Question
Answer and Explanation
No, a git merge is not simply about deleting code. It's a process that combines changes from different branches into one, integrating both new additions and modifications.
Here’s a breakdown of what git merge actually does:
1. Integration, Not Deletion: When you merge one branch into another, Git tries to combine the changes made on both branches. If the same line was changed on both branches, a conflict will happen, but when changes are on separate lines, they are integrated. It’s about combining changes, not just erasing them.
2. Handling Conflicts: Sometimes, Git can’t automatically merge changes when the same lines are edited on both branches. In these scenarios, Git marks the conflicted parts with special markers (e.g., <<<<<<<, =======, >>>>>>>). You then have to resolve these manually by choosing what to keep or how to integrate those specific changes and deleting the markers. This is not deletion of code, but selecting the desired code and deleting the conflict markers.
3. Keeping History: After a merge, Git keeps the history of both the original branches and the merge itself. It creates a merge commit that connects the branches, so you can see how changes were incorporated, which makes it easy to trace the progression of the codebase.
4. Potential for Deletion (But Not By Default): A merge might lead to code deletion only if that code has been explicitly removed on one branch before the merge. However, the merge itself is not a mechanism for deletion, but it would apply changes including deletions, if they were already done on the branch getting merged.
5. Code Overwriting: In some cases, if the changes of the branch being merged into the target branch include the changes done on the target branch as well, code might seem to be overwritten. This is because git is merging changes. But that is part of the intended behaviour.
6. Alternatives to Merge: Besides merging, there are other options, like git rebase, which have their differences and advantages. A rebase is more about rewriting history, but it’s important to understand the implications of each method.
In conclusion, git merge is primarily a mechanism for integration. It helps you bring different development lines together. While there might be code removed or overwritten if these operations were done on a branch prior to the merge, it is not the main purpose of git merge.