Sentry Commit Messages
Follow these conventions when creating commits for Sentry projects.
Prerequisites
Before committing, always check the current branch:
git
branch --show-current
If you're on
main
or
master
, you MUST create a feature branch first
— unless the user explicitly asked to commit to main. Do not ask the user whether to create a branch; just proceed with branch creation. The
create-branch
skill will still propose a branch name for the user to confirm.
Use the
create-branch
skill to create the branch. After
create-branch
completes, verify the current branch has changed before proceeding:
git
branch --show-current
If still on
main
or
master
(e.g., the user aborted branch creation), stop — do not commit.
Format
():
The header is required. Scope is optional. All lines must stay under 100 characters.
Commit Types
Type
Purpose
feat
New feature
fix
Bug fix
ref
Refactoring (no behavior change)
perf
Performance improvement
docs
Documentation only
test
Test additions or corrections
build
Build system or dependencies
ci
CI configuration
chore
Maintenance tasks
style
Code formatting (no logic change)
meta
Repository metadata
license
License changes
Subject Line Rules
Use imperative, present tense: "Add feature" not "Added feature"
Capitalize the first letter
No period at the end
Maximum 70 characters
Body Guidelines
Explain
what
and
why
, not how
Use imperative mood and present tense
Include motivation for the change
Contrast with previous behavior when relevant
Use real newlines in commit bodies; never include literal
\n
sequences
Commit Command Hygiene
When creating commits from the CLI, do not embed escaped newlines like
\n
inside
-m
strings. That produces literal backslash characters in the final commit message.
Prefer one of these patterns:
git
commit
-m
"type(scope): Subject"
\
-m
"First paragraph with real line wrapping.
Second paragraph.
Fixes GH-1234
Co-Authored-By: (the agent's name and attribution byline)"
git
commit
Use the editor flow when the message needs careful formatting.
Footer: Issue References
Reference issues in the footer using these patterns:
Fixes GH-1234
Fixes #1234
Fixes SENTRY-1234
Refs LINEAR-ABC-123
Fixes
closes the issue when merged
Refs
links without closing
AI-Generated Changes
When changes were primarily generated by a coding agent, include the Co-Authored-By attribution in the commit footer. Agents should use their own identity:
Co-Authored-By: (the agent's name and attribution byline)
Example:
Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4
This is the only indicator of AI involvement that should appear in commits. Do not add phrases like "Generated by AI", "Written with Claude", or similar markers in the subject, body, or anywhere else in the commit message.
Examples
Simple fix
fix(api): Handle null response in user endpoint
The user API could return null for deleted accounts, causing a crash
in the dashboard. Add null check before accessing user properties.
Fixes SENTRY-5678
Co-Authored-By: (the agent's name and attribution byline)
Feature with scope
feat(alerts): Add Slack thread replies for alert updates
When an alert is updated or resolved, post a reply to the original
Slack thread instead of creating a new message. This keeps related
notifications grouped together.
Refs GH-1234
Refactor
ref: Extract common validation logic to shared module
Move duplicate validation code from three endpoints into a shared
validator class. No behavior change.
Breaking change
feat(api)!: Remove deprecated v1 endpoints
Remove all v1 API endpoints that were deprecated in version 23.1.
Clients should migrate to v2 endpoints.
BREAKING CHANGE: v1 endpoints no longer available
Fixes SENTRY-9999
Revert Format
revert: feat(api): Add new endpoint
This reverts commit abc123def456.
Reason: Caused performance regression in production.
Principles
Each commit should be a single, stable change
Commits should be independently reviewable
The repository should be in a working state after each commit
References
Sentry Commit Messages