History
Git Reflog
Recovering Lost Commits
Git reflog tracks reference changes for recovery.
Understanding Git Reflog
Git reflog, or reference logs, is a powerful tool that allows you to track changes to references in your Git repository. Unlike other Git commands, reflog records every update to the HEAD and branch references, even those that are not part of the commit history, enabling recovery of lost commits.
How Reflog Works
Whenever you perform actions like commit, checkout, or reset, Git records the reference changes in the reflog. This log is local to your repository and helps manage changes to the HEAD, providing a detailed history of your recent actions.
Running the above command will display a list of recent updates to the HEAD reference, along with the hash of each commit and a brief description of the action performed.
Recovering Lost Commits with Reflog
One of the most useful features of reflog is its ability to recover commits that may have been lost. If you accidentally lose a commit by resetting a branch or deleting a branch, reflog can help you find the commit hash and restore it.
By using the commit hash obtained from the reflog, you can check out the lost commit and recover your work.
Practical Example of Using Reflog
Imagine you’ve just performed a hard reset and realized you need the previous commit. You can retrieve it using reflog:
In this example, the reflog shows that the commit e4f5g6h was the one before the reset. You can check it out to recover your changes.
Limitations and Considerations
While reflog is incredibly useful, there are some limitations:
- Reflog data is stored locally and will not be available on remote repositories.
- Reflog entries are subject to expiration based on garbage collection settings.
It is important to regularly back up changes pushed to a remote repository to ensure data safety.
