pull
skill✓Pull latest origin/main into the current local branch and resolve merge conflicts (aka update-branch). Use when Codex needs to sync a feature branch with origin, perform a merge-based update (not rebase), and guide conflict resolution best practices.
apm::install
apm install @openai/pullapm::skill.md
---
name: pull
description:
Pull latest origin/main into the current local branch and resolve merge
conflicts (aka update-branch). Use when Codex needs to sync a feature branch
with origin, perform a merge-based update (not rebase), and guide conflict
resolution best practices.
---
# Pull
## Workflow
1. Verify git status is clean or commit/stash changes before merging.
2. Ensure rerere is enabled locally:
- `git config rerere.enabled true`
- `git config rerere.autoupdate true`
3. Confirm remotes and branches:
- Ensure the `origin` remote exists.
- Ensure the current branch is the one to receive the merge.
4. Fetch latest refs:
- `git fetch origin`
5. Sync the remote feature branch first:
- `git pull --ff-only origin $(git branch --show-current)`
- This pulls branch updates made remotely (for example, a GitHub auto-commit)
before merging `origin/main`.
6. Merge in order:
- Prefer `git -c merge.conflictstyle=zdiff3 merge origin/main` for clearer
conflict context.
7. If conflicts appear, resolve them (see conflict guidance below), then:
- `git add <files>`
- `git commit` (or `git merge --continue` if the merge is paused)
8. Verify with project checks (follow repo policy in `AGENTS.md`).
9. Summarize the merge:
- Call out the most challenging conflicts/files and how they were resolved.
- Note any assumptions or follow-ups.
## Conflict Resolution Guidance (Best Practices)
- Inspect context before editing:
- Use `git status` to list conflicted files.
- Use `git diff` or `git diff --merge` to see conflict hunks.
- Use `git diff :1:path/to/file :2:path/to/file` and
`git diff :1:path/to/file :3:path/to/file` to compare base vs ours/theirs
for a file-level view of intent.
- With `merge.conflictstyle=zdiff3`, conflict markers include:
- `<<<<<<<` ours, `|||||||` base, `=======` split, `>>>>>>>` theirs.
- Matching lines near the start/end are trimmed out of the conflict region,
so focus on the differing core.
- Summarize the intent of both changes, decide the semantically correct
outcome, then edit:
- State what each side is trying to achieve (bug fix, refactor, rename,
behavior change).
- Identify the shared goal, if any, and whether one side supersedes the
other.
- Decide the final behavior first; only then craft the code to match that
decision.
- Prefer preserving invariants, API contracts, and user-visible behavior
unless the conflict clearly indicates a deliberate change.
- Open files and understand intent on both sides before choosing a resolution.
- Prefer minimal, intention-preserving edits:
- Keep behavior consistent with the branch’s purpose.
- Avoid accidental deletions or silent behavior changes.
- Resolve one file at a time and rerun tests after each logical batch.
- Use `ours/theirs` only when you are certain one side should win entirely.
- For complex conflicts, search for related files or definitions to align with
the rest of the codebase.
- For generated files, resolve non-generated conflicts first, then regenerate:
- Prefer resolving source files and handwritten logic before touching
generated artifacts.
- Run the CLI/tooling command that produced the generated file to recreate it
cleanly, then stage the regenerated output.
- For import conflicts where intent is unclear, accept both sides first:
- Keep all candidate imports temporarily, finish the merge, then run lint/type
checks to remove unused or incorrect imports safely.
- After resolving, ensure no conflict markers remain:
- `git diff --check`
- When unsure, note assumptions and ask for confirmation before finalizing the
merge.
## When To Ask The User (Keep To A Minimum)
Do not ask for input unless there is no safe, reversible alternative. Prefer
making a best-effort decision, documenting the rationale, and proceeding.
Ask the user only when:
- The correct resolution depends on product intent or behavior not inferable
from code, tests, or nearby documentation.
- The conflict crosses a user-visible contract, API surface, or migration where
choosing incorrectly could break external consumers.
- A conflict requires selecting between two mutually exclusive designs with
equivalent technical merit and no clear local signal.
- The merge introduces data loss, schema changes, or irreversible side effects
without an obvious safe default.
- The branch is not the intended target, or the remote/branch names do not exist
and cannot be determined locally.
Otherwise, proceed with the merge, explain the decision briefly in notes, and
leave a clear, reviewable commit history.