How to Revert a Pushed Merge Commit in Git

To revert a pushed merge commit in Git, you can follow these steps:

Step 1: Identify the merge commit

First, you need to identify the merge commit that you want to revert. You can use the following command to view the commit history and find the merge commit:

git log --oneline --graph

This command will show you a graphical representation of the commit history, including the merge commits. Look for the merge commit that you want to revert and make note of its commit hash.

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Step 2: Create a new branch

To keep your repository clean and organize your changes, it's a good practice to create a new branch for the revert operation. You can create a new branch using the following command:

git checkout -b revert-merge-commit

This command will create a new branch called "revert-merge-commit" and switch to that branch.

Step 3: Revert the merge commit

Once you are on the new branch, you can revert the merge commit using the following command:

git revert -m 1 <commit-hash>

Replace <commit-hash> with the commit hash of the merge commit you want to revert. The -m 1 option tells Git to revert to the first parent of the merge commit, which effectively undoes the changes made by the merge commit.

Step 4: Review and resolve conflicts

After running the revert command, Git will create a new commit that undoes the changes made by the merge commit. If there are any conflicts during the revert process, Git will prompt you to resolve them. Use a merge tool or manually edit the conflicting files to resolve the conflicts.

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Step 5: Push the revert commit

Once you have resolved any conflicts, you can push the revert commit to the remote repository using the following command:

git push origin revert-merge-commit

This command will push the revert commit to the remote repository and make it available to other team members.

Alternative approach: Revert with reset

Instead of using the git revert command, you can also use the git reset command to revert a merge commit. However, note that this approach is more destructive as it removes the merge commit and any subsequent commits based on it.

To revert a merge commit with reset, follow these steps:

1. Identify the merge commit using git log --oneline --graph as described in Step 1.

2. Create a new branch using git checkout -b revert-merge-commit.

3. Reset the branch to the commit before the merge commit using the following command:

   git reset --hard HEAD^

This command will remove the merge commit and set the branch pointer to the commit before it.

4. Force push the branch to the remote repository using the following command:

   git push -f origin revert-merge-commit

This command will overwrite the remote branch with the local branch, effectively reverting the merge commit.

Best practices

- Before reverting a merge commit, make sure to communicate with your team members and discuss the implications of reverting the changes. It's important to understand the impact on other branches and ongoing work.

- Use descriptive branch names when creating a new branch for the revert operation. This helps in identifying the purpose of the branch and makes it easier to collaborate with others.

- Always review the changes made by the revert commit and ensure that the expected changes are reverted. Test the changes thoroughly to make sure there are no unintended side effects.