git/list[1] front-page[2] threads[3] people[4] search[5] about
 

RE: Proposal: tell git a file has been renamed

From
rsbecker@nexbridge.com <rsbecker@nexbridge.com>
Date
Apr 22, 2023, 22:09 UTC
Message-ID
<01d301d97567$0e9bc0b0$2bd34210$@nexbridge.com>
In-Reply-To
<3ac19159-7314-c299-5112-b0f7aa2cc409@game-point.net>
On Saturday, April 22, 2023 3:54 PM, Jeremy Morton wrote:
Show 13 quoted lines
>Subject: Re: Proposal: tell git a file has been renamed
>
>https://stackoverflow.com/a/1094392/178757
>
>says:
>
>git mv oldname newname
>
>is just shorthand for:
>
>mv oldname newname
>git add newname
>git rm oldname
The above stackoverflow topic is from 2009. A lot has changed since then. My test follows. Please note the status and git log contents indicating the rename.
$ mkdir test2
$ cd test2
$ git init
$ echo "Initial" > file1
$ git add file1
$ commit -m "Commit 1"
$ git mv file1 file2
$ git status
On branch master
Changes to be committed:
  (use "git restore --staged <file>..." to unstage)
        renamed:    file1 -> file2
$ git commit -m "Rename"
$ git log --patch
commit 014068fcedaf361f45c356046cf513b79537f53f (HEAD -> master)
Author: Randall S. Becker <rsbecker@nexbridge.com>
Date:   Sat Apr 22 18:02:07 2023 -0400
    Rename
diff --git a/file1 b/file2
similarity index 100%
rename from file1
rename to file2

commit 235a33801b82eac67e25c57e512ca428f2d49cea
Author: Randall S. Becker <rsbecker@nexbridge.com>
Date:   Sat Apr 22 18:01:48 2023 -0400

    Commit 1

diff --git a/file1 b/file1
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a77fa51
--- /dev/null
+++ b/file1
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Initial

>
>On 22/04/2023 20:47, rsbecker@nexbridge.com wrote:
>> No, history is preserved in the rename.
>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Jeremy Morton <admin@game-point.net>
>>> Sent: Saturday, April 22, 2023 3:45 PM
>>> To: rsbecker@nexbridge.com; git@vger.kernel.org
>>> Subject: Re: Proposal: tell git a file has been renamed
>>>
>>> I read that git mv is basically the equivalent to deleting the old
>>> file, creating the new file, and adding the changes.  Isn't it?  If
>>> so it's gonna have the same problem as I have now.
>>>
>>> --
>>> Best regards,
>>> Jeremy Morton (Jez)
>>>
>>> On 22/04/2023 19:54, rsbecker@nexbridge.com wrote:
>>>> On Saturday, April 22, 2023 2:02 PM, Jeremy Morton wrote:
>>>>> Yes, I know Linus specifically doesn't store file rename info in Git.
>>>>> The trouble is, every now and then, I'll come across a situation
>>>>> where Git doesn't successfully detect that I've renamed a file
>>>>> because I'm doing something like renaming a class at the same time.
>>>>> So I'll have a file OldClassNameTests.cs and a NewClassNameTests.cs
>>>>> but a bunch of lines in that file have also changed from
>>>>> OldClassName.DoThing() to NewClassName.DoThing().  I can clearly
>>>>> see that this is a rename, but Git sees enough changed content that
>>>>> it doesn't realize it, and puts it in as a delete/add, losing the content history.
>>>>>
>>>>> The standard answer for this is to rename the file in one commit,
>>>>> then make the changes.  That's fine if you know ahead of time
>>>>> you'll want to do this.  However it's a total PITA if you have a
>>>>> bunch of changes and you realize that a rename has caused this
>>>>> problem.  You now have to back out your changes to the renamed
>>>>> file, add the rename, commit
>>> it, then re-apply the changes.
>>>>>
>>>>> Could a command be added to git that means you tell Git that counts
>>>>> as a file rename?  Git would add a marker to the staging area that
>>>>> the file has been renamed, and upon commit, would first generate an
>>>>> additional commit for each rename before generating the main
>>>>> commit, ensuring the rename operation counts as an actual rename,
>>>>> and the content's
>>> history is maintained.
>>>>
>>>> Would git mv work in your situation? You can stage changes to the
>>>> original file,
>>> then use git mv. Or use git mv first. The rename shows as staged in any event.
>>>> --Randall
>>>>
>>>>
>>
>>
Previous: Jeremy MortonNext: Erik Cervin Edin
Message 6 of 24 in “Proposal: tell git a file has been renamed”
  1. Jeremy MortonApr 22, 2023
  2. rsbecker@nexbridge.comApr 22, 2023
  3. Jeremy MortonApr 22, 2023
  4. rsbecker@nexbridge.comApr 22, 2023
  5. Jeremy MortonApr 22, 2023
  6. rsbecker@nexbridge.comApr 22, 2023
  7. Erik Cervin EdinApr 23, 2023
  8. Kristoffer HaugsbakkApr 23, 2023
  9. Chris TorekApr 24, 2023
  10. Jeremy MortonApr 24, 2023
  11. Chris TorekApr 24, 2023
  12. Erik Cervin EdinApr 24, 2023
  13. Jeremy MortonApr 24, 2023
  14. Erik Cervin EdinApr 24, 2023
  15. Jeremy MortonApr 24, 2023
  16. Felipe ContrerasApr 24, 2023
  17. Jacob KellerApr 24, 2023
  18. Felipe ContrerasApr 24, 2023
  19. Jacob KellerApr 26, 2023
  20. Junio C HamanoApr 26, 2023
  21. Erik Cervin EdinMay 11, 2023
  22. Junio C HamanoApr 24, 2023
  23. Junio C HamanoApr 24, 2023
  24. Jeremy MortonApr 24, 2023

Read the whole thread, see it on lore, or plain text.

$ cat FOOTERMessages come from the public archive at lore.kernel.org/git, fetched every hour. The front page is chosen and written each morning by an AI editor and can be wrong; the threads themselves are the record. About and API. For agents: an MCP server at https://gitlist.dev/mcp, and any thread, story or person page as Markdown by adding .md to its URL (or sending Accept: text/markdown). Details in /llms.txt.