Fast git handover with mob

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Fast git handover for remote pair/mob programming.

mob is an open source command line tool written in go
mob is the fastest way to hand over code via git
mob keeps your branches clean and only creates WIP commits on temporary branches
mob has a shared team timer timer.mob.sh
mob is on 'assess' in the Thoughtworks Technology Radar
mob has VSCode integration

diagram how mob works

What people say about mob

Sometimes you come across a tool that you didn't realize you needed until you do; mob is just such a tool. Living as we do in a world where remote pair programming has become the norm for many teams, having a tool that allows for seamless handover either between pairs or a wider group as part of a mob programming session is super useful. mob hides all the version control paraphernalia behind a command-line interface that makes participating in mob programming sessions simpler. It also provides specific advice around how to participate remotely, for example, to "steal the screenshare" in Zoom rather than ending a screenshare, ensuring the video layout doesn't change for participants. A useful tool and thoughtful advice, what's not to like? — Technology Radar Volume 25, thoughtworks

"Mob has allowed us to run fast-paced, engaging, and effective sessions by enabling sub-10-second handover times and otherwise getting out of the way. A simple but great tool!" — Jeff Langr, developer

"I love it, it is a quantum leap in our collaboration." — Vasiliy Sivovolov, Senior Software Engineer

"What a great tool to organise remote working." — Jennifer Gommans, IT Consultant

"I was recently introduced to mob.sh for remote pairing/mobbing collaboration and I absolutely love it. The timer feature is really a selling point for me. Kudos" — Fabien Illert, IT Consultant

How to install

The recommended way to install mob is as a binary via the provided install script:

# Works for macOS, Linux, and even on Windows in Git Bash
curl -sL install.mob.sh | sh

On macOS via Homebrew:

brew install mob

On Windows via Scoop:

scoop install mob

or via Chocolatey:

choco install mob

On Arch Linux via yay:

yay -S mobsh-bin

On Nix through declarative installation:

{ pkgs, ... }:
{
  # Either for all users
  environment.systemPackages = with pkgs; [ mob ];

  # Or for an explicit user
  users.users."youruser".packages = with pkgs; [ mob ];
}

On NetBSD, macOS, SmartOS, Linux, FreeBSD, OpenBSD, and more, via pkgsrc:

# If there's a binary package for your platform
pkgin install mob

# Otherwise, for any platform
cd pkgsrc/devel/mob && bmake install clean

On Ubuntu there's an EXPERIMENTAL snap package with a known limitation (ssh-agent not working):

sudo snap install mob-sh
sudo snap connect mob-sh:ssh-keys

Using go tools

If you have go 1.20+ you can install and build directly from source:

go install github.com/remotemobprogramming/mob/v4@latest

or pick a specific version:

go install github.com/remotemobprogramming/mob/v4@v4.4.0

or to install latest unreleased changes:

go install github.com/remotemobprogramming/mob/v4@main

How to use

You only need three commands: mob start, mob next, and mob done.

Switch to a separate branch with mob start and handover to the next person with mob next. Repeat. When you're done, get your changes into the staging area of the main branch with mob done and commit them.

Here's a short example on how the two developers Carola and Maria code a feature together and push it in the end.

# Carola
main $ mob start
mob/main $ echo "hello" > work.txt
mob/main $ mob next

# Maria
main $ mob start
mob/main $ cat work.txt # shows "hello"
mob/main $ echo " world" >> work.txt
mob/main $ mob next

# Carola
mob/main $ mob start
mob/main $ cat work.txt # shows "hello world"
mob/main $ echo "!" >> work.txt
mob/main $ mob done
main $ git commit -m "create greeting file"
main $ git push

And here's the man page of the tool:

mob enables a smooth Git handover

Basic Commands:
  start              start session from base branch in wip branch
  next               handover changes in wip branch to next person
  done               squashes all changes in wip branch to index in base branch
  reset              removes local and remote wip branch
  clean              removes all orphan wip branches

Basic Commands(Options):
  start [<minutes>]                      Start a <minutes> timer
    [--include-uncommitted-changes|-i]   Move uncommitted changes to wip branch
    [--discard-uncommitted-changes|-d]   Discard uncommitted changes
    [--branch|-b <branch-postfix>]       Set wip branch to 'mob/<base-branch>-<branch-postfix>'
    [--create|-c]                        Create the remote branch
    [--room <room-name>]                 Set room name for timer.mob.sh once
  next
    [--stay|-s]                          Stay on wip branch (default)
    [--return-to-base-branch|-r]         Return to base branch
    [--message|-m <commit-message>]      Override commit message
  done
    [--no-squash]                        Squash no commits from wip branch, only merge wip branch
    [--squash]                           Squash all commits from wip branch
    [--squash-wip]                       Squash wip commits from wip branch, maintaining manual commits
  reset
    [--branch|-b <branch-postfix>]       Set wip branch to 'mob/<base-branch>/<branch-postfix>'
  goal                                   Gives you the current goal of your timer.mob.sh room
    [<your-goal>]                        Sets the goal of your timer.mob.sh room
    [--delete]                           Deletes the goal of your timer.mob.sh room


Timer Commands:
  timer <minutes>           Start a <minutes> timer
    [--room <room-name>]    Set room name for timer.mob.sh once
  timer open                Opens the timer website
    [--room <room-name>]    Set room name for timer.mob.sh once
  start <minutes>           Start mob session in wip branch and a <minutes> timer
  break <minutes>           Start a <minutes> break timer
  goal                      Gives you the current goal of your timer.mob.sh room
    [<your-goal>]           Sets the goal of your timer.mob.sh room
    [--delete]              Deletes the goal of your timer.mob.sh room

Short Commands (Options and descriptions as above):
  s                  alias for 'start'
  n                  alias for 'next'
  d                  alias for 'done'
  b                  alias for 'branch'
  t                  alias for 'timer'
  g                  Alias for 'goal'

Get more information:
  status             show the status of the current session
  fetch              fetch remote state
  branch             show remote wip branches
  config             show all configuration options
  version            show the version
  help               show help

Other
  moo                moo!

Add --debug to any option to enable verbose logging


Examples:
  # start 10 min session in wip branch 'mob-session'
  mob start 10

  # start session in wip branch 'mob/<base-branch>/green'
  mob start --branch green

  # handover code and return to base branch
  mob next --return-to-base-branch

  # squashes all commits and puts changes in index of base branch
  mob done

  # make a sound check
  mob moo

If you need some assistance when typing the subcommands and options, you might want to have a look at fig which gives you autocompletion in your shell.

Best Practices

Say out loud
- Whenever you key in mob next at the end of your

Mob

Install / Use

README