Git Reset

The git reset command is used to undo changes and move the HEAD pointer to a different commit.

Reset Modes

--soft

Moves HEAD to the specified commit but keeps changes in the staging area.

git reset --soft HEAD~1

--mixed (default)

Moves HEAD and unstages changes, but keeps them in the working directory.

git reset HEAD~1
git reset --mixed HEAD~1  # Same as above

--hard

Moves HEAD and discards all changes (staging area and working directory).

git reset --hard HEAD~1

⚠️ Warning: --hard permanently discards changes!

Common Use Cases

Unstage Files

# Unstage a specific file
git reset HEAD file.txt

# Unstage all files
git reset HEAD

Undo Last Commit

# Keep changes in working directory
git reset HEAD~1

# Discard all changes
git reset --hard HEAD~1

Reset to Specific Commit

git reset --hard abc1234

Examples

# Undo last commit but keep changes
git reset --soft HEAD~1

# Unstage all staged files
git reset

# Reset to 3 commits ago, keeping changes
git reset HEAD~3

# Reset to specific commit and discard everything
git reset --hard 9fceb02

Recovery

If you accidentally use --hard, you might be able to recover using:

git reflog
git reset --hard HEAD@{1}

Next Steps

• Learn about git revert for safer undoing
• Explore git reflog for recovery