Code Manager (CM)

A powerful Go CLI tool for managing code development workflows, Git worktrees, and IDE integration. Enables parallel development across different branches and repositories with seamless IDE integration and forge connectivity.

Overview

cm is a command-line interface that simplifies code development workflows for both single repositories and multi-repo workspaces. It automatically detects your project type and provides intelligent worktree creation, management, IDE integration, and forge connectivity for enhanced development productivity.

Features

🔍 Smart Project Detection

• Single Repository Mode: Automatically detected when .git folder is present
• Workspace Mode: Detected when .code-workspace files exist (prompts for selection if multiple)

🌳 Worktree Management

• Create ephemeral or persistent worktrees for any branch
• Safe creation with collision detection
• Automatic cleanup for ephemeral worktrees
• Support for both single repos and multi-repo workspaces
• Organized directory structure: $repositories_dir/<repo_url>/<remote_name>/<branch>

🚀 IDE Integration

• Direct IDE launch with -i flag
• Seamless workspace duplication
• Optimized for modern IDE workflows (VSCode, Cursor, etc.)

🔗 Forge Integration

• Create worktrees directly from GitHub issues
• Automatic branch name generation from issue titles
• Support for multiple issue reference formats
• Issue information stored in status file for tracking
• Enhanced development workflow with forge connectivity

📊 Flexible Output

• Human-readable output for terminal usage
• JSON output for extension integration (--json flag)

🔄 Remote Branch Management

• Load branches from remote sources
• Support for multiple remote configurations
• Automatic remote management and validation

🏗️ Repository Management

• Clone, list, and delete repositories with automatic CM initialization
• Organized repository structure with remote tracking
• Default branch detection and management

🏢 Workspace Management

• Create, list, and delete multi-repository workspaces
• Automatic repository addition to status tracking
• Workspace-specific worktree management

🔧 Extensible Hook System

• Pre/post/error hooks for all operations
• Custom middleware for logging, validation, and business logic
• Plugin-like architecture for extensibility

Installation

# Install directly from GitHub
go install github.com/lerenn/code-manager/cmd/cm@latest

# Verify installation
cm --help

Prerequisites:

• Go 1.19 or later
• $GOPATH/bin in your $PATH (usually already configured)

For GitHub Integration:

• GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable (optional, for private repositories or rate limit increases)

First-Time Setup

Before using CM, you need to initialize it:

# Interactive initialization
cm init

# Initialize with default settings
cm init --repositories-dir ~/Code/src

# Initialize with custom directories
cm init --repositories-dir ~/Projects/src --workspaces-dir ~/Projects/workspaces

# Reset existing configuration
cm init --reset

Usage

Basic Commands

# Initialize CM configuration
cm init

# Clone a repository
cm repository clone <repository-url>

# Create a worktree for a branch
cm worktree create <branch-name>

# Create worktree and open in IDE
cm worktree create <branch-name> -i cursor

# List all worktrees
cm worktree list

# Load a branch from remote
cm worktree load <remote>:<branch-name>

# Open existing worktree in IDE
cm worktree open <branch-name> -i cursor

# Delete a worktree
cm worktree delete <branch-name>

Project Structure

Single Repository Mode

Worktrees are created at:

$repositories_dir/<repo_url>/<remote_name>/<branch>/

Workspace Mode

Worktrees are created at:

$repositories_dir/<repo_url>/<remote_name>/<branch>/<repo_name>/

Command Reference

init [options]

Initializes CM configuration for first-time use.

Options:

• --repositories-dir <path>, -r: Set the repositories directory directly
• --workspaces-dir <path>, -w: Set the workspaces directory directly
• --status-file <path>, -s: Set the status file location directly
• --reset, -R: Reset existing CM configuration and start fresh
• --force, -f: Skip interactive confirmation when using --reset flag

Examples:

# Interactive initialization
cm init

# Initialize with specific repositories directory
cm init --repositories-dir ~/Projects

# Initialize with custom settings
cm init --repositories-dir ~/Code/src --workspaces-dir ~/Code/workspaces

# Reset existing configuration
cm init --reset --force

repository clone <repository-url> [options]

Clones a repository and initializes it in CM.

Options:

• --shallow, -s: Perform a shallow clone (non-recursive)

Examples:

# Clone repository
cm repository clone https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git

# Shallow clone
cm repository clone git@github.com:lerenn/example.git --shallow

# Using aliases
cm repo clone https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World.git
cm r clone git@github.com:lerenn/example.git

repository list [options]

Lists all repositories tracked by CM.

Examples:

# List all repositories
cm repository list

# Using aliases
cm repo list
cm r list

repository delete <repository-name> [options]

Removes a repository from CM tracking and optionally deletes the local directory.

Options:

• --force: Force deletion without confirmation

Examples:

# Delete repository with confirmation
cm repository delete my-repo

# Force delete without confirmation
cm repository delete my-repo --force

# Using aliases
cm repo delete my-repo
cm r delete my-repo --force

worktree create <branch> [options]

Creates a new worktree for the specified branch.

Options:

• -i, --ide <ide-name>: Open the worktree in IDE after creation
• -f, --force: Force creation without prompts

Examples:

# Create persistent worktree
cm worktree create feature/new-feature

# Create worktree and open in Cursor IDE
cm worktree create hotfix/bug-fix -i cursor

# Force creation
cm worktree create feature-branch --force

# Using aliases
cm wt create feature-branch
cm w create feature-branch -i vscode

worktree load [remote:]<branch-name> [options]

Loads a branch from a remote source and creates a worktree.

Options:

• -i, --ide <ide-name>: Open in specified IDE after loading

Examples:

# Load branch from origin
cm worktree load origin:feature-branch

# Load branch from another user's fork
cm worktree load otheruser:feature-branch

# Load and open in IDE
cm worktree load feature-branch -i cursor

# Using aliases
cm wt load upstream:main
cm w load feature-branch --ide vscode

worktree list [options]

Lists all active worktrees for the current project.

Options:

• -f, --force: Force listing without prompts

Examples:

# List worktrees
cm worktree list

# Force listing
cm worktree list --force

# Using aliases
cm wt list
cm w list

Output Format:

Worktrees:
  [origin] main
  [origin] feature/new-feature
  [upstream] develop

worktree open <branch> [options]

Opens a worktree in the specified IDE.

Options:

• -i, --ide <ide-name>: Open in specified IDE (defaults to cursor)

Examples:

# Open worktree in default IDE (cursor)
cm worktree open feature-branch

# Open in specific IDE
cm worktree open main -i vscode

# Using aliases
cm wt open feature-branch
cm w open main --ide goland

worktree delete <branch> [options]

Safely removes a worktree and cleans up Git state.

Options:

• --force: Force deletion without confirmation

Examples:

# Delete with confirmation
cm worktree delete feature/new-feature

# Force delete without confirmation
cm worktree delete bugfix/issue-123 --force

# Using aliases
cm wt delete feature-branch
cm w delete hotfix/critical-fix --force

workspace create <workspace-name> [repositories...] [options]

Creates a new workspace definition with the specified repositories.

Examples:

# Create workspace with repository names from status
cm workspace create my-workspace repo1 repo2

# Create workspace with absolute paths
cm workspace create my-workspace /path/to/repo1 /path/to/repo2

# Create workspace with relative paths
cm workspace create my-workspace ./repo1 ../repo2

# Using aliases
cm ws create my-workspace repo1 repo2

workspace list [options]

Lists all workspaces tracked by CM.

Examples:

# List all workspaces
cm workspace list

# Using aliases
cm ws list

workspace delete <workspace-name> [options]

Deletes a workspace and all associated worktrees and files.

Options:

• --force: Skip confirmation prompts

Examples:

# Delete workspace with confirmation
cm workspace delete my-workspace

# Force delete without confirmation
cm workspace delete my-workspace --force

# Using aliases
cm ws delete my-workspace

Global Options

All commands support these global options:

• -v, --verbose: Enable verbose output
• -q, --quiet: Suppress all output except errors
• -c, --config <path>: Specify a custom config file path

Worktree Types

Persistent Worktrees

• Survive IDE restarts
• Manual cleanup required
• Ideal for long-term feature development

Safety Features

• Collision Detection: Prevents accidental overwrites of existing worktrees
• Safe Deletion: Confirms before removing worktrees
• Git State Cleanup: Properly removes worktree references from Git
• Path Validation: Ensures valid worktree paths
• Repository Validation: Validates repository structure and Git configuration

Configuration

Configuration files are stored in $HOME/.cm/:

• config.yaml: Main configuration file with repositories directory and status file location
• status.yaml: Status file tracking repositories, worktrees, and workspaces

Default Configuration

# Repositories directory
repositories_dir: ~/Code/src

# Status file path
status_file: ~/.cm/status.yaml

# Worktrees directory (computed as $repositories_dir/worktrees)
worktrees_dir: ~/Code/src/worktrees

Extension Integration

The --json flag enables structured output for extension development:

# Get worktree list in JSON format
cm worktree list --json

# Create worktree with JSON response
cm worktree create feature-branch --json

Contributing

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Roadmap

• Hook system for extensibility
• Workspace creation and management
• Repository management (clone, list, delete)
• Workspace template support
• Branch naming conventions
• Integration with Git hooks
• Advanced filtering options
• Performance optimizations
• Plugin system for custom workflows
• Enhanced forge integrations (GitLab, Bitbucket)
• Code review workflow integration
• Automated testing workflow support
• Multi-language project support