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[PATCH 0/2] push: fix --force-if-includes consulting wrong ref

From
Tyler Cipriani <tyler@tylercipriani.com>
Date
Sep 4, 2026, 21:01 UTC
Message-ID
<20260904210122.431757-1-tyler@tylercipriani.com>

--force-if-includes has been checking the reflog of the local branch named after the destination branch regardless of what's being pushed. This can cause false rejections or unintended data loss.

False rejection has been reported twice that I could find:
- 2023-07-26 - Stefan Haller reported local branch with a different name
               false rejection[0]
- 2025-05-08 - D. Ben Knoble reported detached HEAD false rejection[1]

The same root cause can result in data loss: when a same-name local branch contains the remote tip but you --force-if-includes push an unrelated branch, clobbering the remote repo. PoCs are in t/t5533-push-cas.sh -- new test cases fail against maint, but pass with patches applied.

Existing tests covered refspecs with different names for --force-with-lease, but missed --force-if-includes. New patches cover:

- allow forced-update using refspec with different-named local branch
- allow same as above, but with HEAD
- reject force-update using refspec with different-named local branch lacking
  branch tip
- reject same as above using HEAD
- reject detached HEAD

Open question: the detached HEAD case. I opted to reject, since it seems like it might be surprising to allow in the case where you were just on a branch without the the tip of a remote ref, removed the last commit with git checkout HEAD^ and pushed with --force-if-includes and it allowed a destructive push. I made a separate patch showing different advice for that case (since a git pull won't help).

Based on maint since this is a bugfix. Happy to split patches any way that's helpful.

[0]: <https://lore.kernel.org/git/f51c73ed-eb03-83ca-fb31-d3e2645c9a63@haller-berlin.de> [1]: <https://lore.kernel.org/git/CALnO6CCk0SgwObQRnpd5Pt_DvCKF8dBmyVHivU6Nr_O-GusGLA@mail.gmail.com>

Tyler Cipriani (2):
  push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includes
  push: fix --force-if-includes detached HEAD advice
 Documentation/config/advice.adoc |  4 ++
 advice.c                         |  1 +
 advice.h                         |  1 +
 builtin/push.c                   | 15 +++++++
 builtin/send-pack.c              |  5 +++
 remote.c                         | 27 +++++++++++-
 remote.h                         | 10 +++--
 send-pack.c                      |  1 +
 t/t5533-push-cas.sh              | 70 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-
 transport-helper.c               |  5 +++
 transport.c                      |  8 ++++
 transport.h                      |  1 +
 12 files changed, 143 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)
base-commit: e9019fcafe0040228b8631c30f97ae1adb61bcdc
-- 
2.47.3
Next: Tyler Cipriani
Message 1 of 40 in “push: fix --force-if-includes consulting wrong ref”
  1. 0/2 push: fix --force-if-includes consulting wrong refTyler Cipriani, Sep 4, 2026
  2. 1/2 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 4, 2026
  3. Ben KnobleSep 5, 2026
  4. 2/2 push: fix --force-if-includes detached HEAD adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 4, 2026
  5. Ben KnobleSep 5, 2026
  6. Tyler CiprianiSep 6, 2026
  7. 0/2 push: fix --force-if-includes consulting wrong refTyler Cipriani, Sep 8, 2026
  8. D. Ben KnobleSep 9, 2026
  9. 1/2 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 8, 2026
  10. Junio C HamanoSep 10, 2026
  11. Tyler CiprianiSep 10, 2026
  12. 2/2 push: fix --force-if-includes detached HEAD adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 8, 2026
  13. 0/2 push: fix --force-if-includes consulting wrong refTyler Cipriani, Sep 10, 2026
  14. 1/2 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 10, 2026
  15. Patrick SteinhardtSep 11, 2026
  16. Tyler CiprianiSep 11, 2026
  17. Junio C HamanoSep 11, 2026
  18. Tyler CiprianiSep 11, 2026
  19. 2/2 push: fix --force-if-includes detached HEAD adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 10, 2026
  20. Patrick SteinhardtSep 11, 2026
  21. Junio C HamanoSep 11, 2026
  22. Junio C HamanoSep 11, 2026
  23. 0/2 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 14, 2026
  24. 1/2 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 14, 2026
  25. 2/2 push: fix --force-if-includes non-branch adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 14, 2026
  26. D. Ben KnobleSep 14, 2026
  27. Tyler CiprianiSep 14, 2026
  28. D. Ben KnobleSep 14, 2026
  29. 0/3 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 15, 2026
  30. 1/3 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 15, 2026
  31. 2/3 push: fix --force-if-includes non-branch adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 15, 2026
  32. 3/3 push: --force-if-includes should allow fast-forwardTyler Cipriani, Sep 15, 2026
  33. D. Ben KnobleSep 16, 2026
  34. Tyler CiprianiSep 16, 2026
  35. Ben KnobleSep 16, 2026
  36. 0/3 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 17, 2026
  37. 1/3 push: check pushed ref for --force-if-includesTyler Cipriani, Sep 17, 2026
  38. 2/3 push: fix --force-if-includes non-branch adviceTyler Cipriani, Sep 17, 2026
  39. 3/3 push: --force-if-includes should allow fast-forwardTyler Cipriani, Sep 17, 2026
  40. Tyler CiprianiOct 5, 2026

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