Skills Guide

Git Checkpoint Management

VerifiedCaution

This skill enables creating named git stashes as checkpoints before risky changes, listing them, and restoring or popping checkpoints to recover previous states. It helps maintain safe recovery points during refactoring or experimental code modifications.

Download and use
Sby Skills Guide Bot
DevelopmentBeginner
3/1/2026
Claude Code
#git#stash#checkpoint#recovery#version-control

Recommended for

Backend developerClaude CodeCode reviewFrontend developerFullstack developerRefactoring

Automated summary

Manages git checkpoints on top of git stash, with named creation, listing, targeted or quick restore, and cleanup of checkpoints.

Strengths

  • Explicit subcommands (create, list, restore, pop, clear) covering the whole checkpoint lifecycle
  • Timestamped claude-checkpoint_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS naming that separates agent checkpoints from personal stashes
  • Restore uses git stash apply without dropping the stash, preserving a safety net
  • Asks for confirmation before deleting checkpoints

Limitations

  • Entirely dependent on git stash: no checkpoint outside a git repository or without the git binary
  • Listing and prefix filtering are described as instructions; no script is provided and file-change counting is not guaranteed
  • The clear command can drop several stashes at once, with only a confirmation prompt as protection
When to use it

Reach for it before a risky refactor or experiment when you want a quick recovery point without making a commit.

When not to use it

Skip it if you need durable, shareable history: use real commits on a dedicated branch instead.

Security analysis

Caution
Quality score82/100

The skill uses legitimate git stash operations for checkpointing and does not exfiltrate data, run remote scripts, or perform broadly destructive actions. Because it relies on Bash to change repository state, it warrants caution rather than safe.

Findings
  • •Uses Bash and git stash commands that can modify the working tree and stash list.
  • •The clear operation drops stashes, though it explicitly asks for confirmation and filters to claude-checkpoint entries.
How this analysis is made

Examples

Checkpoint before refactor
/checkpoint create "before refactoring auth module"
Inspect and restore
/checkpoint list, then /checkpoint restore "before refactoring auth module" once I pick the right one
Clean up old checkpoints
/checkpoint clear to drop the old claude-checkpoint stashes, asking me to confirm first

name: checkpoint description: Git checkpoint management - create, list, restore checkpoints. Invoke when starting risky changes or needing safe recovery points. allowed-tools: Bash, Read, Write, Glob

Git checkpoint system

Manage git checkpoints (stashes) for safe code exploration and recovery.

When to invoke

  • Before making risky changes or refactoring
  • When you want a quick save point without committing
  • To restore previous state after experiments fail
  • To maintain multiple work-in-progress states

Usage

/checkpoint create [name]     # Create a named checkpoint
/checkpoint list              # List checkpoints
/checkpoint restore [name]    # Restore a specific checkpoint
/checkpoint pop               # Restore the most recent checkpoint
/checkpoint clear             # Remove checkpoints

Instructions

Create checkpoint

  1. Check if in a git repository
  2. Check for uncommitted changes
  3. Create a git stash with the name: claude-checkpoint_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS: [name]
  4. Confirm the checkpoint creation

List checkpoints

  1. Run git stash list
  2. Filter stashes that start with claude-checkpoint
  3. Display in a formatted table:
    • Index (stash@{N})
    • Timestamp
    • Description
    • Number of files changed

Restore checkpoint

  1. Find the stash matching the given name or index
  2. Apply the stash with git stash apply stash@{N}
  3. Do NOT drop the stash (keep it for safety)
  4. Report restoration details

Pop checkpoint

  1. Find the recent claude-checkpoint stash
  2. Apply it with git stash pop stash@{N}
  3. Report restoration details

Clear checkpoints

  1. List claude-checkpoint stashes
  2. Ask for confirmation before proceeding
  3. Drop each matching stash
  4. Report removal count

Examples

# Create checkpoint before risky changes
/checkpoint create "before refactoring auth module"

# List checkpoints
/checkpoint list

# Restore if something went wrong
/checkpoint restore "before refactoring auth module"

# Quick restore of the recent one
/checkpoint pop

# Clean up old checkpoints
/checkpoint clear

Notes

  • Checkpoints rely on git stash under the hood
  • Include untracked files in checkpoints
  • Checkpoints persist across sessions
  • Apply descriptive names for identification

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/download' --output '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

Tools declared by the author (check availability in your agent): Bash, Read, Write, Glob

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

After inspection, copy the complete folder into your project using one of the commands below, then open a new tool session. The command stops if a folder with the same name already exists: compare the files before replacing it.

Claude Code
test -f '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.claude/skills' && test ! -e '.claude/skills/checkpoint' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h' '.claude/skills/checkpoint'

OpenSkills

OpenSkills must already be installed. The local install/read procedure is checked with OpenSkills 1.5.0, which requires Node.js ≥ 20.6.0. Catalog slugs are not resolved automatically.

Official OpenSkills installation
openskills install './.skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h'

openskills read 'git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h'

Reading should display the installed file content and its base directory. It does not run the skill or install its dependencies.

For an agent that reads AGENTS.md, then sync the index. This command changes AGENTS.md: review the diff before using it.

openskills sync

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/git-checkpoint-management-mm78no3h/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

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