'always', [
      'feat', 'fix', 'docs', 'style', 'refactor',
      'perf', 'test', 'build', 'ci', 'chore', 'revert'
    ]],
    'subject-max-length': [2, 'always', 72],
    'body-max-line-length': [2, 'always', 100]
  }
};
EOF

# Add commit-msg hook
echo "npx --no -- commitlint --edit \$1" > .husky/commit-msg

Add Pre-Push Hook

# Run tests before pushing
echo "npm test" > .husky/pre-push

Complete Husky Directory Structure

project/
ā”œā”€ā”€ .husky/
│   ā”œā”€ā”€ pre-commit        # npx lint-staged
│   ā”œā”€ā”€ commit-msg        # npx --no -- commitlint --edit $1
│   └── pre-push          # npm test
ā”œā”€ā”€ commitlint.config.js
ā”œā”€ā”€ package.json          # lint-staged config here
└── ...

pre-commit Framework (Python / Polyglot)

Language-agnostic framework that works with any project. Hooks are defined in YAML and run in isolated environments.

Setup

# Install (Python required)
pip install pre-commit

# Create config
cat > .pre-commit-config.yaml << 'EOF'
repos:
  # Built-in checks
  - repo: https://github.com/pre-commit/pre-commit-hooks
    rev: v4.6.0
    hooks:
      - id: trailing-whitespace
      - id: end-of-file-fixer
      - id: check-yaml
      - id: check-json
      - id: check-added-large-files
        args: ['--maxkb=500']
      - id: check-merge-conflict
      - id: detect-private-key

  # Python formatting
  - repo: https://github.com/psf/black
    rev: 24.4.2
    hooks:
      - id: black

  # Python linting
  - repo: https://github.com/astral-sh/ruff-pre-commit
    rev: v0.4.4
    hooks:
      - id: ruff
        args: ['--fix']
      - id: ruff-format

  # Shell script linting
  - repo: https://github.com/shellcheck-py/shellche

Use Cases

  • User asks to "set up git hooks" or "add pre-commit hooks"
  • Configuring Husky, lint-staged, or the pre-commit framework
  • Enforcing commit message conventions (Conventional Commits, commitlint)
  • Automating linting, formatting, or type-checking before commits
  • Setting up pre-push hooks for test runners