> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://gx.mubbie.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# parent

> Print the parent branch name (for scripting)

`gx parent` prints the parent branch of the current branch and exits. It is designed for use in shell scripts and pipelines -- it outputs only the branch name with no decoration.

## Usage

```bash theme={null}
gx parent
```

## Behavior

* If the current branch is in the stack, prints the stack parent
* If the current branch is not in the stack, prints the HEAD branch (main/master)
* If you are on trunk, exits with code 1 (no output)
* If not in a git repo, exits with code 1 (no output)

## Examples

```bash theme={null}
$ gx parent
feature/auth
```

## Composability

`gx parent` is designed for shell pipelines and scripting:

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash Diff against parent theme={null}
  $ git diff $(gx parent)...HEAD
  ```

  ```bash Log commits since parent theme={null}
  $ git log --oneline $(gx parent)..HEAD
  ```

  ```bash Rebase onto parent theme={null}
  $ git rebase $(gx parent)
  ```

  ```bash Check if branch is ahead of parent theme={null}
  $ git rev-list --count $(gx parent)..HEAD
  ```

  ```bash Use in CI scripts theme={null}
  #!/bin/bash
  PARENT=$(gx parent)
  if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
    echo "Not on a feature branch"
    exit 0
  fi
  echo "Running checks against $PARENT"
  git diff --name-only "$PARENT"...HEAD | xargs lint
  ```
</CodeGroup>

<Tip>
  `gx parent` uses exit codes for scripting: exit 0 means a parent was found and printed, exit 1 means no parent (on trunk, detached HEAD, or not in a repo). It never prints error messages to stdout.
</Tip>

<Accordion title="Details">
  * Output is a single line with just the branch name, no color codes or prefix
  * When the branch is in the stack config, the recorded parent is used
  * When the branch is not in the stack, the HEAD branch is returned as a sensible default
  * On trunk, there is no parent, so the command exits with code 1 and no output
</Accordion>