setup-repo skill

Repository Setup

This skill sets up a worktree-based development layout from a freshly cloned repo. It creates:

• A main worktree (the primary checkout)
• A reviews worktree (for PR reviews)
• N work branches (branch1..branchN) for parallel development

Step 1: Identify the repo

Determine the repo root and parent directory:

ROOT=$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)
REPO_NAME=$(basename "$ROOT")
PARENT=$(dirname "$ROOT")

Detect if the repo is already inside a worktree layout by counting sibling worktrees (not just checking the directory name, which could be anything):

# Count worktrees that are siblings (live under $PARENT but aren't $ROOT itself)
SIBLING_COUNT=$(git worktree list --porcelain 2>/dev/null | grep "^worktree " | grep -c "$PARENT/" || true)
if [ "$SIBLING_COUNT" -gt 1 ]; then
  echo "INFO: Existing worktree layout detected at $PARENT ($SIBLING_COUNT worktrees)"
  # Use $ROOT as-is; skip renaming/restructuring
else
  echo "INFO: Fresh clone detected, proceeding with setup"
fi

Step 2: Ask the user questions

Use AskUserQuestion to gather setup preferences:

1. How many parallel work branches do you need? (Options: 4, 8, 16, or custom)

• These become branch1 through branchN

1. Which branch should be the base? (Options: origin/master, origin/dev, or custom)

• All work branches and reviews will start from this

Step 3: Fetch and set up branches

cd "$ROOT"
git fetch origin

# Create the reviews branch from base (skip if already exists)
if git show-ref --verify --quiet refs/heads/reviews; then
  echo "INFO: Branch 'reviews' already exists, skipping"
else
  git branch reviews <base-branch>
fi

# Create numbered work branches from base (skip if already exists)
for i in $(seq 1 "$COUNT"); do
  if git show-ref --verify --quiet "refs/heads/branch$i"; then
    echo "INFO: Branch 'branch$i' already exists, skipping"
  else
    git branch "branch$i" <base-branch>
  fi
done

Step 4: Create worktrees

Create worktrees as siblings to the main checkout:

if [ -d "$PARENT/reviews" ]; then
  echo "INFO: Worktree '$PARENT/reviews' already exists, skipping"
else
  git worktree add "$PARENT/reviews" reviews
fi

for i in $(seq 1 "$COUNT"); do
  if [ -d "$PARENT/branch$i" ]; then
    echo "INFO: Worktree '$PARENT/branch$i' already exists, skipping"
  else
    git worktree add "$PARENT/branch$i" "branch$i"
  fi
done

Step 5: Set up environment files

Do NOT assume .env files exist. For each worktree (including main if needed):

1. Check if .env exists in the source worktree for each path
2. If .env exists, copy it
3. If only .env.default or .env.example exists, copy that as .env
4. If neither exists, warn the user and list which env files are missing

Env file locations to check (same as the /worktree skill — keep these in sync):

• autogpt_platform/.env
• autogpt_platform/backend/.env
• autogpt_platform/frontend/.env

Note: This env copying logic intentionally mirrors the /worktree skill's approach. If you update the path list or fallback logic here, update /worktree as well.

SOURCE="$ROOT"
WORKTREES="reviews"
for i in $(seq 1 "$COUNT"); do WORKTREES="$WORKTREES branch$i"; done

FOUND_ANY_ENV=0
for wt in $WORKTREES; do
  TARGET="$PARENT/$wt"
  for envpath in autogpt_platform autogpt_platform/backend autogpt_platform/frontend; do
    if [ -f "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env" ]; then
      FOUND_ANY_ENV=1
      cp "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env" "$TARGET/$envpath/.env"
    elif [ -f "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env.default" ]; then
      FOUND_ANY_ENV=1
      cp "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env.default" "$TARGET/$envpath/.env"
      echo "NOTE: $wt/$envpath/.env was created from .env.default — you may need to edit it"
    elif [ -f "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env.example" ]; then
      FOUND_ANY_ENV=1
      cp "$SOURCE/$envpath/.env.example" "$TARGET/$envpath/.env"
      echo "NOTE: $wt/$envpath/.env was created from .env.example — you may need to edit it"
    else
      echo "WARNING: No .env, .env.default, or .env.example found at $SOURCE/$envpath/"
    fi
  done
done

if [ "$FOUND_ANY_ENV" -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "WARNING: No environment files or templates were found in the source worktree."
  # Use AskUserQuestion to confirm: "Continue setup without env files?"
  # If the user declines, stop here and

Step 6: Copy branchlet config

Copy .branchlet.json from main to each worktree so branchlet can manage sub-worktrees:

if [ -f "$ROOT/.branchlet.json" ]; then
  for wt in $WORKTREES; do
    cp "$ROOT/.branchlet.json" "$PARENT/$wt/.branchlet.json"
  done
fi

Step 7: Install dependencies

Install deps in all worktrees. Run these sequentially per worktree:

for wt in $WORKTREES; do
  TARGET="$PARENT/$wt"
  echo "=== Installing deps for $wt ==="
  (cd "$TARGET/autogpt_platform/autogpt_libs" && poetry install) &&
  (cd "$TARGET/autogpt_platform/backend" && poetry install && poetry run prisma generate) &&
  (cd "$TARGET/autogpt_platform/frontend" && pnpm install) &&
  echo "=== Done: $wt ===" ||
  echo "=== FAILED: $wt ==="
done

This is slow. Run in background if possible and notify when complete.

Step 8: Verify and report

After setup, verify and report to the user:

git worktree list

Summarize:

• Number of worktrees created
• Which env files were copied vs created from defaults vs missing
• Any warnings or errors encountered

Final directory layout

parent/
  main/              # Primary checkout (already exists)
  reviews/           # PR review worktree
  branch1/           # Work branch 1
  branch2/           # Work branch 2
  ...
  branchN/           # Work branch N