Patch mode
Patch mode (a from WIP diff) allows staging individual hunks like git add -p. This is useful for selectively staging parts of an agent's work.
When delta is installed, hunks are rendered with syntax highlighting for better readability.
Keybindings
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
y | Stage current hunk |
n | Skip current hunk |
u | Undo last staged hunk |
s | Split hunk (if splittable) |
o | Comment on hunk (sends to agent) |
j/k | Navigate to next/previous hunk |
q/Esc | Exit patch mode |
Ctrl+c | Quit dashboard |
Staging hunks
Press y to stage the current hunk (adds it to the git index) and advance to the next. Press n to skip without staging. The counter in the header shows your progress through all hunks (e.g., [3/10]).
After staging or skipping all hunks, the diff refreshes to show any remaining unstaged changes.
Splitting hunks
Press s to split the current hunk into smaller pieces. This works when there are context lines (unchanged lines) between separate changes within a hunk. If the hunk cannot be split further, nothing happens.
Undo
Press u to undo the last staged hunk. This uses git apply --cached --reverse to unstage it. You can undo multiple times to unstage several hunks.
Commenting on hunks
Press o to enter comment mode. Type your message and press Enter to send it to the agent. The comment includes:
- File path and line number
- The diff hunk as context (in a code block)
- Your comment text
Press Esc to cancel without sending.
This is useful for giving the agent feedback about specific changes, like "This function should handle the error case" or "Can you add a test for this?"