Analyzing Branch Status

Overview

Provide comprehensive status report for a single autonomy branch by analyzing all journal commits and extracting timeline, metrics, and state evolution.

Core principle: Dispatch branch-analyzer agent for computational analysis. Never manually review commits.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• User runs /branch-status command
• User wants deep dive into one branch
• User wants to see metrics progression over time
• User wants blocker history for a branch

DO NOT use for:

• Listing all branches (use listing-branches instead)
• Comparing two branches (use comparing-branches instead)
• Current branch review (use reviewing-progress instead)

Quick Reference

Step	Action	Tool
1. Parse and validate	Normalize branch name, check exists	Bash
2. Dispatch agent	Send branch to branch-analyzer	Task
3. Present report	Display comprehensive status	Direct output

Process

Step 1: Parse and Validate Branch Name

Normalize and validate the branch name:

Normalize:

# If user provided name without autonomy/ prefix, add it
if [[ "$branch_name" != autonomy/* ]]; then
  branch_name="autonomy/$branch_name"
fi

Validate exists:

# Check if branch exists (local or remote)
if ! git branch -a | grep -q "$branch_name\$"; then
  echo "Error: Branch '$branch_name' not found among autonomy branches."
  echo ""
  echo "Available autonomy branches:"
  git branch -a | grep 'autonomy/' | sed 's/^..//; s/ -> .*//'
  echo ""
  echo "Run '/list-branches' to see all autonomy branches."
  exit 1
fi

Validate is autonomy branch:

# Verify it's an autonomy branch
if [[ "$branch_name" != autonomy/* ]]; then
  echo "Error: Branch '$branch_name' is not an autonomy branch."
  echo ""
  echo "These commands only operate on autonomy/* branches."
  echo ""
  echo "To analyze this branch's iterations:"
  echo "- Run '/review-progress' (works on any branch)"
  echo ""
  echo "To convert to autonomy workflow:"
  echo "- Run '/fork-iteration <strategy-name>' to create autonomy branch from current state"
  exit 1
fi

Step 2: Dispatch Branch-Analyzer Agent

Dispatch the branch-analyzer agent with detailed instructions:

Task tool with subagent_type: "autonomy:branch-analyzer"
Model: haiku
Prompt: "Analyze autonomy branch '$branch_name' and provide comprehensive status report.

Tasks:
1. Read all journal commits on branch (commits starting with 'journal: ')
2. Parse each commit message for:
   - Iteration number
   - Date
   - Status (active/blocked/concluded/dead-end)
   - Metrics
   - Blockers
   - Next steps
3. Generate Python script to analyze:
   - Complete iteration timeline (chronological)
   - Status changes over time
   - Metrics progression (if metrics exist)
   - Blocker history
   - Current state from most recent commit
4. Execute Python script
5. Output comprehensive markdown report

Use computational methods (Python scripts), do not eyeball the analysis.

Report format:
- Iteration Timeline section
- Metrics Over Time section (if metrics exist)
- Status Evolution section
- Blocker History section
- Current State and Recommendations section"

Agent will:

1. List all commits on branch: git log autonomy/<branch-name>
2. Filter for journal commits (start with "journal: ")
3. Parse each commit message metadata
4. Generate Python script for analysis
5. Execute script to produce timeline, metrics, blockers
6. Return formatted markdown report

Step 3: Present Report

Display agent's comprehensive report to user.

Example output format:

# Branch Status: autonomy/experiment-a

**Current Status:** blocked
**Latest Iteration:** 0028
**Last Updated:** 2026-01-02
**Total Iterations:** 28

---

## Iteration Timeline

| Iteration | Date | Status | Summary |
|-----------|------|--------|---------|
| 0001 | 2025-11-15 | active | Initial setup of usage-based pricing model |
| 0002 | 2025-11-16 | active | Implemented tier calculations |
| ... | ... | ... | ... |
| 0027 | 2026-01-01 | active | Stripe API integration progress |
| 0028 | 2026-01-02 | blocked | Awaiting Stripe webhook documentation |

---

## Metrics Over Time

MRR progression:
- Iteration 0001: $45k (baseline)
- Iteration 0010: $52k (+15.6%)
- Iteration 0020: $58k (+28.9%)
- Iteration 0028: $62k (+37.8%)

Build time:
- Iteration 0015: 5.2min (baseline)
- Iteration 0028: 3.2min (-38.5%)

---

## Status Evolution

- Iterations 0001-0027: active (normal progression)
- Iteration 0028: blocked (current)

---

## Blocker History

**Current Blockers (Iteration 0028):**
- Stripe webhook integration unclear: need updated API docs
- Finance team approval pending for pricing structure

**Resolved Blockers:**
- Iteration 0015: Build performance (resolved at 0016)
- Iteration 0022: User feedback collection (resolved at 0024)

---

## Current State and Recommendations

**Where we are:**
Branch has made substantial progress over 28 iterations. MRR increased 37.8%, build time reduced 38.5%. Currently blocked on external dependencies.

**Recommended actions:**
1. Escalate Stripe API documentation request
2. Schedule finance team review meeting
3. Consider parallel work on pricing page UI while blocked
4. Review iteration 0027 for alternative integration approaches

**Branch health:** Active exploration, currently blocked but making good progress

Important Notes

Only Autonomy Branches

This skill ONLY analyzes autonomy/* branches:

• Validates branch has autonomy/ prefix
• Will not analyze non-autonomy branches
• For general iteration review, user should use /review-progress

Computational Analysis Required

DO NOT:

• Manually read through commits
• "Eyeball" metrics progression
• Guess at patterns or trends

DO:

• Dispatch branch-analyzer agent
• Let agent generate Python scripts
• Use computational methods for precision

Read-Only Operations

All analysis happens via git commands:

• Never checkout the branch
• Read commits via git log <branch-name>
• Branch-analyzer uses read-only operations
• No modifications to any files

Metrics May Not Exist

Not all goals have quantitative metrics:

• Some goals are qualitative
• Metrics section may be "None" in commit messages
• Report should handle missing metrics gracefully
• Don't force metrics where they don't exist

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Reality
"I'll read the journal files to get status"	NO. Read commit messages via git log. Don't checkout branch.
"Only 10 iterations, I can review manually"	NO. Always dispatch branch-analyzer for computational analysis.
"Branch is on remote, I can't analyze it"	YES YOU CAN. Use git log origin/branch-name to read commits.
"No metrics in some commits, report is incomplete"	OK. Not all iterations have metrics. Report what exists.
"I'll checkout branch to read latest journal"	NO. Read commit message via git log. Never checkout.

After Analyzing

Once analysis is complete:

• Report displayed to user
• No files created or modified
• User can fork from any iteration: /fork-iteration <iteration> <strategy-name>
• User can compare with another branch: /compare-branches <branch-a> <branch-b>