What causes "cannot delete current branch: ${branchName}" in eyaltoledano/claude-task-master?

Switch to another branch first (e.g. checkoutBranch('main') or your base branch), then delete the target.

cannot delete current branch

Error message

cannot delete current branch: ${branchName}

What it means

deleteBranch() refuses to delete the branch that HEAD currently points to, because git cannot delete the checked-out branch. The adapter compares getCurrentBranch() against the requested name and throws this error before running git branch -d/-D.

Solutions

Switch to another branch first (e.g. checkoutBranch('main') or your base branch), then delete the target.
Skip the current branch in cleanup loops: if (current === name) continue.
If deleting the current branch seems necessary, you actually want to switch away — git requires a valid HEAD.

Example fix

// before
await git.deleteBranch('feature/x'); // throws if it's the current branch
// after
if ((await git.getCurrentBranch()) !== 'feature/x') {
  await git.deleteBranch('feature/x');
} else {
  await git.checkoutBranch('main');
  await git.deleteBranch('feature/x');
}

Defensive patterns

Strategy: validation

Validate before calling

const current = await git.getCurrentBranch();
if (current !== 'feature/x') {
  await git.deleteBranch('feature/x');
}

Try / catch

try {
  await git.deleteBranch('feature/x');
} catch (e) {
  if (e instanceof Error && e.message.startsWith('cannot delete current branch')) {
    await git.checkoutBranch('main');
    await git.deleteBranch('feature/x');
    return;
  }
  throw e;
}

Prevention

Always compare getCurrentBranch() to the deletion target first.
In batch cleanups, filter out the current branch explicitly.
Switch to a stable base branch (main/develop) before running deletion scripts.
Never design flows that require deleting the checked-out branch — git forbids it.

When it happens

Trigger: Calling gitAdapter.deleteBranch('main') (or any branch name equal to getCurrentBranch()), e.g. cleanup logic that computes the branch list without excluding the current one.

Common situations: Batch cleanup of merged branches that includes the branch you're standing on; automation that forgot to switch to a base branch before deleting a feature branch that is currently checked out.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of eyaltoledano/claude-task-master@c0c98d367c (2026-08-29). Data as JSON: /api/errors/c779d0772120ec86. Report an issue: GitHub.

Appendix: source

Thrown at packages/tm-core/src/modules/git/adapters/git-adapter.ts:504

	 *
	 * @example
	 * await git.deleteBranch('old-feature');
	 * await git.deleteBranch('unmerged-feature', { force: true });
	 */
	async deleteBranch(
		branchName: string,
		options: { force?: boolean } = {}
	): Promise<void> {
		// Check if branch exists
		const exists = await this.branchExists(branchName);
		if (!exists) {
			throw new Error(`branch does not exist: ${branchName}`);
		}

		// Check if trying to delete current branch
		const current = await this.getCurrentBranch();
		if (current === branchName) {
			throw new Error(`cannot delete current branch: ${branchName}`);
		}

		// Delete the branch
		const deleteOptions = options.force
			? ['-D', branchName]
			: ['-d', branchName];
		await this.git.branch(deleteOptions);
	}

	/**
	 * Stages files for commit.
	 *
	 * @param {string[]} files - Array of file paths to stage
	 * @returns {Promise<void>}
	 *
	 * @example
	 * await git.stageFiles(['file1.txt', 'file2.txt']);
	 * await git.stageFiles(['.']); // Stage all changes

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