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Git’s built-in history tracking and reflog functionality serve as a powerful “time machine” for your repository. In this guide, you’ll learn how to:
  • Restore deleted commits
  • Undo recent commits
  • Recover deleted branches
These techniques help you safely navigate and recover from mistakes in your Git workflow.

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1. Restoring a Deleted Commit

When a commit disappears (e.g., via a force-push or a branch deletion), Git’s reflog can track its SHA-1 hash. 
git reflog
This displays a chronological list of all HEAD movements. Locate the desired commit hash in the reflog output. 
git checkout <commit-hash>
You’re now in a “detached HEAD” state. To preserve this commit on a branch: 
git checkout -b restore-branch <commit-hash>
This creates a new branch named restore-branch pointing at the recovered commit.
By default, Git keeps reflog entries for 90 days. If you don’t find your commit, it may have been pruned. Configure retention with gc.reflogExpire.

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2. Undoing the Last Commit

If you simply want to undo the very last commit on your current branch, use git reset. Choose between a soft or hard reset based on whether you need to preserve your worktree and index.
Reset TypeDescriptionCommand
SoftUndo commit, keep changes stagedgit reset --soft HEAD~1
MixedUndo commit, unstage changes (default behavior)git reset HEAD~1
HardUndo commit and discard staged & working changesgit reset --hard HEAD~1

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2.1 Soft Reset

git reset --soft HEAD~1
  • Moves the branch pointer back by one commit.
  • Leaves your working directory and index untouched.

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2.2 Hard Reset

git reset --hard HEAD~1
  • Moves the branch pointer back by one commit.
  • Resets both your index and working directory to the new HEAD.
git reset --hard irreversibly discards all uncommitted changes. Make sure you really want to lose those changes.
For more on reset modes, see Git Reset Documentation.

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3. Recovering a Deleted Branch

Accidentally deleted a branch? You can bring it back if its commits still exist in the reflog.
  1. View the reflog: 
    git reflog
  2. Find the commit hash where your branch last pointed.
  3. Recreate the branch: 
    git checkout -b <branch-name> <commit-hash>
Your deleted branch is now restored, complete with its history.

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