[PATCH v4 0/3] refs: report old OIDs for batched deletions
- From
Maciej Ciemborowicz <maciej.ciemborowicz@gmail.com>
- Date
- Sep 22, 2026, 22:29 UTC
- Message-ID
- <cover.1790113781.git.maciej.ciemborowicz@gmail.com>
- In-Reply-To
- <cover.1790079917.git.maciej.ciemborowicz@gmail.com>
Okay, I will keep trying. I believe this version addresses all comments from the previous round, and I hope I have not missed anything.
This follows up on the reference-transaction bug report at [1].
The reference-transaction hook receives zero as both the old and new OID when branch, tag, fetch, and remote delete refs through refs_delete_refs(). Those callers already know the values that they selected for deletion.
Teach refs_delete_refs() to accept a parallel array of expected old OIDs and pass them into the transaction. Besides making hook records useful, this restores conditional deletion for branch and tag and adds it to pruning without additional ref reads. Non-atomic batches preserve best-effort behavior, while atomic fetches remain all-or-nothing.
Changes since v3:
* Rebase onto master at 3bc0341127 (Git 2.56-rc2). * Always use REF_TRANSACTION_ALLOW_FAILURE in refs_delete_refs(), including unconditional batches, and always inspect rejected updates. * Count individual failures directly and remove the redundant failures variable. * Treat a null old OID as an unconditional deletion in ref_transaction_delete(), instead of requiring each caller to convert it. * Let refs_delete_refs() return the exact set of individually failed refs. * Continue reporting successful fetch and remote prune deletions after a partial failure, while omitting rejected refs from deletion and dangling symref reports. * Add coverage for partial fetch pruning as well as remote pruning.
The full test suite passes. The focused reference-transaction tests also pass with SHA-1 and SHA-256 using both the files and reftable backends.
[1] https://lore.kernel.org/git/CACQ=SRGTTdQ+dHXhN6F52dBv5KxZBRfk_Em2fvmEmGJDoB6oTg@mail.gmail.com/
Maciej Ciemborowicz (3): refs: allow callers to supply old OIDs for batch deletion branch, tag: retain old OIDs in batched deletions fetch, remote: retain old OIDs when pruning refs
bisect.c | 2 +- builtin/branch.c | 7 +- builtin/fetch.c | 30 ++++-- builtin/remote.c | 47 +++++++-- builtin/tag.c | 28 ++++-- refs.c | 67 ++++++++++--- refs.h | 31 ++++-- t/helper/test-ref-store.c | 2 +- t/t1416-ref-transaction-hooks.sh | 160 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 9 files changed, 324 insertions(+), 50 deletions(-)
Range-diff against v3:
1: 3315d5f47 ! 1: f4a9d065c refs: allow callers to supply old OIDs for batch deletion
@@ Commit message
reference-transaction hooks see a null old OID.
Let callers provide an optional array of expected old OIDs in parallel with
- the refname list. When the array is provided, delete the ref at position N
- only if it still points at the OID at position N. A null OID requests an
- unconditional deletion for refs whose old value cannot be resolved, such as
- broken refs.
+ the refname list. Delete the ref at position N only if it still points at
+ the OID at position N. Treat a null OID as an unconditional deletion in
+ ref_transaction_delete(), allowing callers to include broken refs whose old
+ value cannot be resolved.
- Use REF_TRANSACTION_ALLOW_FAILURE when old OIDs are supplied. This retains
- the helper's best-effort behavior: an old-OID mismatch rejects that deletion
- while independent deletions in the batch can still proceed.
+ refs_delete_refs() has always promised best-effort deletion. Always use
+ REF_TRANSACTION_ALLOW_FAILURE and report rejected updates so one failure
+ does not prevent independent refs in the batch from being deleted. Let
+ callers request the exact set of failed refs when they need to report
+ partial results. This also completes the conversion that was missed when
+ batched transaction failure support was introduced.
Signed-off-by: Maciej Ciemborowicz <maciej.ciemborowicz@gmail.com>
@@ bisect.c: int bisect_clean_state(void)
result = refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
"bisect: remove", &refs_for_removal,
- REF_NO_DEREF);
-+ NULL, REF_NO_DEREF);
++ NULL, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF);
string_list_clear(&refs_for_removal, 0);
unlink_or_warn(git_path_bisect_ancestors_ok());
unlink_or_warn(git_path_bisect_log());
@@ builtin/remote.c: static int rm(int argc, const char **argv, const char *prefix,
result = refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
"remote: remove", &branches,
- REF_NO_DEREF);
-+ NULL, REF_NO_DEREF);
++ NULL, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF);
string_list_clear(&branches, 0);
if (skipped.nr) {
@@ refs.c
#include "odb.h"
#include "object.h"
#include "path.h"
+@@ refs.c: int ref_transaction_delete(struct ref_transaction *transaction,
+ struct strbuf *err)
+ {
+ if (old_oid && is_null_oid(old_oid))
+- BUG("delete called with old_oid set to zeros");
++ old_oid = NULL;
+ if (old_oid && old_target)
+ BUG("delete called with both old_oid and old_target set");
+ if (old_target && !(flags & REF_NO_DEREF))
@@ refs.c: void ref_transaction_for_each_rejected_update(struct ref_transaction *transactio
}
}
+struct delete_refs_rejection_data {
+ int failures;
++ struct string_list *failed_refs;
+};
+
+static void delete_refs_rejection_handler(const char *refname,
@@ refs.c: void ref_transaction_for_each_rejected_update(struct ref_transaction *tr
+
+ warning(_("could not delete reference %s: %s"), refname,
+ details ? details : ref_transaction_error_msg(err));
-+ data->failures = 1;
++ data->failures++;
++ if (data->failed_refs)
++ string_list_insert(data->failed_refs, refname);
+}
+
int refs_delete_refs(struct ref_store *refs, const char *logmsg,
- struct string_list *refnames, unsigned int flags)
+ struct string_list *refnames,
+ const struct oid_array *old_oids,
++ struct string_list *failed_refs,
+ unsigned int flags)
{
-+ struct delete_refs_rejection_data rejection_data = { 0 };
++ struct delete_refs_rejection_data rejection_data = {
++ .failed_refs = failed_refs,
++ };
struct ref_transaction *transaction;
struct strbuf err = STRBUF_INIT;
- struct string_list_item *item;
+- int ret = 0, failures = 0;
+ size_t i;
- int ret = 0, failures = 0;
++ int ret = 0;
char *msg;
if (!refnames->nr)
return 0;
+ if (old_oids && old_oids->nr != refnames->nr)
+ BUG("refname and old OID counts do not match");
++ if (failed_refs && !failed_refs->strdup_strings)
++ BUG("failed ref list does not duplicate strings");
msg = normalize_reflog_message(logmsg);
@@ refs.c: void ref_transaction_for_each_rejected_update(struct ref_transaction *tr
- */
- transaction = ref_store_transaction_begin(refs, 0, &err);
+ transaction = ref_store_transaction_begin(refs,
-+ old_oids ? REF_TRANSACTION_ALLOW_FAILURE : 0, &err);
++ REF_TRANSACTION_ALLOW_FAILURE, &err);
if (!transaction) {
ret = error("%s", err.buf);
goto out;
@@ refs.c: void ref_transaction_for_each_rejected_update(struct ref_transaction *tr
+ struct string_list_item *item = &refnames->items[i];
+ const struct object_id *old_oid = old_oids ? &old_oids->oid[i] : NULL;
+
-+ if (old_oid && is_null_oid(old_oid))
-+ old_oid = NULL;
ret = ref_transaction_delete(transaction, item->string,
- NULL, NULL, flags, msg, &err);
+ old_oid, NULL, flags, msg, &err);
if (ret) {
warning(_("could not delete reference %s: %s"),
item->string, err.buf);
+ strbuf_reset(&err);
+- failures = 1;
++ rejection_data.failures++;
++ if (failed_refs)
++ string_list_insert(failed_refs, item->string);
+ }
+ }
+
@@ refs.c: int refs_delete_refs(struct ref_store *refs, const char *logmsg,
- refnames->items[0].string, err.buf);
else
error(_("could not delete references: %s"), err.buf);
-- }
-+ } else if (old_oids)
+ }
++ if (!ret)
+ ref_transaction_for_each_rejected_update(transaction,
-+ delete_refs_rejection_handler,
-+ &rejection_data);
++ delete_refs_rejection_handler,
++ &rejection_data);
out:
-+ if (rejection_data.failures)
-+ failures = 1;
- if (!ret && failures)
+- if (!ret && failures)
++ if (!ret && rejection_data.failures)
ret = -1;
ref_transaction_free(transaction);
+ strbuf_release(&err);
## refs.h ##
@@
@@ refs.h: int refs_delete_ref(struct ref_store *refs, const char *msg,
/*
- * Delete the specified references. If there are any problems, emit
+- * errors but attempt to keep going (i.e., the deletes are not done in
+- * an all-or-nothing transaction). msg and flags are passed through to
+- * ref_transaction_delete().
+ * Delete the specified references. If old_oids is non-NULL, it must contain
+ * an entry for each refname, in the same order. Each non-null OID is used to
+ * verify the current value of the corresponding reference before deleting
+ * it. A null OID requests an unconditional deletion, which allows callers to
+ * include broken refs whose old value cannot be resolved.
+ *
-+ * If there are any problems, emit
- * errors but attempt to keep going (i.e., the deletes are not done in
- * an all-or-nothing transaction). msg and flags are passed through to
- * ref_transaction_delete().
++ * If failed_refs is non-NULL, it must be initialized with
++ * STRING_LIST_INIT_DUP. The names of individual updates that cannot be queued
++ * or are rejected while processing the best-effort batch are inserted into
++ * it. A transaction-wide failure is returned without populating the list.
++ *
++ * If there are any problems, emit errors but attempt to keep going (i.e.,
++ * the deletes are not done in an all-or-nothing transaction). msg and flags
++ * are passed through to ref_transaction_delete().
*/
int refs_delete_refs(struct ref_store *refs, const char *msg,
- struct string_list *refnames, unsigned int flags);
+ struct string_list *refnames,
+ const struct oid_array *old_oids,
++ struct string_list *failed_refs,
+ unsigned int flags);
/** Delete a reflog */
int refs_delete_reflog(struct ref_store *refs, const char *refname);
+@@ refs.h: int ref_transaction_create(struct ref_transaction *transaction,
+ struct strbuf *err);
+
+ /*
+- * Add a reference deletion to transaction. If old_oid is non-NULL,
+- * then it holds the value that the reference should have had before
+- * the update (which must not be null_oid).
++ * Add a reference deletion to transaction. If old_oid is non-NULL and not
++ * null_oid, then it holds the value that the reference should have had before
++ * the update. Passing null_oid is equivalent to passing NULL and disables the
++ * old value check.
+ *
+ * See the above comment "Reference transaction updates" for more
+ * information.
## t/helper/test-ref-store.c ##
@@ t/helper/test-ref-store.c: static int cmd_delete_refs(struct ref_store *refs, const char **argv)
@@ t/helper/test-ref-store.c: static int cmd_delete_refs(struct ref_store *refs, co
string_list_append(&refnames, *argv++);
- result = refs_delete_refs(refs, msg, &refnames, flags);
-+ result = refs_delete_refs(refs, msg, &refnames, NULL, flags);
++ result = refs_delete_refs(refs, msg, &refnames, NULL, NULL, flags);
string_list_clear(&refnames, 0);
return result;
}
2: 2065188aa ! 2: 918c97d2b branch, tag: retain old OIDs in batched deletions
@@ builtin/branch.c: static int delete_branches(int argc, const char **argv, int ki
if (!(flags & DELETE_BRANCH_DRY_RUN) &&
refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository), NULL,
- &refs_to_delete, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF))
-+ &refs_to_delete, &old_oids, REF_NO_DEREF))
++ &refs_to_delete, &old_oids, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF))
ret = 1;
for_each_string_list_item(item, &refs_to_delete) {
@@ builtin/tag.c: static int for_each_tag_name(const char **argv, each_tag_name_fn
+ result = for_each_tag_name(argv, collect_tags, &data);
if (refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository), NULL,
- &refs_to_delete, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF))
-+ &data.refs, &data.old_oids, REF_NO_DEREF))
++ &data.refs, &data.old_oids, NULL, REF_NO_DEREF))
result = 1;
- for_each_string_list_item(item, &refs_to_delete) {
3: 3f3062252 ! 3: 6f34853c7 fetch, remote: retain old OIDs when pruning refs
@@ Commit message
Non-atomic pruning uses refs_delete_refs(), whose partial-failure mode still
deletes unaffected stale refs. An atomic fetch remains all-or-nothing.
- Reuse values collected while finding stale refs, avoiding additional ref
- reads. Avoid reporting deletion status when pruning encounters a rejected
- update.
+ Continue reporting successful non-atomic deletions when another deletion is
+ rejected, but do not report the rejected ref as deleted or use it when
+ checking for newly dangling symrefs. Use the rejected-ref list returned by
+ refs_delete_refs() so reporting reflects the transaction result without
+ additional ref reads.
Signed-off-by: Maciej Ciemborowicz <maciej.ciemborowicz@gmail.com>
@@ builtin/fetch.c: static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
-
- for (ref = stale_refs; ref; ref = ref->next)
- string_list_append(&refnames, ref->name);
++ struct string_list deleted_refs = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
++ struct string_list failed_refs = STRING_LIST_INIT_DUP;
+ struct oid_array old_oids = OID_ARRAY_INIT;
if (!dry_run) {
@@ builtin/fetch.c: static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
- result = ref_transaction_delete(transaction, ref->name, NULL,
- NULL, 0, "fetch: prune", &err);
+ result = ref_transaction_delete(transaction, ref->name,
-+ &ref->new_oid, NULL, 0,
-+ "fetch: prune", &err);
++ &ref->new_oid, NULL, 0,
++ "fetch: prune", &err);
if (result)
goto cleanup;
}
@@ builtin/fetch.c: static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
result = refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
"fetch: prune", &refnames,
- NULL, 0);
-+ &old_oids, 0);
++ &old_oids, &failed_refs, 0);
++ if (result && !failed_refs.nr)
++ goto cleanup;
}
-+ if (result)
-+ goto cleanup;
}
- if (verbosity >= 0) {
+@@ builtin/fetch.c: static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
int summary_width = transport_summary_width(stale_refs);
-+ if (!refnames.nr)
-+ for (ref = stale_refs; ref; ref = ref->next)
-+ string_list_append(&refnames, ref->name);
for (ref = stale_refs; ref; ref = ref->next) {
++ if (string_list_has_string(&failed_refs, ref->name))
++ continue;
++
display_ref_update(display_state, '-', _("[deleted]"), NULL,
_("(none)"), ref->name,
-@@ builtin/fetch.c: static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
+ &ref->new_oid, &ref->old_oid,
+ summary_width);
++ string_list_append(&deleted_refs, ref->name);
+ }
+- string_list_sort(&refnames);
++ string_list_sort(&deleted_refs);
+ refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
+- stderr, " ", dry_run, &refnames);
++ stderr, " ", dry_run, &deleted_refs);
+ }
cleanup:
string_list_clear(&refnames, 0);
++ string_list_clear(&deleted_refs, 0);
++ string_list_clear(&failed_refs, 0);
+ oid_array_clear(&old_oids);
strbuf_release(&err);
free_refs(stale_refs);
@@ builtin/remote.c: static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
int result = 0;
struct ref_states states = REF_STATES_INIT;
struct string_list refs_to_prune = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
++ struct string_list pruned_refs = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
++ struct string_list failed_refs = STRING_LIST_INIT_DUP;
+ struct oid_array old_oids = OID_ARRAY_INIT;
struct string_list_item *item;
@@ builtin/remote.c: static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
result |= refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
"remote: prune", &refs_to_prune,
- NULL, 0);
-+ &old_oids, 0);
-+ if (result)
++ &old_oids, &failed_refs, 0);
++ if (result && !failed_refs.nr)
+ goto cleanup;
+ }
@@ builtin/remote.c: static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
- const char *refname = item->util;
+ struct stale_ref *stale_ref = item->util;
+ const char *refname = stale_ref->name;
++
++ if (string_list_has_string(&failed_refs, refname))
++ continue;
if (dry_run)
printf_ln(_(" * [would prune] %s"),
@@ builtin/remote.c: static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
+ else
+ printf_ln(_(" * [pruned] %s"),
+ abbrev_ref(refname, "refs/remotes/"));
++ string_list_append(&pruned_refs, refname);
+ }
+
refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
- stdout, " ", dry_run, &refs_to_prune);
+- stdout, " ", dry_run, &refs_to_prune);
++ stdout, " ", dry_run, &pruned_refs);
+cleanup:
string_list_clear(&refs_to_prune, 0);
++ string_list_clear(&pruned_refs, 0);
++ string_list_clear(&failed_refs, 0);
+ oid_array_clear(&old_oids);
free_remote_ref_states(&states);
return result;
@@ t/t1416-ref-transaction-hooks.sh: test_expect_success 'branch deletion rejects a
+ )
+'
+
-+test_expect_success 'remote prune rejects a concurrent update' '
++test_expect_success 'remote prune reports deletions around a concurrent update' '
+ test_when_finished "rm -rf race-empty.git race-prune" &&
+ git init --bare race-empty.git &&
+ git init race-prune &&
@@ t/t1416-ref-transaction-hooks.sh: test_expect_success 'branch deletion rejects a
+ test_must_fail git remote prune origin >out 2>err &&
+ test_cmp_rev "$two" refs/remotes/origin/race &&
+ test_must_fail git rev-parse --verify refs/remotes/origin/other &&
-+ test_grep ! "\[pruned\]" out
++ test_grep "\[pruned\].*origin/other" out &&
++ test_grep ! "\[pruned\].*origin/race" out &&
++ test_grep "could not delete reference refs/remotes/origin/race" err
++ )
++'
++
++test_expect_success 'fetch prune reports deletions around a concurrent update' '
++ test_when_finished "rm -rf fetch-empty.git fetch-prune" &&
++ git init --bare fetch-empty.git &&
++ git init fetch-prune &&
++ (
++ cd fetch-prune &&
++ git commit --allow-empty -m one &&
++ one=$(git rev-parse HEAD) &&
++ git commit --allow-empty -m two &&
++ git remote add origin ../fetch-empty.git &&
++ git update-ref refs/remotes/origin/race "$one" &&
++ git update-ref refs/remotes/origin/other "$one"
++ ) &&
++ test_hook -C fetch-prune reference-transaction <<-\EOF &&
++ marker=$(git rev-parse --git-path prune-race-once)
++ if test "$1" = preparing && test ! -e "$marker"
++ then
++ >"$marker"
++ git update-ref refs/remotes/origin/race HEAD
++ fi
++ exit 0
++ EOF
++ (
++ cd fetch-prune &&
++ two=$(git rev-parse HEAD) &&
++ test_must_fail git fetch --prune origin >out 2>err &&
++ test_cmp_rev "$two" refs/remotes/origin/race &&
++ test_must_fail git rev-parse --verify refs/remotes/origin/other &&
++ test_grep "\[deleted\].*origin/other" err &&
++ test_grep ! "\[deleted\].*origin/race" err &&
++ test_grep "could not delete reference refs/remotes/origin/race" err
+ )
+'
+-- 2.39.3 (Apple Git-146)