/jj-commit

Jujutsu Commit Workflow

Create focused jj commits with related changes only. Unlike git, jj has no staging area — the working copy IS the current commit (@).

Arguments

• $ARGUMENTS - Commit message (optional, will prompt if not provided)

Workflow

1. Show changed files grouped by category

Run jj status and group files into categories:

• Scripts: *.sh, *.hs, *.py, bin/*
• Config: *.conf, *.toml, *.yaml, *.yml, *.json, CLAUDE.md, .claude/*
• Data: *.journal, *.csv, *.rules, *.ledger, *.beancount
• Docs: *.md (excluding CLAUDE.md), *.txt, *.rst
• Other: Everything else

Output format:

Changed files by category:

  [1] Scripts (2 files)
      bin/fetch-prices.sh
      hledger-factset-paystub.hs

  [2] Config (1 file)
      CLAUDE.md

2. Select files to commit

If only ONE category has changes:

• Auto-select that category, show preview, ask to confirm

If MULTIPLE categories have changes:

• Use AskUserQuestion with multiSelect: true
• Each option: category name + file count, description lists the files

3. Pre-commit validation

Check for .claude/jj-pre-commit.sh in the project root:

• If it exists and is executable, run it
• If it fails (non-zero exit), BLOCK the commit and show the output
• If it doesn't exist, skip this step

This allows projects to add custom validation (e.g., hledger check, cargo test, npm run lint) without modifying the plugin.

4. Create commit with selected files

# Commit only the selected files
jj commit -m "<message>" <file1> <file2> ...

# Other files remain in working copy (@) for future commits

5. Show commit result

jj log -r @ -r @-

6. Remind about bookmark advancement

After the commit, remind:

Tip: Run `jj bookmark advance` (or `jj ba`) to move bookmarks forward.

Key Differences from Git

Aspect	Git	Jujutsu (jj)
Staging	git add required	No staging — working copy is @ commit
Selective commit	Stage files, then commit	jj commit [paths...] directly
Uncommitted changes	Outside staging area	Remain in working copy (@)
Commit all	git commit -a	jj commit (no paths)