From: Clemens Buchacher <drizzd@aon.at>
Date: Sun, 31 May 2009 14:05:00 GMT
Subject: Re: [PATCH] refuse to merge during a merge
Message-ID: <20090531140500.GA24862@localhost>
In-Reply-To: <43d8ce650905310405k4fa17240se7701e5fab2b22a7@mail.gmail.com>

On Sun, May 31, 2009 at 12:05:31PM +0100, John Tapsell wrote:
> > "git reset --hard" is not suggested, because it potentially removes
> > changes unrelated to the merge (if the work tree was dirty prior to
> > the merge).
> 
> Sorry could you just clarify...  if the user does "git reset HEAD"
> will that sometimes always or never fail?

It will never fail. It aborts the merge as suggested. But "git reset --hard
HEAD" would also reset the work tree, so that "any changes to tracked files
in the working tree since <commit> are lost." This is generally desireable,
since an incomplete merge also leaves the auto-merged files in the work
tree.

But if the user does not already know that, it's better to leave the user
wondering how to clean a dirty work tree, than to suggest a potentially
harmful operation.

Clemens