Managing Workspaces

Learn how to organise your workspace list, free up disk space, and understand what happens to the host-side folder and Git branch when you archive or delete workspaces.

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Accessing Workspace Actions

You can access workspace actions in two ways: From the sidebar: Hover over a workspace in the sidebar and click the … (More actions) button to see available actions. From the command bar:

1. Press Cmd/Ctrl + K
2. Go to Workspace Actions
3. Select the action you want

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Pinning Workspaces

Keep important workspaces at the top of your list by selecting Pin Workspace from the workspace actions. Pinned workspaces appear at the top of the sidebar regardless of their last activity time.

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Archiving Workspaces

When you’re done with a workspace but might want to return to it later, archive it to keep your workspace list clean. Select Archive from the workspace actions, or click the Archive button () in the top left of the navbar. Archived workspaces can be viewed by clicking View Archive at the bottom of the sidebar.

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Deleting Workspaces

To permanently delete a workspace, select Delete Workspace from the workspace actions.

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What Gets Deleted

When you delete a workspace:

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Archive vs Delete

Use Archive when:

• You might return to this work later
• You want to keep the conversation history
• You’re cleaning up your workspace list but not done with the task

Use Delete when:

• The task is complete and merged
• You want to free up disk space
• You don’t need the conversation history

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Disk Space and Worktree Location

Each workspace creates a git worktree - a separate working directory with a full copy of your repository’s tracked files. Multiple workspaces for large repositories can consume significant disk space.

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Where Worktrees Are Stored

Worktrees are stored on the selected host. You can configure a custom location in Settings → General → Workspace Directory.

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Checking Disk Usage

Open a terminal on the selected host and check the workspace directory configured in settings. If no custom directory is configured, check the host’s temporary workspace location.

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Freeing Up Space

To reduce disk usage:

1. Delete completed workspaces - Use Delete (not Archive) for tasks that are finished and merged
2. Review archived workspaces - Archived workspaces still consume disk space
3. Configure cleanup scripts - Add cleanup scripts to remove build artifacts (like node_modules) when workspaces close

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Manual Worktree Deletion

If you manually delete a worktree directory (e.g., using rm -rf in terminal), Jaidu will automatically recreate it the next time you open that workspace. The worktree is recreated from the branch’s last commit.

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Orphan Cleanup

Jaidu automatically cleans up “orphaned” worktrees on startup - these are worktree directories that no longer have a matching workspace in the database (e.g., if the app crashed during deletion). This cleanup runs automatically, so you don’t need to manually manage stale worktree directories.

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Renaming Workspaces

To rename a workspace, select Rename Workspace from the workspace actions and enter the new name.

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Fork Branch

To continue from the current workspace state in a child workspace, select Fork Branch from the workspace actions. If the workspace has uncommitted or untracked changes, Jaidu asks whether to create a local checkpoint commit before forking. After confirmation, the child workspace starts from that checkpoint boundary. The forked child workspace:

• uses the same repositories as the parent workspace;
• sets each repository target branch to the parent workspace branch;
• records branch lineage so the Branch Graph can show the parent/child relationship;
• starts with its own fresh thread history in a new host-side folder/worktree.

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Related Documentation

• Creating Workspaces - Setting up new workspaces
• Interface Guide - Understanding the workspace layout
• Command Bar - Quick actions and keyboard shortcuts