git-feature

Create and switch to a new feature branch

$ git feature [feature_branch]

$ git feature finish [feature_branch]

$ git feature finish --squash [feature_branch]

$ git feature [feature_branch] [[-r|--remote]] [remote_name]

Since git-feature is a user-defined script, its synopsis varies. A typical representation might be:

git feature <subcommand> [options] [arguments]

Where <subcommand> represents an action like start, finish, or publish, and <options> and <arguments> are specific to that action.

start <feature-name>
    Commonly creates and checks out a new feature branch, often from a development branch like develop or main.

finish [<feature-name>]
    Typically integrates the specified or current feature branch into the main development branch (e.g., via merge or rebase), and then deletes the feature branch.

publish [<feature-name>]
    Often pushes the local feature branch to the remote repository, setting up tracking.

pull [<feature-name>]
    Usually updates the current feature branch from its upstream, or pulls changes from a specified development branch into the feature branch.

track <feature-name>
    Sometimes used to check out an existing remote feature branch and set up tracking.

The git-feature command is not a standard, built-in command provided by Git itself. Instead, it typically refers to a custom script or Git alias created by users or third-party tools to streamline common operations related to feature branch workflows. Its purpose is to encapsulate a series of Git commands into simpler, higher-level actions, making it easier for developers to manage feature branches from creation to integration.

Common functionalities often include starting a new feature branch, finishing a feature (merging/rebasing and deleting the branch), publishing a local feature branch to a remote, or pulling updates from a main development branch into an ongoing feature. The exact behavior, available subcommands, and options depend entirely on the specific implementation of the git-feature script being used.

The most significant caveat is that git-feature is not a built-in Git command. Its existence and behavior are entirely dependent on whether a user or system administrator has created a script or alias with this name. Therefore, if you try to use git feature on a system where it hasn't been set up, it will result in an error or an 'unknown command' message. Users must either create their own git-feature script or use a third-party workflow tool that provides such functionality.

A git-feature script is commonly implemented as an executable file named git-feature placed in a directory listed in the user's PATH, or as a Git alias defined in the .gitconfig file. For example, an alias could be feature = '!f() { git checkout -b feature/$1 develop; }; f', which would create a basic 'start' functionality. More complex versions are shell scripts that parse subcommands and arguments.

The concept of encapsulating complex Git workflows into simpler commands gained traction with the rise of structured branching models like 'Git Flow' (introduced by Vincent Driessen in 2010). While git-flow became a prominent extension, many developers sought lighter, custom scripts to fit their specific needs without adopting the full git-flow model. The name git-feature emerged as a common, intuitive choice for these bespoke scripts, reflecting their primary focus on managing individual feature branches. Its 'history' is more about the evolution of Git best practices and user-contributed tooling rather than a single, formal development timeline.

git-branch(1), git-checkout(1), git-merge(1), git-rebase(1), git-flow(1) (a popular Git workflow extension)