Raw
1 git-replay(1)
2 =============
3
4 NAME
5 ----
6 git-replay - EXPERIMENTAL: Replay commits on a new base, works with bare repos too
7
8
9 SYNOPSIS
10 --------
11 [verse]
12 (EXPERIMENTAL!) 'git replay' ([--contained] --onto=<newbase> | --advance=<branch> | --revert=<branch>)
13 [--ref=<ref>] [--ref-action=<mode>] <revision-range>
14
15 DESCRIPTION
16 -----------
17
18 Takes a range of commits and replays them onto a new location. Leaves
19 the working tree and the index untouched. By default, updates the
20 relevant references using an atomic transaction (all refs update or
21 none). Use `--ref-action=print` to avoid automatic ref updates and
22 instead get update commands that can be piped to `git update-ref --stdin`
23 (see the <<output,OUTPUT>> section below).
24
25 THIS COMMAND IS EXPERIMENTAL. THE BEHAVIOR MAY CHANGE.
26
27 OPTIONS
28 -------
29
30 --onto=<newbase>::
31 Starting point at which to create the new commits. May be any
32 valid commit, and not just an existing branch name.
33 +
34 When `--onto` is specified, the branch(es) in the revision range will be
35 updated to point at the new commits, similar to the way `git rebase --update-refs`
36 updates multiple branches in the affected range.
37
38 --advance=<branch>::
39 Starting point at which to create the new commits; must be a
40 branch name.
41 +
42 The history is replayed on top of the <branch> and <branch> is updated to
43 point at the tip of the resulting history. This is different from `--onto`,
44 which uses the target only as a starting point without updating it.
45
46 --revert=<branch>::
47 Starting point at which to create the reverted commits; must be a
48 branch name.
49 +
50 When `--revert` is specified, the commits in the revision range are reverted
51 (their changes are undone) and the reverted commits are created on top of
52 <branch>. The <branch> is then updated to point at the new commits. This is
53 the same as running `git revert <revision-range>` but does not update the
54 working tree.
55 +
56 The commit messages follow `git revert` conventions: they are prefixed with
57 "Revert" and include "This reverts commit <hash>." When reverting a commit
58 whose message starts with "Revert", the new message uses "Reapply" instead.
59 Unlike cherry-pick which preserves the original author, revert commits use
60 the current user as the author, matching the behavior of `git revert`.
61 +
62 This option is mutually exclusive with `--onto` and `--advance`. It is also
63 incompatible with `--contained` (which is a modifier for `--onto` only).
64
65 --contained::
66 Update all branches that point at commits in
67 <revision-range>. Requires `--onto`.
68
69 --ref=<ref>::
70 Override which reference is updated with the result of the replay.
71 The ref must be fully qualified.
72 When used with `--onto`, the `<revision-range>` should have a
73 single tip and only the specified reference is updated instead of
74 inferring refs from the revision range.
75 When used with `--advance` or `--revert`, the specified reference is
76 updated instead of the branch given to those options.
77 This option is incompatible with `--contained`.
78
79 --ref-action[=<mode>]::
80 Control how references are updated. The mode can be:
81 +
82 --
83 * `update` (default): Update refs directly using an atomic transaction.
84 All refs are updated or none are (all-or-nothing behavior).
85 * `print`: Output update-ref commands for pipeline use. This is the
86 traditional behavior where output can be piped to `git update-ref --stdin`.
87 --
88 +
89 The default mode can be configured via the `replay.refAction` configuration variable.
90
91 <revision-range>::
92 Range of commits to replay; see "Specifying Ranges" in
93 linkgit:git-rev-parse[1]. In `--advance=<branch>` or
94 `--revert=<branch>` mode, the range should have a single tip,
95 so that it's clear to which tip the advanced or reverted
96 <branch> should point. Any commits in the range whose changes
97 are already present in the branch the commits are being
98 replayed onto will be dropped.
99
100 :git-replay: 1
101 include::rev-list-options.adoc[]
102
103 [[output]]
104 OUTPUT
105 ------
106
107 By default, or with `--ref-action=update`, this command produces no output on
108 success, as refs are updated directly using an atomic transaction.
109
110 When using `--ref-action=print`, the output is usable as input to
111 `git update-ref --stdin`. It is of the form:
112
113 update refs/heads/branch1 ${NEW_branch1_HASH} ${OLD_branch1_HASH}
114 update refs/heads/branch2 ${NEW_branch2_HASH} ${OLD_branch2_HASH}
115 update refs/heads/branch3 ${NEW_branch3_HASH} ${OLD_branch3_HASH}
116
117 where the number of refs updated depends on the arguments passed and
118 the shape of the history being replayed. When using `--advance` or
119 `--revert`, the number of refs updated is always one, but for `--onto`,
120 it can be one or more (rebasing multiple branches simultaneously is
121 supported).
122
123 There is no stderr output on conflicts; see the <<exit-status,EXIT
124 STATUS>> section below.
125
126 [[exit-status]]
127 EXIT STATUS
128 -----------
129
130 For a successful, non-conflicted replay, the exit status is 0. When
131 the replay has conflicts, the exit status is 1. If the replay is not
132 able to complete (or start) due to some kind of error, the exit status
133 is something other than 0 or 1.
134
135 EXAMPLES
136 --------
137
138 To simply rebase `mybranch` onto `target`:
139
140 ------------
141 $ git replay --onto=target origin/main..mybranch
142 ------------
143
144 The refs are updated atomically and no output is produced on success.
145
146 To see what would be updated without actually updating:
147
148 ------------
149 $ git replay --ref-action=print --onto=target origin/main..mybranch
150 update refs/heads/mybranch ${NEW_mybranch_HASH} ${OLD_mybranch_HASH}
151 ------------
152
153 To cherry-pick the commits from mybranch onto target:
154
155 ------------
156 $ git replay --advance=target origin/main..mybranch
157 ------------
158
159 Note that the first two examples replay the exact same commits and on
160 top of the exact same new base, they only differ in that the first
161 updates mybranch to point at the new commits and the second updates
162 target to point at them.
163
164 What if you have a stack of branches, one depending upon another, and
165 you'd really like to rebase the whole set?
166
167 ------------
168 $ git replay --contained --onto=origin/main origin/main..tipbranch
169 ------------
170
171 All three branches (`branch1`, `branch2`, and `tipbranch`) are updated
172 atomically.
173
174 When calling `git replay`, one does not need to specify a range of
175 commits to replay using the syntax `A..B`; any range expression will
176 do:
177
178 ------------
179 $ git replay --onto=origin/main ^base branch1 branch2 branch3
180 ------------
181
182 This will simultaneously rebase `branch1`, `branch2`, and `branch3`,
183 all commits they have since `base`, playing them on top of
184 `origin/main`. These three branches may have commits on top of `base`
185 that they have in common, but that does not need to be the case.
186
187 To revert commits on a branch:
188
189 ------------
190 $ git replay --revert=main topic~2..topic
191 ------------
192
193 This reverts the last two commits from `topic`, creating revert commits on
194 top of `main`, and updates `main` to point at the result. This is useful when
195 commits from `topic` were previously merged or cherry-picked into `main` and
196 need to be undone.
197
198 NOTE: For reverting an entire merge request as a single commit (rather than
199 commit-by-commit), consider using `git merge-tree --merge-base $TIP HEAD $BASE`
200 which can avoid unnecessary merge conflicts.
201
202 To replay onto a specific commit while updating a different reference:
203
204 ------------
205 $ git replay --onto=112233 --ref=refs/heads/mybranch aabbcc..ddeeff
206 ------------
207
208 This replays the range `aabbcc..ddeeff` onto commit `112233` and updates
209 `refs/heads/mybranch` to point at the result. This can be useful when you want
210 to use bare commit IDs instead of branch names.
211
212 GIT
213 ---
214 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite