diff --git a/Sources/CodecCore/GitRepository.swift b/Sources/CodecCore/GitRepository.swift
index 32219a9..52df1f1 100644
--- a/Sources/CodecCore/GitRepository.swift
+++ b/Sources/CodecCore/GitRepository.swift
@@ -40,7 +40,8 @@ public protocol GitRunning: Sendable {
     func run(_ arguments: [String], in directory: URL) async throws -> (status: Int32, output: String, errors: String)
 }
 
-/// Runs `/usr/bin/git` as a subprocess, without a terminal and without prompting.
+/// Runs `/usr/bin/git` as a subprocess, without a terminal, without prompting, and without taking
+/// locks it doesn't need.
 public struct ProcessGitRunner: GitRunning {
     public init() {}
 
@@ -54,6 +55,11 @@ public struct ProcessGitRunner: GitRunning {
             // Never wait for a password or an editor that nobody can see.
             environment["GIT_TERMINAL_PROMPT"] = "0"
             environment["GIT_EDITOR"] = "true"
+            // `git status` otherwise rewrites the index to refresh its file stats, holding
+            // .git/index.lock while it does. The file tree runs it whenever the repository changes,
+            // which is just when another app (an IDE, git in another terminal) is committing or
+            // staging, and that app then fails because the index is locked.
+            environment["GIT_OPTIONAL_LOCKS"] = "0"
             process.environment = environment
             let output = Pipe(), errors = Pipe()
             process.standardOutput = output
diff --git a/Sources/CodecCore/PromptConfiguration.swift b/Sources/CodecCore/PromptConfiguration.swift
index d63b762..8b2504a 100644
--- a/Sources/CodecCore/PromptConfiguration.swift
+++ b/Sources/CodecCore/PromptConfiguration.swift
@@ -672,8 +672,10 @@ extension PromptConfiguration {
             return code
         case .gitDiffStats:
             // "3 files changed, 10 insertions(+), 2 deletions(-)" → "3 • +10 -2". Only digits reach the prompt.
+            // diff-index, not diff: `git diff` rewrites the index to refresh its file stats, even with
+            // GIT_OPTIONAL_LOCKS=0, and would lock it at every prompt against other apps using git.
             return [
-                "value=$(command git diff --shortstat HEAD 2>/dev/null)",
+                "value=$(command git diff-index --shortstat HEAD -- 2>/dev/null)",
                 "if [[ -n $value ]]; then",
                 "  local files=${value%% file*} insertions=0 deletions=0",
                 "  files=${files//[^0-9]/}",
diff --git a/Tests/CodecCoreTests/GitRepositoryTests.swift b/Tests/CodecCoreTests/GitRepositoryTests.swift
index b572392..2b6d4a2 100644
--- a/Tests/CodecCoreTests/GitRepositoryTests.swift
+++ b/Tests/CodecCoreTests/GitRepositoryTests.swift
@@ -101,6 +101,20 @@ struct GitRepositoryTests {
         await #expect(throws: GitError.self) { try await repository.createBranch("has space") }
     }
 
+    /// The file tree reads the status whenever the repository changes, which is when another app is
+    /// likely committing or staging: it must never hold the index's lock against that app.
+    @Test func readsTheStatusWithoutRewritingTheIndex() async throws {
+        let temp = try TemporaryDirectory()
+        let clone = try makeClone(in: temp)
+        // The same contents with another date: git would refresh the index to record it.
+        try FileManager.default.setAttributes([.modificationDate: Date(timeIntervalSinceNow: -3600)],
+                                              ofItemAtPath: clone.appendingPathComponent("file.txt").path)
+        let index = clone.appendingPathComponent(".git/index")
+        let before = try Data(contentsOf: index)
+        #expect(try await GitRepository(directory: clone).status().isEmpty)
+        #expect(try Data(contentsOf: index) == before)
+    }
+
     @Test func failsCleanlyOutsideARepository() async throws {
         let temp = try TemporaryDirectory()
         let repository = GitRepository(directory: try temp.directory("plain"))
diff --git a/Tests/CodecCoreTests/ShellIntegrationTests.swift b/Tests/CodecCoreTests/ShellIntegrationTests.swift
index 56733bf..19258c5 100644
--- a/Tests/CodecCoreTests/ShellIntegrationTests.swift
+++ b/Tests/CodecCoreTests/ShellIntegrationTests.swift
@@ -353,6 +353,33 @@ struct ZshPromptTests {
         #expect(rendered.contains("%D{%H:%M}"))
     }
 
+    /// The prompt runs git before every command, so it must never lock the index against another app.
+    @Test func readsGitWithoutRewritingTheIndex() async throws {
+        let setup = try TemporaryDirectory()
+        let repo = try repository(in: setup, branch: "main")
+        let file = repo.appendingPathComponent("file.txt")
+        try "one\n".write(to: file, atomically: true, encoding: .utf8)
+        try git(["add", "."], in: repo)
+        try git(["-c", "user.name=Test", "-c", "user.email=test@example.com", "commit", "-qm", "init"], in: repo)
+        // The same contents with another date: `git diff` would refresh the index to record it.
+        try FileManager.default.setAttributes([.modificationDate: Date(timeIntervalSinceNow: -3600)], ofItemAtPath: file.path)
+        let index = repo.appendingPathComponent(".git/index")
+        let before = try Data(contentsOf: index)
+
+        var configuration = prompt
+        configuration.showsGitChanges = true
+        configuration.segments = [
+            .init(.gitBranch, enabled: true, color: .magenta),
+            .init(.gitDiffStats, enabled: true, color: .green),
+        ]
+        let zsh = try ZshHarness(prompt: configuration, directory: repo.path)
+        #expect(await zsh.wait { zsh.payloads(133).contains { $0.hasPrefix("A") } })
+        zsh.reportPrompt()
+        #expect(await zsh.wait { !zsh.reportedPrompts.isEmpty })
+        #expect(zsh.reportedPrompts.last?.contains("main") == true)
+        #expect(try Data(contentsOf: index) == before)
+    }
+
     /// The prompt zsh draws must match the Settings preview exactly.
     @Test(arguments: [true, false])
     func drawsExactlyWhatThePreviewShows(connectingWords: Bool) async throws {
diff --git a/docs/files-and-editor.md b/docs/files-and-editor.md
index a39e889..da7e1c5 100644
--- a/docs/files-and-editor.md
+++ b/docs/files-and-editor.md
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
 
 - It follows the pane as you `cd`, and opens down to the current directory.
 - It updates as files change on disk.
-- Files are colored by git status (modified, added, untracked, ignored), and folders holding changes get a dot.
+- Files are colored by git status (modified, added, untracked, ignored), and folders holding changes get a dot. Codec reads the status without locking the repository, so it never gets in the way of an IDE or git in another terminal.
 - Files and folders have Codec's own icons, drawn from the theme's palette: a page with a folded corner and a monogram (SW, TS, PY…) or a glyph per type (a `>_` for scripts, signal bars for audio, a key for `.env`…). Folders are colored by role (sources, tests, docs, assets, scripts), dimmed for build output and dependencies, with the current one in the accent color.
 - The eye button shows or hides hidden files.