git-sweep

A small, cross-platform Go CLI that removes local branches whose upstream has been removed (e.g., branches marked as "[gone]"). Safe by default, dry-run first, and designed for Windows/macOS/Linux.

Installation

One-line install

Linux / macOS

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmelosegui/git-sweep/main/scripts/install.sh | bash

Pass -s -- --prerelease to opt into the latest pre-release tag:

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmelosegui/git-sweep/main/scripts/install.sh | bash -s -- --prerelease

The script installs to ~/.git-sweep/bin (override with INSTALL_DIR=...) and adds that directory to your shell rc (bash, zsh, fish, or ~/.profile as a fallback). Reload your shell or source the rc file afterwards.

Windows (PowerShell)

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmelosegui/git-sweep/main/scripts/install.ps1 | iex

For pre-releases, run the script with the -Prerelease switch:

& ([scriptblock]::Create((irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/jmelosegui/git-sweep/main/scripts/install.ps1))) -Prerelease

The script installs to %LOCALAPPDATA%\git-sweep (override with $env:GIT_SWEEP_INSTALL_DIR) and updates your user Path. Restart your terminal afterwards.

Manual install from GitHub Releases (including pre-releases)

1. Go to the repository Releases page and pick a version. To use a pre-release, select a tag labeled “Pre-release”.
2. Download the archive matching your OS/arch:
   • linux: git-sweep_<version>_linux_amd64.tar.gz (or _arm64)
   • macOS: git-sweep_<version>_darwin_amd64.tar.gz (or _arm64)
   • Windows: git-sweep_<version>_windows_amd64.zip (or _arm64)
3. (Recommended) Verify checksum:
   • Download checksums.txt from the same release
   • macOS/Linux:

     # Replace <version>, <os>, and <arch> with the actual values for your downloaded file.
     # Example for version 1.2.3 on Linux amd64:
     shasum -a 256 -c checksums.txt | grep git-sweep_1.2.3_linux_amd64
     # Or, for your specific file:
     shasum -a 256 -c checksums.txt | grep git-sweep_<version>_<os>_<arch>
     

   • Windows PowerShell:

     Get-FileHash .\git-sweep_<version>_windows_amd64.zip -Algorithm SHA256
     # Compare against the corresponding line in checksums.txt

4. Extract:
   • macOS/Linux:

     tar -xzf git-sweep_<version>_<os>_<arch>.tar.gz

   • Windows PowerShell:

     Expand-Archive .\git-sweep_<version>_windows_amd64.zip -DestinationPath .\git-sweep

5. Move the binary into your PATH:
   • macOS/Linux (example):

     sudo mv git-sweep /usr/local/bin/

   • Windows (example): add the extracted folder to the "Path" user environment variable, or move git-sweep.exe into a directory already on PATH.
6. Verify:

   git sweep -V

Usage

Dry-run (default):

git sweep

Execute deletions (interactive confirm if TTY):

git sweep -y

JSON plan output:

git sweep --json

Update notifications

git-sweep checks the GitHub Releases API at most once every 24 hours and prints a one-line notice on stderr when a newer version is available. The check is skipped automatically when --json is set, when stderr is not a terminal (CI, redirects), and for the development build. To opt out entirely, set GIT_SWEEP_NO_UPDATE_CHECK=1.