Version Bump workflow fails: branch already exists conflict

[trsdn]

Problem Description

The Version Bump workflow fails when trying to push the version-bump branch because it already exists from a previous run.

Error Message

! [rejected]        version-bump/v1.2.0 -> version-bump/v1.2.0 (non-fast-forward)
error: failed to push some refs to 'https://github.com/trsdn/markitdown-mcp'
hint: Updates were rejected because the tip of your current branch is behind
hint: its remote counterpart.

Root Cause

The workflow creates a branch version-bump/v{version} but doesn't handle the case where this branch already exists from a previous failed or successful run.

Current Code Issue

The workflow always tries to create and push a new branch without checking if it exists:

git checkout -b "$BRANCH_NAME"
git push origin "$BRANCH_NAME"

Proposed Solution

Option 1: Delete existing branch first

- name: Create version bump branch
  run: |
    BRANCH_NAME="version-bump/v$NEW_VERSION"
    
    # Delete remote branch if it exists
    git push origin --delete "$BRANCH_NAME" 2>/dev/null || true
    
    # Create fresh branch
    git checkout -b "$BRANCH_NAME"

Option 2: Use timestamp in branch name

BRANCH_NAME="version-bump/v$NEW_VERSION-$(date +%s)"

Option 3: Force push

git push --force origin "$BRANCH_NAME"

Option 4: Check and update existing branch

# Fetch remote branches
git fetch origin

# Check if branch exists
if git show-ref --verify --quiet refs/remotes/origin/"$BRANCH_NAME"; then
  git checkout "$BRANCH_NAME"
  git pull origin "$BRANCH_NAME"
  git merge main
else
  git checkout -b "$BRANCH_NAME"
fi

Impact

• Version bump PRs cannot be created
• Automated release process is broken
• Manual intervention required to delete existing branches

Test Case

Found in PR #16 where version bump workflow tries to create v1.2.0 branch that already exists.

Priority

Medium - Affects automated releases but has manual workaround.

Files Affected

• .github/workflows/version-bump.yml

[trsdn]

Fixed in commit dd8a636. The version bump workflow now:

• Deletes local branch if it exists before creating new one
• Uses force push to overwrite existing remote branches
• Checks for existing PRs and updates them instead of creating duplicates
• Handles permission issues gracefully

The workflow will no longer fail with 'non-fast-forward' errors when branches already exist.