feat: make git extension opt-in and remove --no-git at v0.10.0

[Copilot]

Finalizes the git extension default change at v0.10.0: specify init no longer auto-installs the bundled git extension, and the deprecated --no-git flag is removed. Users who want the git extension must opt in via specify extension add git.

Core changes

• src/specify_cli/commands/init.py

  • Remove --no-git parameter and its deprecation warning block
  • Remove git extension auto-installation (ExtensionManager.install_from_directory for git) from the init flow
  • Remove git_default_notice variable and the "Notice: Git Default Changing" panel
  • Remove --branch-numbering parameter (now managed entirely by the git extension's config)
  • Remove git repository initialization — git init is now the git extension's responsibility (via its speckit.git.initialize command)
  • Remove the "git" tracker step entirely (no git-related work happens during init)

• scripts/bash/common.sh / scripts/powershell/common.ps1

  • Remove branch-name validation (check_feature_branch / Test-FeatureBranch) from check-prerequisites
  • Replace git-based feature resolution with explicit state: SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY env var or .specify/feature.json
  • Add _persist_feature_json / Save-FeatureJson helpers for writing feature state
  • Update error messages to reference SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY (not SPECIFY_FEATURE)

Tests

• TestGitExtensionAutoInstall → replaced with TestGitExtensionOptIn:
  • test_git_extension_not_auto_installed — extension dir absent after plain specify init
  • test_no_git_flag_is_rejected — --no-git now exits non-zero (unknown option)
  • test_git_extension_commands_not_registered_by_default — no speckit-git-* skills after init
• Removed --no-git from all other test invocations throughout tests/integrations/test_cli.py

Docs & changelog

• docs/reference/core.md: removed --no-git row from options table and the pre-v0.10.0 NOTE; updated examples
• docs/upgrade.md: updated Scenario 4 (no-git projects); removed the ## Using --no-git Flag section
• docs/local-development.md: updated common-issues table
• CHANGELOG.md: added ## [0.10.0] - TBD section documenting both breaking changes

Closes #2887

[Copilot]

Pull request overview

This PR finalizes the v0.10.0 breaking change around Git behavior during specify init: the bundled git extension is no longer auto-installed, and the deprecated --no-git flag is removed, while git repository initialization (git init) still occurs when git is available and no repo exists.

Changes:

• Removes --no-git from the init command and drops bundled git extension auto-installation from the init flow.
• Updates integration tests to stop passing --no-git and adds new opt-in assertions around the git extension.
• Updates docs/changelog to reflect the new “git extension is opt-in” behavior and the flag removal.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
src/specify_cli/commands/init.py	Removes the --no-git flag and bundled git extension auto-install; keeps git init when available.
tests/integrations/test_cli.py	Removes --no-git usage and replaces auto-install tests with opt-in expectations.
docs/upgrade.md	Updates upgrade guidance for projects previously relying on --no-git.
docs/reference/core.md	Removes --no-git from specify init reference and updates notes/examples.
docs/local-development.md	Updates troubleshooting guidance related to the git step.
CHANGELOG.md	Adds a v0.10.0 entry documenting the breaking changes.

Copilot's findings

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• Files reviewed: 6/6 changed files
• Comments generated: 5

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• Files reviewed: 36/36 changed files
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• Files reviewed: 44/44 changed files
• Comments generated: 8

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• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 8

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Copilot's findings

Comments suppressed due to low confidence (1)

docs/upgrade.md:285

• These instructions say setting SPECIFY_FEATURE is sufficient for non-git projects, but the updated shared scripts now require SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY or .specify/feature.json to resolve the feature directory. Update the docs to reflect the new required feature context so non-git workflows remain usable.

Projects that do not use Git can still work with Spec Kit by setting `SPECIFY_FEATURE` manually before planning commands:

```bash
# Bash/Zsh
export SPECIFY_FEATURE="001-my-feature"

• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 11

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Copilot's findings

• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 3

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Copilot's findings

• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 1

[Copilot]

Copilot's findings

Comments suppressed due to low confidence (2)

scripts/bash/create-new-feature.sh:253

• create-new-feature.sh now drives feature directory creation without relying on git, but it doesn't persist the resolved feature directory to .specify/feature.json and it still tells users to export SPECIFY_FEATURE. Since get_feature_paths now requires SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY or feature.json, a fresh run of this script can leave follow-on scripts (setup-plan/tasks/check-prerequisites) without resolvable feature context unless the user manually sets SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY. Persist the feature directory via _persist_feature_json and update the persistence hint accordingly.

    mkdir -p "$FEATURE_DIR"

    if [ ! -f "$SPEC_FILE" ]; then
        TEMPLATE=$(resolve_template "spec-template" "$REPO_ROOT") || true
        if [ -n "$TEMPLATE" ] && [ -f "$TEMPLATE" ]; then

scripts/powershell/create-new-feature.ps1:201

• create-new-feature.ps1 still only sets SPECIFY_FEATURE after creating the feature directory. With the new common.ps1 behavior, downstream scripts resolve feature context from SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY or .specify/feature.json, so a run of this script can leave follow-on commands without resolvable feature context. Persist the feature directory via Save-FeatureJson and set SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY for the current session (in addition to SPECIFY_FEATURE if you still want to expose the feature name).

    New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $featureDir -Force | Out-Null

    if (-not (Test-Path -PathType Leaf $specFile)) {
        $template = Resolve-Template -TemplateName 'spec-template' -RepoRoot $repoRoot
        if ($template -and (Test-Path $template)) {

• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 0 new

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Copilot's findings

Comments suppressed due to low confidence (1)

tests/integrations/test_integration_subcommand.py:967

• These assertions expect setup-tasks.sh to contain hard-coded /speckit-plan and then change to /speckit.plan after an integration switch. The shared bash scripts now build command hints dynamically via format_speckit_command + integration.json (and do not contain literal /speckit-* strings), so this test will fail even when behavior is correct. Update the test to assert the dynamic formatter is present (and no hard-coded invocations exist), or validate command-style changes via rendered templates (which do use __SPECKIT_COMMAND_*__ placeholders).

• Files reviewed: 46/46 changed files
• Comments generated: 4