Question
Answer and Explanation
Discarding all local changes in Git can be achieved using a few different commands, depending on what exactly you want to discard. Here's a comprehensive explanation:
1. Discarding Changes in Modified Files:
- If you want to discard changes to files that have been modified but not yet staged for commit, you can use the following command:
git checkout .
- This command will revert all changes in your working directory to match the state of the last commit. Note that this will not affect new files that have not yet been added to the staging area (index).
2. Discarding Changes in Modified and Staged Files:
- If you need to also remove changes that you have added to the staging area (using `git add`), you can combine `git reset` with `git checkout`. First, use:
git reset --hard HEAD
- Then, to remove any untracked files:
git clean -fd
- This will remove all tracked changes and untracked files from your working directory. Use this command with caution because you will lose uncommited work.
3. Discarding Changes in Specific Files:
- If you only want to discard changes in specific files, use:
git checkout -- path/to/your/file.txt
- Replace `path/to/your/file.txt` with the actual path of the file you want to revert.
Important Notes:
- Irreversible Action: Discarding changes is usually an irreversible action. Make sure you have backed up any important work before using these commands.
- New Files: The `git checkout` command won't affect new files you have created; you will have to use `git clean` to remove them, as shown above.
- Staging Area: Make sure to understand the difference between your working directory, the staging area and your commits.
By using these `git` commands, you can effectively discard local changes in your Git repository. Always be careful, double-check the changes you want to discard, and consider having a backup or an extra branch where you keep your current work before using any of these options.