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docs(agents): extend encrypted-at-rest rule to branch names - #52

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DJRHails merged 1 commit into
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DJRHails/encrypted-metadata-branch-names
Jul 31, 2026
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docs(agents): extend encrypted-at-rest rule to branch names#52
DJRHails merged 1 commit into
mainfrom
DJRHails/encrypted-metadata-branch-names

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@DJRHails

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The Git Hygiene rule for encrypted-at-rest files enumerates the plaintext metadata surfaces to keep generic (commit message, PR title/description, issue text, review comments) but omitted branch names. #51's head branch name embedded a detail its encrypted file exists to hide — and branch names are the one surface with no after-the-fact fix, since GitHub retains a PR's head branch name even after the branch is deleted.

This adds branch names to the enumeration and a note that they must be chosen generically before the first push.

Found during the post-merge review of #51 (run).

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Review Summary

Direct single-pass review (docs-only, +1/−1) — no sub-agent fan-out needed.

Findings

No P1–P3 findings. The change is accurate and well-scoped:

  • GitHub does retain a PR's head branch name permanently (API headRefName and the PR page survive branch deletion), so "no after-the-fact fix" is correct and properly scoped to PRs.
  • The topology-<hostname> example uses a placeholder and "topology" is already public in main's plaintext history, so the example doesn't itself leak.
  • Only one copy of the rule exists in the repo (modules/agents/AGENTS.md), and the file is not transcrypt-filtered, so editing it in plaintext is fine.
  • The only other branch-naming guidance in the repo (fix-issue.md's issue-N pattern) is generic by construction — no contradiction introduced.
  • "Before pushing" is stricter than "before opening a PR", but correctly so: pushed refs leak via the events API even without a PR.

Verification

  • Tests / Lint / Format: n/a — markdown-only change; repo has no CI workflows or Makefile.
  • Checked for duplicate rule copies (rg "Encrypted-at-rest files") and encryption attrs (git check-attr filter).

Commit

No fix commit — nothing to fix.

Verdict: approve

via gantry

GitHub keeps a PR's head branch name forever, even after the branch is
deleted, so a branch name is plaintext metadata in exactly the way a
commit message is — but with no after-the-fact fix. Name the constraint
where the rest of the rule lives.

Ported from #52, whose base predated the transcrypt -> glassine move.
@DJRHails
DJRHails force-pushed the DJRHails/encrypted-metadata-branch-names branch from e3ab932 to 150850a Compare July 31, 2026 01:48
@DJRHails
DJRHails merged commit 20844c3 into main Jul 31, 2026
@DJRHails
DJRHails deleted the DJRHails/encrypted-metadata-branch-names branch July 31, 2026 01:48
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