Base Folders

Base folders are your primary clones of each repository. They serve as the source for creating worktrees.

Rules

1. Stay on main - Base folders should always be on the default branch
2. Never switch branches - Use worktrees for feature work
3. One per repo - Each repository has exactly one base folder

Why?

Base folders provide:

• Stable reference point - Always know where main is
• Worktree source - Git creates worktrees relative to the main clone
• Safe harbor - If a worktree gets corrupted, the base is untouched

Identifying Base Folders

In worktree-list output, base folders have BASE=yes:

FOLDER          REPO          BRANCH    BASE
------          ----          ------    ----
myapp           myapp         main      yes    ← Base folder
myapp-feature   myapp         feature   no     ← Worktree

What If I Switched Branches?

If a base folder accidentally switched branches:

# Check status
bearing worktree check

# Fix it
git -C myapp checkout main

The bearing worktree check command will catch this violation.