git reset

Move the branch to another commit, for example to undo the last commits

What it does

git reset moves the current branch to the commit you name. HEAD~1 is the commit before the last one, HEAD~3 three back. Commits after it leave the branch, and the flag decides what happens to their changes.

--soft keeps the changes staged, ready to commit again, say as one commit instead of several. Without a flag (--mixed mode) the changes stay in your files but leave the index. --hard throws them away.

Careful. --hard erases both the undone commits and every uncommitted edit in tracked files. Undo commits that are already on the server with git revert: reset rewrites history, and a plain git push fails.

Syntax

git reset --soft <commit>
git reset <commit>
git reset --hard <commit>

Examples

• Undo the last commit but keep its changes staged

  git reset --soft HEAD~1

  same as: git reset --soft HEAD^

  • reset — move the branch to another commit
  • --soft — changes stay in the index
  • HEAD~1 — one commit back

• Throw away the last commit with all its changes

  git reset --hard HEAD~1

  same as: git reset --hard HEAD^

  • reset — move the branch
  • --hard — erase the changes — no way back
  • HEAD~1 — one commit back

Related commands

• git restore — Discard edits in a file or unstage it
• git revert — Undo a commit with a new commit, without rewriting history
• git commit — Save the staged changes to history as a new commit

Practise · All commands