Commit Parser Plugin

The commit parser plugin analyzes git commit messages following the Conventional Commits specification and automatically determines the appropriate version bump type.

analyzerBuilt-inEnabled by default

When to Use This Plugin

Choose commit-parser when:

Scenario	Why commit-parser fits
Fully automated CI/CD	You want hands-off version bumps triggered by commits
Conventional commits	Your team uses feat:, fix:, feat!: prefixes
Frequent releases	You release often and want minimal manual intervention
Breaking change tracking	You want automatic major bumps from ! or BREAKING CHANGE:

Choose changelog-parser instead when:

Scenario	Why changelog-parser fits
Release planning	You want to manually curate each release's contents
Manual control	You prefer editing CHANGELOG.md to control bump type
Mixed commit styles	Your team doesn't consistently use conventional commits
Pre-release review	You want to review entries before the version bump

Using Both Plugins Together

You can enable both plugins with commit-parser taking precedence:

plugins:
  commit-parser: true
  changelog-parser:
    enabled: true
    priority: "commits" # Commit parser takes precedence

• priority: "commits": Analyzes git history first (recommended for CI/CD)
• priority: "changelog": Reads CHANGELOG.md first; commits as fallback

Features

• Parses conventional commit messages automatically
• Determines bump type based on commit prefixes (feat, fix, etc.)
• Detects breaking changes via ! suffix or BREAKING CHANGE: in body
• Integrates with bump auto command
• Supports scoped commits (feat(api):, fix(auth):)

How It Works

1. Retrieves commits since the last git tag (or HEAD~10 if no tags exist)
2. Parses commit messages for conventional commit types
3. Returns the highest-priority bump type found

Configuration

Complete Example

View the commit-parser.yaml example for all available options.

plugins:
  commit-parser: true  # Enabled by default

  # To disable:
  commit-parser: false

Usage

# Automatic bump based on conventional commits
sley bump auto

# Manual override
sley bump auto --label minor

# Disable plugin inference
sley bump auto --no-infer

Example Workflow

git commit -m "feat: add user authentication"
git commit -m "fix: resolve login timeout"
git commit -m "feat!: redesign API endpoints"

sley bump auto
# => Inferred bump type: major
# => Version bumped from 1.2.3 to 2.0.0

Conventional Commit Format

type: description
type(scope): description
type!: description          # Breaking change
type(scope)!: description   # Breaking change with scope

Examples

feat: add user dashboard
fix(api): handle null response
docs: update installation guide
feat!: redesign authentication flow

Breaking Changes in Body

feat: update authentication flow

BREAKING CHANGE: Token format has changed from JWT to opaque tokens.
Users must re-authenticate after upgrading.

Commit Type to Bump Mapping

Type	Bump	Description
feat	minor	New feature
fix	patch	Bug fix
feat! or fix!	major	Breaking change
Any + BREAKING CHANGE:	major	Breaking change in body

Other types (docs, style, refactor, perf, test, build, ci, chore) do not trigger version bumps.

Bump Priority

When multiple commits exist, the highest-priority bump wins:

1. major (breaking changes)
2. minor (features)
3. patch (fixes)

git commit -m "fix: correct typo"        # patch
git commit -m "feat: add search"         # minor
sley bump auto                           # Result: minor

Integration with Other Plugins

With Changelog Parser

When both plugins are enabled, use the priority setting in changelog-parser to control precedence:

plugins:
  commit-parser: true
  changelog-parser:
    enabled: true
    format: auto # keepachangelog, grouped, github, minimal, auto
    priority: "commits" # commit-parser takes precedence

• priority: "commits": Commit parser runs first (recommended for CI/CD)
• priority: "changelog": Changelog parser runs first, commit parser is fallback

With Other Plugins

plugins:
  commit-parser: true
  version-validator:
    enabled: true
    rules:
      - type: "branch-constraint"
        branch: "main"
        allowed: ["minor", "patch"]
  tag-manager:
    enabled: true
    prefix: "v"

Flow: commit-parser analyzes commits -> version-validator validates -> version updated -> tag-manager creates tag

Best Practices

1. Consistent commit messages - Enforce with tools like commitlint
2. Meaningful scopes - Use scopes to categorize (feat(api):, fix(ui):)
3. Clear breaking change indicators - Use ! suffix
4. Detailed bodies - Include context for major changes

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
Plugin not detecting	Ensure format: type: description (colon required)
Wrong bump type inferred	Check git log --oneline -10 for correct prefixes
No bump type found	bump auto defaults to patch if no conventional commits

Comparison with Changelog Parser

Feature	Commit Parser	Changelog Parser
Input source	Git commit messages	CHANGELOG.md
Format requirement	Conventional Commits	Multiple (keepachangelog, grouped, etc)
Manual control	Low	High
Automation level	Fully automatic	Semi-automatic
Best for	CI/CD workflows	Release planning

See Also

• Changelog Parser - Infer bump type from CHANGELOG.md
• Changelog Generator - Generate changelogs from commits
• Tag Manager - Create git tags after version bumps
• CI/CD Integration - Automate version bumps with commit parsing
• Usage Guide - Using bump auto command
• Troubleshooting - Common commit parsing issues