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Syntax

gitsw -l
gitsw --list

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Description

The --list flag displays all branches that have stashes managed by gitsw. This helps you track which branches have saved changes and whether those stashes still exist in Git.

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Implementation

The list_stashes function (src/main.rs:154-204) performs the following:

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1. Load state and stashes

  • Reads gitsw state from .git/git-switch.json
  • Retrieves all Git stashes in the repository
  • Filters for branches that have stash IDs in gitsw state

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2. Validate stashes

For each branch with a stash ID:
  • Verifies the stash OID still exists in Git’s stash list
  • Marks stash as “present” (yellow) or “missing” (red)

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3. Display format

  • Current branch marked with * and displayed in green/bold
  • Other branches shown with 2-space indent
  • Shows stash status and last visited time

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Output Format

Branches with stashed changes:

  {marker}{branch_name} ({stash_status}, last visited {time})
  • marker: * for current branch, (two spaces) for others
  • branch_name: Green/bold if current, normal otherwise
  • stash_status: “stash present” (yellow) or “stash missing” (red)
  • time: Human-readable time format (see Time Format below)

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Example Output

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With stashed branches

$ gitsw -l
Branches with stashed changes:

* feature-auth (stash present, last visited just now)
  develop (stash present, last visited 2 hours ago)
  feature-api (stash missing, last visited yesterday)

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No stashed branches

$ gitsw -l
No branches with git-switch stashes found.

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Time Format

The format_time_ago function (src/main.rs:569-586) converts timestamps to human-readable format:
DurationFormat
< 1 minute”just now”
1-59 minutes” min ago”
1-23 hours” hour(s) ago”
1 day”yesterday”
2+ days” days ago”

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Stash Status

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stash present
yellow
The stash OID from gitsw state exists in Git’s stash list. Changes can be restored.
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stash missing
red
The stash OID is in gitsw state but no longer exists in Git (manually dropped or repository issue). Changes are lost.

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Use Cases

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Find branches with pending changes

gitsw -l
Quickly see which branches have work-in-progress that was stashed.

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Verify stash integrity

Check if any stashes were lost: 
gitsw -l | grep "stash missing"

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Clean up old branches

Before deleting branches, check if they have stashes: 
gitsw -l
gitsw -d old-branch  # Safely removes branch and its stash
  • delete - Delete a branch and clean up its stash
  • status - View current branch stash status
  • switch - Switch branches (auto-restores stashes)
  • recent - View recent branches with stash indicators

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