6 git-reset - Reset current HEAD to the specified state
11 'git reset' [-q] [<tree-ish>] [--] <paths>...
12 'git reset' (--patch | -p) [<tree-ish>] [--] [<paths>...]
13 'git reset' [--soft | --mixed | --hard | --merge | --keep] [-q] [<commit>]
14 'git reset' [--stage | --work | --keep] [-q] [<commit>]
18 In the first and second form, copy entries from <tree-ish> to the index.
19 In the third form, set the current branch head (HEAD) to <commit>, optionally
20 modifying index and working tree to match. The <tree-ish>/<commit> defaults
23 'git reset' [-q] [<tree-ish>] [--] <paths>...::
24 This form resets the index entries for all <paths> to their
25 state at <tree-ish>. (It does not affect the working tree or
28 This means that `git reset <paths>` is the opposite of `git add
31 After running `git reset <paths>` to update the index entry, you can
32 use linkgit:git-checkout[1] to check the contents out of the index to
34 Alternatively, using linkgit:git-checkout[1] and specifying a commit, you
35 can copy the contents of a path out of a commit to the index and to the
36 working tree in one go.
38 'git reset' (--patch | -p) [<tree-ish>] [--] [<paths>...]::
39 Interactively select hunks in the difference between the index
40 and <tree-ish> (defaults to HEAD). The chosen hunks are applied
41 in reverse to the index.
43 This means that `git reset -p` is the opposite of `git add -p`, i.e.
44 you can use it to selectively reset hunks. See the ``Interactive Mode''
45 section of linkgit:git-add[1] to learn how to operate the `--patch` mode.
47 'git reset' [<mode>] [<commit>]::
48 This form resets the current branch head to <commit> and
49 possibly updates the index (resetting it to the tree of <commit>) and
50 the working tree depending on <mode>. If <mode> is omitted,
51 defaults to "--mixed". The <mode> must be one of the following:
55 Does not touch the index file or the working tree at all (but
56 resets the head to <commit>, just like all modes do). This leaves
57 all your changed files "Changes to be committed", as 'git status'
61 Resets the index but not the working tree (i.e., the changed files
62 are preserved but not marked for commit) and reports what has not
63 been updated. This is the default action.
66 Resets the index and working tree. Any changes to tracked files in the
67 working tree since <commit> are discarded.
70 Resets the index and updates the files in the working tree that are
71 different between <commit> and HEAD, but keeps those which are
72 different between the index and working tree (i.e. which have changes
73 which have not been added).
74 If a file that is different between <commit> and the index has unstaged
75 changes, reset is aborted.
77 In other words, --merge does something like a 'git read-tree -u -m <commit>',
78 but carries forward unmerged index entries.
81 Resets index entries and updates files in the working tree that are
82 different between <commit> and HEAD.
83 If a file that is different between <commit> and HEAD has local changes,
87 Reset the index, basically `--mixed`. `--no-stage` is the equivalent of
91 Resets the working tree, basically `--hard`.
94 If you want to undo a commit other than the latest on a branch,
95 linkgit:git-revert[1] is your friend.
103 Be quiet, only report errors.
113 $ git add frotz.c filfre.c
116 $ git pull git://info.example.com/ nitfol <4>
119 <1> You are happily working on something, and find the changes
120 in these files are in good order. You do not want to see them
121 when you run "git diff", because you plan to work on other files
122 and changes with these files are distracting.
123 <2> Somebody asks you to pull, and the changes sounds worthy of merging.
124 <3> However, you already dirtied the index (i.e. your index does
125 not match the HEAD commit). But you know the pull you are going
126 to make does not affect frotz.c or filfre.c, so you revert the
127 index changes for these two files. Your changes in working tree
129 <4> Then you can pull and merge, leaving frotz.c and filfre.c
130 changes still in the working tree.
132 Undo a commit and redo::
136 $ git reset --soft HEAD^ <1>
138 $ git commit -a -c ORIG_HEAD <3>
141 <1> This is most often done when you remembered what you
142 just committed is incomplete, or you misspelled your commit
143 message, or both. Leaves working tree as it was before "reset".
144 <2> Make corrections to working tree files.
145 <3> "reset" copies the old head to .git/ORIG_HEAD; redo the
146 commit by starting with its log message. If you do not need to
147 edit the message further, you can give -C option instead.
149 See also the --amend option to linkgit:git-commit[1].
151 Undo a commit, making it a topic branch::
154 $ git branch topic/wip <1>
155 $ git reset --hard HEAD~3 <2>
156 $ git checkout topic/wip <3>
159 <1> You have made some commits, but realize they were premature
160 to be in the "master" branch. You want to continue polishing
161 them in a topic branch, so create "topic/wip" branch off of the
163 <2> Rewind the master branch to get rid of those three commits.
164 <3> Switch to "topic/wip" branch and keep working.
166 Undo commits permanently::
170 $ git reset --hard HEAD~3 <1>
173 <1> The last three commits (HEAD, HEAD^, and HEAD~2) were bad
174 and you do not want to ever see them again. Do *not* do this if
175 you have already given these commits to somebody else. (See the
176 "RECOVERING FROM UPSTREAM REBASE" section in linkgit:git-rebase[1] for
177 the implications of doing so.)
179 Undo a merge or pull::
184 CONFLICT (content): Merge conflict in nitfol
185 Automatic merge failed; fix conflicts and then commit the result.
186 $ git reset --hard <2>
187 $ git pull . topic/branch <3>
188 Updating from 41223... to 13134...
190 $ git reset --hard ORIG_HEAD <4>
193 <1> Try to update from the upstream resulted in a lot of
194 conflicts; you were not ready to spend a lot of time merging
195 right now, so you decide to do that later.
196 <2> "pull" has not made merge commit, so "git reset --hard"
197 which is a synonym for "git reset --hard HEAD" clears the mess
198 from the index file and the working tree.
199 <3> Merge a topic branch into the current branch, which resulted
201 <4> But you decided that the topic branch is not ready for public
202 consumption yet. "pull" or "merge" always leaves the original
203 tip of the current branch in ORIG_HEAD, so resetting hard to it
204 brings your index file and the working tree back to that state,
205 and resets the tip of the branch to that commit.
207 Undo a merge or pull inside a dirty working tree::
212 Merge made by recursive.
213 nitfol | 20 +++++----
215 $ git reset --merge ORIG_HEAD <2>
218 <1> Even if you may have local modifications in your
219 working tree, you can safely say "git pull" when you know
220 that the change in the other branch does not overlap with
222 <2> After inspecting the result of the merge, you may find
223 that the change in the other branch is unsatisfactory. Running
224 "git reset --hard ORIG_HEAD" will let you go back to where you
225 were, but it will discard your local changes, which you do not
226 want. "git reset --merge" keeps your local changes.
229 Interrupted workflow::
231 Suppose you are interrupted by an urgent fix request while you
232 are in the middle of a large change. The files in your
233 working tree are not in any shape to be committed yet, but you
234 need to get to the other branch for a quick bugfix.
237 $ git checkout feature ;# you were working in "feature" branch and
238 $ work work work ;# got interrupted
239 $ git commit -a -m "snapshot WIP" <1>
240 $ git checkout master
242 $ git commit ;# commit with real log
243 $ git checkout feature
244 $ git reset --soft HEAD^ ;# go back to WIP state <2>
248 <1> This commit will get blown away so a throw-away log message is OK.
249 <2> This removes the 'WIP' commit from the commit history, and sets
250 your working tree to the state just before you made that snapshot.
251 <3> At this point the index file still has all the WIP changes you
252 committed as 'snapshot WIP'. This updates the index to show your
253 WIP files as uncommitted.
255 See also linkgit:git-stash[1].
257 Reset a single file in the index::
259 Suppose you have added a file to your index, but later decide you do not
260 want to add it to your commit. You can remove the file from the index
261 while keeping your changes with git reset.
264 $ git reset -- frotz.c <1>
265 $ git commit -m "Commit files in index" <2>
266 $ git add frotz.c <3>
269 <1> This removes the file from the index while keeping it in the working
271 <2> This commits all other changes in the index.
272 <3> Adds the file to the index again.
274 Keep changes in working tree while discarding some previous commits::
276 Suppose you are working on something and you commit it, and then you
277 continue working a bit more, but now you think that what you have in
278 your working tree should be in another branch that has nothing to do
279 with what you committed previously. You can start a new branch and
280 reset it while keeping the changes in your working tree.
284 $ git checkout -b branch1
288 $ git checkout -b branch2 <2>
289 $ git reset --keep start <3>
292 <1> This commits your first edits in branch1.
293 <2> In the ideal world, you could have realized that the earlier
294 commit did not belong to the new topic when you created and switched
295 to branch2 (i.e. "git checkout -b branch2 start"), but nobody is
297 <3> But you can use "reset --keep" to remove the unwanted commit after
298 you switched to "branch2".
304 The tables below show what happens when running:
307 git reset --option target
310 to reset the HEAD to another commit (`target`) with the different
311 reset options depending on the state of the files.
313 In these tables, A, B, C and D are some different states of a
314 file. For example, the first line of the first table means that if a
315 file is in state A in the working tree, in state B in the index, in
316 state C in HEAD and in state D in the target, then "git reset --soft
317 target" will leave the file in the working tree in state A and in the
318 index in state B. It resets (i.e. moves) the HEAD (i.e. the tip of
319 the current branch, if you are on one) to "target" (which has the file
322 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
323 ----------------------------------------------------
330 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
331 ----------------------------------------------------
338 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
339 ----------------------------------------------------
346 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
347 ----------------------------------------------------
354 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
355 ----------------------------------------------------
362 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
363 ----------------------------------------------------
370 "reset --merge" is meant to be used when resetting out of a conflicted
371 merge. Any mergy operation guarantees that the working tree file that is
372 involved in the merge does not have local change wrt the index before
373 it starts, and that it writes the result out to the working tree. So if
374 we see some difference between the index and the target and also
375 between the index and the working tree, then it means that we are not
376 resetting out from a state that a mergy operation left after failing
377 with a conflict. That is why we disallow --merge option in this case.
379 "reset --keep" is meant to be used when removing some of the last
380 commits in the current branch while keeping changes in the working
381 tree. If there could be conflicts between the changes in the commit we
382 want to remove and the changes in the working tree we want to keep,
383 the reset is disallowed. That's why it is disallowed if there are both
384 changes between the working tree and HEAD, and between HEAD and the
385 target. To be safe, it is also disallowed when there are unmerged
388 The following tables show what happens when there are unmerged
391 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
392 ----------------------------------------------------
393 X U A B --soft (disallowed)
399 working index HEAD target working index HEAD
400 ----------------------------------------------------
401 X U A A --soft (disallowed)
407 X means any state and U means an unmerged index.
411 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite