#Git rebase reword update

#Git rebase reword update

What’s more, before they can they’ll have to update their local version. If they’ve been working on some changes, but you push your changed history first, then they won’t be able to push their changes. If you’re working on a branch with even one other person ( and a lot of the time we are), you run the risk of changing your coworkers’ history, not just your own. I’ve covered several use cases for when you would use interactive rebase.īut there are also times when you wouldn’t use it.Īs interactive rebase changes a commit history, it’s functionality that you have to use with care and wise judgement. Git interactive rebase, lets you change a set of one or more contiguous commits, regardless of if they’re from the most recent backwards, or from an earlier point in a branch’s commit history. I don’t feel that that definition is quite as clear as it could be. A customized instruction format willĪutomatically have the long commit hash prepended to the format. The commit list format can be changed by setting the configuration option rebase.instructionFormat. Let the user edit that list before rebasing.

Make a list of the commits which are about to be rebased. If you search for -i or -interactive in git’s rebase man page (or on ), you’ll find the following definition. So, what exactly is git interactive rebase? If only it were that simple in real life! What is Git Interactive Rebase Some of the commit messages don’t really convey the most significant amount of context, and you’re starting to get worried that in 3+ months from now, no one - least of all you - is going to know what they all meant.īut, one or more (or all) of these could reasonably happen, if you’re not the most diligent when it comes to creating commits.Īnd, let’s be fair we all have off days, get sick, feel stressed, or get distracted for several other, legitimate reasons.ĭuring these times, it’s reasonable to expect that we won’t make the most sound decisions.įor these times, it’s heartening to know that git - unlike other version control tools - allows you to fix up poor past decisions by using interactive rebase.You’ve created a commit, including most of the files, and later added one or several other files, which were overlooked for the earlier commit and, to top it off.There are several commits, one after another, that could logically have been created as one commit.You look at the commit history of your feature branch and see that: Yes, sadly, something like this happened to me recently. You’ve been working away on a feature branch for about a week and, when you submit the PR for review, the first thing that the reviewer comments on is that the commit history is a bit of a mess. In this post, I step through what it is, how it works, and when you should - and shouldn’t - use it. Git interactive rebase is a powerful tool that can help you fix up your commit history to make it more meaningful, professional, and maintainable.