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Syntax

gitsw -r
gitsw --recent

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Description

The --recent flag shows up to 10 recently visited branches, sorted by last access time (most recent first). This provides a quick way to return to branches you were recently working on.

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Implementation

The show_recent function (src/main.rs:206-252) performs the following:

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1. Load and sort branches

  • Reads gitsw state from .git/git-switch.json
  • Retrieves up to 10 most recently visited branches
  • Sorts by last_visited timestamp (descending)

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2. Display format

  • Current branch marked with * and displayed in green/bold
  • Other branches shown with 2-space indent
  • Numbered list [1], [2], etc.
  • Shows [stash] indicator if branch has stashed changes
  • Displays time since last visit

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Output Format

Recent branches:

  {marker}[{index}] {branch_name}{stash_indicator} ({time})
  • marker: * for current branch, (two spaces) for others
  • index: 1-based position number in dimmed text
  • branch_name: Green/bold if current, normal otherwise
  • stash_indicator: [stash] in yellow if branch has stash, empty otherwise
  • time: Human-readable time since last visit (dimmed)

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Example Output

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With recent branches

$ gitsw -r
Recent branches:

* [1] feature-auth (just now)
  [2] main (2 hours ago)
  [3] develop [stash] (yesterday)
  [4] feature-api (3 days ago)
  [5] bugfix/login [stash] (5 days ago)

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Current branch not in recent list

$ gitsw -r
Recent branches:

  [1] main (1 hour ago)
  [2] develop (yesterday)
  [3] feature-api (2 days ago)

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No recent branches tracked

$ gitsw -r
No recent branches tracked yet.

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Time Format

The format_time_ago function (src/main.rs:569-586) converts timestamps:
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 Indicator

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[stash]
yellow
Displayed after branch name if the branch has a stash ID in gitsw state. Does not verify if stash still exists in Git.

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Tracking Behavior

Branches are tracked when:
  • You switch to them using gitsw
  • You switch away from them using gitsw
The last_visited timestamp is updated by the touch_branch function:
  • Called before leaving current branch (src/main.rs:385)
  • Called after switching to target branch (src/main.rs:513)

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Maximum Branches

The function calls state.recent_branches(10) to limit results to 10 branches. This is hardcoded in the implementation.

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Use Cases

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Quick navigation to recent work

gitsw -r  # See where you've been
gitsw feature-api  # Switch back to recent branch

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Check for uncommitted work

The [stash] indicator shows branches with pending changes: 
$ gitsw -r
Recent branches:

  [1] main (1 hour ago)
  [2] develop [stash] (yesterday)  # Has uncommitted work
  [3] feature-api [stash] (2 days ago)  # Has uncommitted work

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Review work context

See your recent workflow and branch switching patterns: 
gitsw -r
  • list - View all branches with stashes (with validation)
  • status - View current branch status
  • switch - Switch to a branch (updates recent list)

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