Setup

The minimum supported version of Node.js is the latest v14. Check your Node.js version with node --version.

1. Install aca:

   npm install -g auto-commit-ai

2. Authenticate using browser:

   aca auth

   Opens browser for authentication. For manual entry:

   aca auth --manual

3. (Optional) Configure settings:

   aca config

   Interactive interface to customize model, locale, commit type, etc.

Upgrading

Check the installed version with:

aca --version

Upgrade to the latest version:

npm update -g auto-commit-ai

Usage

CLI mode

You can call aca directly to generate a commit message for your staged changes:

git add <files...>
aca

aca passes down unknown flags to git commit, so you can pass in commit flags.

Available CLI flags

• Stage all changes: Stage all tracked file changes before committing

  aca --all # or -a

• Generate multiple options: Generate multiple commit messages to choose from

  aca --generate 3 # or -g 3

  Warning: this uses more tokens, meaning it costs more.

• Exclude files: Exclude specific files from AI analysis

  aca --exclude "*.lock" --exclude "dist/*" # or -x

Commit message types

Configure via aca config:

• None: Standard commit messages
• Conventional: Conventional Commits format (feat:, fix:, etc.)
• Gitmoji: Commit messages with emojis 😄

Git hook

Integrate aca with Git via the prepare-commit-msg hook. Use Git normally and edit commit messages before committing.

Install

In the Git repository you want to install the hook in:

aca hook install

Uninstall

In the Git repository you want to uninstall the hook from:

aca hook uninstall

Usage

1. Stage your files and commit:

   git add <files...>
   git commit # Only generates a message when it's not passed in

   If you ever want to write your own message instead of generating one, you can simply pass one in: git commit -m "My message"

2. aca will generate the commit message for you and pass it back to Git. Git will open it with the configured editor for you to review/edit it.

3. Save and close the editor to commit!

Configuration

Interactive Configuration

aca config

React-based terminal interface to:

• Configure authentication token
• Choose AI models and commit types
• Set language preferences
• Adjust timeout and message length
• Get real-time validation and descriptions

Authentication Commands

aca auth              # Browser-based authentication (recommended)
aca auth --manual     # Manual token entry

Options

Configuration Options

| Option | Default | Description | |--------|---------|-------------| | authtoken | (required) | AutoCommit API authentication token | | locale | en | Language locale for commit messages (ISO 639-1 codes) | | generate | 1 | Number of commit messages to generate (1-5) | | type | conventional | Commit message format: none, conventional, gitmoji | | model | deepseek-v3 | AI model to use (see supported models below) | | timeout | 30000 | Request timeout in milliseconds | | max-length | 50 | Maximum commit message length |

Supported AI Models

• deepseek-v3 - DeepSeek V3 model (default)
• deepseek-r1 - DeepSeek R1 model
• gemini-2.0 - Google Gemini 2.0 model
• gpt-4-turbo - OpenAI GPT-4 Turbo model

Configuration File Locations

aca stores configuration in INI format:

• Local: ./.autoCommit (project-specific, takes priority)
• Global: ~/.autoCommit (user-wide default)

How it works

aca analyzes your staged git changes and generates intelligent commit messages using advanced AI models:

1. Change Detection: Runs git diff --cached to capture your staged changes
2. AI Analysis: Sends the diff to your selected AI model (DeepSeek, Gemini, or GPT-4)
3. Smart Generation: Generates contextual commit messages based on the code changes
4. Format Support: Outputs in your preferred format (conventional commits, gitmoji, or standard)

The tool respects .gitignore patterns and automatically excludes lock files and build artifacts from analysis.

Links

• AutoCommit Official Website - AI-powered commit message generator
• Icebreaker Games - Fun team building and icebreaker activities