diff --git a/scripts/apply-format-changes.sh b/scripts/apply-format-changes.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index 80e88469df2bb8878a196bfda16d0e3dd32ed8f8..0000000000000000000000000000000000000000
--- a/scripts/apply-format-changes.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,26 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-
-if [[ -z $GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN || -z $CLANG_FORMAT_BIN ]]; then
-  echo "Error: GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN or CLANG_FORMAT_BIN not defined"
-  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
-  exit -1
-fi
-
-# Check clang-format version
-VERSION=$($CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --version)
-if [[ "$VERSION" != *"11.0.0"* ]]; then
-  echo "Error: CLANG_FORMAT_BIN version not matching the standard cbmroot one (used in the MR test chain)"
-  echo "11.0.0 vs " $VERSION
-  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
-  exit -1
-fi
-
-FAIRROOT_FORMAT_BASE=upstream/master
-BASE_COMMIT=${FAIRROOT_FORMAT_BASE:-HEAD}
-CHANGED_FILES=$(git diff --name-only $BASE_COMMIT | grep -E '.*\.(h|hpp|c|C|cpp|cxx|tpl)$' | grep -viE '.*LinkDef.h$')
-
-
-$GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --verbose --commit $BASE_COMMIT $CHANGED_FILES --extensions h,hpp,c,C,cpp,cxx,tpl
-git status
-echo "Next step: git add "$CHANGED_FILES
-echo 'Then     : git commit -m"Apply clang-format"'
diff --git a/scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh b/scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..61149db0617ad7b16f9e16dc3980c310b558117f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+if [[ -z $GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN || -z $CLANG_FORMAT_BIN ]]; then
+  echo "Error: GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN or CLANG_FORMAT_BIN not defined"
+  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
+  exit -1
+fi
+
+# Check clang-format version
+VERSION=$($CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --version)
+if [[ "$VERSION" != *"11.0.0"* ]]; then
+  echo "Error: CLANG_FORMAT_BIN version not matching the standard cbmroot one (used in the MR test chain)"
+  echo "11.0.0 vs " $VERSION
+  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
+  exit -1
+fi
+
+if [ -z $UPSTREAM ]; then
+  UPSTREAM=$(git remote -v | grep https://git.cbm.gsi.de/computing/cbmroot | cut -f1 | uniq)
+  if [ -z $UPSTREAM ]; then
+    UPSTREAM=$(git remote -v | grep git@git.cbm.gsi.de:computing/cbmroot.git | cut -f1 | uniq)
+    if [ -z $UPSTREAM ]; then
+      echo "Error: Name of upstream repository not provided and not found by automatic means"
+      echo 'Please provide if by checking your remotes with "git remote -v" and exporting UPSTREAM'
+      exit -1
+    fi
+  fi
+fi
+echo "Upstream name is :" $UPSTREAM
+
+BASE_COMMIT=upstream/master
+CHANGED_FILES=$(git diff --name-only $BASE_COMMIT | grep -E '.*\.(h|hpp|c|C|cpp|cxx|tpl)$' | grep -viE '.*LinkDef.h$')
+
+if [[ $# -ne 1 ]]; then
+  echo "Missing argument! please call this script with either the check or apply argument:"
+  echo "./scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh check"
+  echo "./scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh apply"
+  exit -1
+fi
+
+case $1 in
+  check)
+    echo "Checking if there are format changes required"
+    $GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --commit $BASE_COMMIT --diff $CHANGED_FILES --extensions h,hpp,c,C,cpp,cxx,tpl
+    ;;
+
+  apply)
+    echo "Applying required format changes"
+    $GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --verbose --commit $BASE_COMMIT $CHANGED_FILES --extensions h,hpp,c,C,cpp,cxx,tpl
+    git status
+    echo "Next step: git add "$CHANGED_FILES
+    echo 'Then     : git commit -m"Apply clang-format"'
+    ;;
+
+  *)
+    echo "Invalid argument! please call this script with either the check or apply argument:"
+    echo "./scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh check"
+    echo "./scripts/check-apply-format-changes.sh apply"
+    exit -1
+    ;;
+esac
diff --git a/scripts/check-format-changes.sh b/scripts/check-format-changes.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index 046e2742e960635f94052bc274bf2d76260f2e96..0000000000000000000000000000000000000000
--- a/scripts/check-format-changes.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,23 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-
-if [[ -z $GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN || -z $CLANG_FORMAT_BIN ]]; then
-  echo "Error: GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN or CLANG_FORMAT_BIN not defined"
-  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
-  exit -1
-fi
-
-# Check clang-format version
-VERSION=$($CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --version)
-if [[ "$VERSION" != *"11.0.0"* ]]; then
-  echo "Error: CLANG_FORMAT_BIN version not matching the standard cbmroot one (used in the MR test chain)"
-  echo "clang-format version 11.0.0 vs " $VERSION
-  echo "=> Please follow the instruction at https://redmine.cbm.gsi.de/projects/cbmroot/wiki/Clang-format"
-  exit -1
-fi
-
-git fetch upstream
-FAIRROOT_FORMAT_BASE=upstream/master
-BASE_COMMIT=${FAIRROOT_FORMAT_BASE:-HEAD}
-CHANGED_FILES=$(git diff --name-only $BASE_COMMIT | grep -E '.*\.(h|hpp|c|C|cpp|cxx|tpl)$' | grep -viE '.*LinkDef.h$')
-
-$GIT_CLANG_FORMAT_BIN --commit $BASE_COMMIT --diff $CHANGED_FILES --extensions h,hpp,c,C,cpp,cxx,tpl