addressing review comments

Author: skarim

cmd/sync.go

@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ conflicts interactively.
 Use --prune to delete local branches for merged PRs. Stack metadata is
 preserved so that rebase and display logic continue to work correctly.
 If you are on a branch that would be pruned, your checkout is moved to
-the nearest active branch or the trunk.`,
+the first active branch in the stack, or the trunk if all are merged.`,
 		RunE: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 			return runSync(cfg, opts)
 		},
@@ -417,9 +417,6 @@ func runSync(cfg *config.Config, opts *syncOptions) error {
 				if err := git.DeleteBranch(name, true); err != nil {
 					cfg.Warningf("Failed to delete %s: %v", name, err)
 				} else {
-					// Also remove the remote-tracking ref so that
-					// `git checkout <name>` doesn't recreate the branch.
-					_ = git.DeleteTrackingRef(remote, name)
 					cfg.Successf("Pruned %s (merged)", name)
 					pruned++
 				}
@@ -431,6 +428,13 @@ func runSync(cfg *config.Config, opts *syncOptions) error {
 			cfg.Printf("")
 			cfg.Printf("No merged branches to prune")
 		}
+
+		// Clean up remote-tracking refs for all merged branches, even if
+		// the local branch was already deleted. This prevents
+		// `git checkout <name>` from resurrecting the branch.
+		for _, b := range merged {
+			_ = git.DeleteTrackingRef(remote, b.Branch)
+		}
 	}
 
 	// --- Step 7: Update base SHAs and save ---

cmd/sync_test.go

@@ -1035,6 +1035,7 @@ func TestSync_Prune_DeletesMergedBranches(t *testing.T) {
 	writeStackFile(t, tmpDir, s)
 
 	var deletedBranches []string
+	var deletedTrackingRefs []string
 
 	mock := newSyncMock(tmpDir, "b2")
 	mock.BranchExistsFn = func(name string) bool { return true }
@@ -1043,6 +1044,10 @@ func TestSync_Prune_DeletesMergedBranches(t *testing.T) {
 		assert.True(t, force, "should force-delete merged branch")
 		return nil
 	}
+	mock.DeleteTrackingRefFn = func(remote, branch string) error {
+		deletedTrackingRefs = append(deletedTrackingRefs, remote+"/"+branch)
+		return nil
+	}
 
 	restore := git.SetOps(mock)
 	defer restore()
@@ -1060,6 +1065,7 @@ func TestSync_Prune_DeletesMergedBranches(t *testing.T) {
 
 	assert.NoError(t, err)
 	assert.Equal(t, []string{"b1"}, deletedBranches)
+	assert.Equal(t, []string{"origin/b1"}, deletedTrackingRefs, "should delete remote-tracking ref for pruned branch")
 	assert.Contains(t, output, "Pruned b1 (merged)")
 	assert.Contains(t, output, "Pruned 1 merged branch")
 }
@@ -1087,6 +1093,12 @@ func TestSync_Prune_SkipsNonExistentBranches(t *testing.T) {
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	var deletedTrackingRefs []string
+	mock.DeleteTrackingRefFn = func(remote, branch string) error {
+		deletedTrackingRefs = append(deletedTrackingRefs, remote+"/"+branch)
+		return nil
+	}
+
 	restore := git.SetOps(mock)
 	defer restore()
 
@@ -1103,6 +1115,8 @@ func TestSync_Prune_SkipsNonExistentBranches(t *testing.T) {
 
 	assert.NoError(t, err)
 	assert.Contains(t, output, "No merged branches to prune")
+	// Tracking ref should still be cleaned up even though local branch is gone
+	assert.Equal(t, []string{"origin/b1"}, deletedTrackingRefs, "should delete tracking ref even when local branch is already gone")
 }
 
 // TestSync_Prune_SwitchesToLowestUnmergedBranch verifies that when the user is