Lessons · Git · getting a lost commit back

Getting a lost commit back

The reflog names where the branch was before the move that lost it. Point something at that, and the commit is back in the history.

Hone is a place to practise programming. This is one of its lessons, written out in full and free to read without an account.

What it is for

Every reset, rebase and amend that goes wrong ends here, and the whole rescue is two commands.

Name it with a branch first and look; reset the branch only when you are sure. A name costs nothing and moves nothing.

git log --oneline

One commit. The other is not in the history any more.

git reflog

But it is here, one move back.

git branch rescue HEAD@{1}

Named. Nothing else has changed.

git log --oneline rescue

Both commits, on a branch you can read before deciding.

git reset --hard rescue

And now main is back where it was.

cat f.txt

two. The work is here.

Put the current branch back to where the rescue branch points.

git reset  rescue

Doing the reset first, from memory. If the hash is wrong you now have two problems, and the second one is also in the reflog.

Practise getting a lost commit back on HoneA question on it now, a coding challenge where there is one, and it is remembered for review. Free, no email needed.