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30See what changed in your product graph since the last commit: adds, edits, and deletes.
/upg-diff [ref]
Show meaningful, human-readable changes to the product graph since the last git commit (or a specified ref), not raw JSON, but semantic product changes.
---
name: upg-diff
description: "See what changed in your product graph since last commit"
user-invocable: true
argument-hint: "[ref]"
category: cognitive
approaches: [inspect]
---
# /upg-diff: Semantic Graph Diff
You are a Unified Product Graph diff engine. Your job is to show meaningful, human-readable changes to the product graph since the last git commit (or a specified ref), not raw JSON, but semantic product changes.
**Before producing any output, read the design system:** /upg-context for emoji mappings, score dots, bar styles, and formatting rules.
## Tools
Use the `mcp__unified-product-graph__*` MCP tools (get_product_context, list_nodes, get_graph_digest) for current state.
Use Bash to run `git` commands for the previous state.
## Diff Flow
### Step 1: Get the Reference Point
By default, diff against the last git commit (`HEAD`). If the user provides a ref (branch, tag, commit SHA), use that instead.
```bash
# Get the .upg file path from the MCP server config or find it
git diff HEAD -- "*.upg"
```
If the `.upg` file isn't tracked by git yet:
```
This .upg file isn't tracked by git yet; there's nothing to diff against.
Run: git add product.upg && git commit -m "Initial product graph"
Then /upg-diff will show changes from that baseline.
```
### Step 2: Parse Both States
Read the current `.upg` file and the previous version:
```bash
# Get the previous state
git show HEAD:product.upg 2>/dev/null
# Or for a specific ref:
git show <ref>:product.upg 2>/dev/null
```
Parse both as JSON. Build node maps (id → node) and edge maps (id → edge) for both states.
### Step 3: Compute Semantic Diff
Compare the two states and categorize changes:
**Added entities:** Nodes in current but not in previous
**Removed entities:** Nodes in previous but not in current
**Modified entities:** Nodes in both but with different title, description, status, or properties
**Added connections:** Edges in current but not in previous
**Removed connections:** Edges in previous but not in current
**Product changes:** Title, description, or stage changed
### Step 4: Present the Diff
Format as a clear, scannable summary:
```
## Graph Changes (since <ref>)
### Summary
+ 3 entities added
~ 2 entities modified
- 1 entity removed
+ 4 connections added
### Added
+ 👤 Sarah Chen: Senior PM at Series B startup
+ 💼 Track decisions on mobile (functional, importance ● ● ● ● ●)
+ 🎯 Reduce time-to-value by 40%
### Modified
~ ⚗️ "Wizard reduces drop-off": status: ⚪ untested → 🟡 in_progress
~ 📊 Day-7 retention: target_value: 55% → 65%
### Removed
- ⚔️ OldRival (removed from graph)
### New Connections
+ 👤 Sarah Chen → pursues_job → 💼 Track decisions on mobile
+ 🎯 Reduce time-to-value → has_metric → 📊 Day-7 retention
+ 🎯 Reduce time-to-value → has_opportunity → 💡 Onboarding too complex
+ 💡 Onboarding too complex → has_solution → 🔧 Guided wizard
### Graph Stats
Before: 12 entities, 8 edges
After: 14 entities, 12 edges
Delta: +2 entities, +4 edges
```
### Step 5: Suggest Actions
```
This is a good checkpoint. Consider:
git add product.upg && git commit -m "Add Sarah persona + retention outcome"
Or keep going:
/upg-gaps: Check if these changes closed any gaps
/upg-tree: See the updated graph structure
/upg-status: Full health dashboard
```
## Handling Edge Cases
**No changes:**
```
No changes to the product graph since <ref>.
Your .upg file matches the committed version.
```
**Large diffs (20+ changes):**
Group by entity type and show counts, then offer to expand:
```
### Summary
+ 15 entities added (8 features, 4 user stories, 2 epics, 1 release)
+ 12 connections added
~ 3 entities modified
Want me to show the full details? That's a lot of changes; might be worth
committing as a checkpoint first.
```
**Multiple .upg files:**
If the repo has multiple `.upg` files, list them and ask which one to diff.
## Key Principles
- **Semantic, not syntactic.** "Added 👤 Sarah Chen" is useful. A JSON diff line is not.
- **Group by action.** Added, modified, removed, in that order. Additions are the most interesting.
- **Show the important properties.** For modified entities, show what changed (old → new).
- **Follow the design system.** Entity emojis, score dots, filled bars, dashed dividers as defined in /upg-context.
- **Suggest git hygiene.** Encourage committing at natural checkpoints.
- **Reference matters.** Always show which ref you're diffing against.
```
┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄┄
Your .upg file is yours: open standard, portable, git-friendly.
unifiedproductgraph.org
```
Then type /upg-diff in Claude Code.