[PATCH v3] status: compare against both upstream and push branch by default

From: Harald Nordgren <haraldnordgren@gmail.com>

Commit 3ea95ac9c5 (status: add status.compareBranches config for multiple branch comparisons, 2026-02-26) added status.compareBranches so that "git status" can show comparison of the current branch with its upstream in addition to where the branch is pushed to, which is great to support the triangular workflow. It however did not make it the default to show both.

Showing both without any configuration was the original proposal for that commit. But some found the comparison with the push branch to be noise. So the comparison was made opt in [1], with the idea of flipping the default later if people like the option.

Even when nobody else pushes to the push branch, the comparison with it is useful:

  - When returning to a topic after working on something else, it is
    a reminder of how the branch differs from what was last pushed.

  - It tells whether the branch was rebased or rewritten locally since
    the last push, and needs a forced push.

  - When the answer is already known, it is a quick way to validate
    what is about to be pushed out, much like sendemail.annotate lets
    one review each patch before "git send-email" sends it.

Some who work mostly in triangular workflows check this regularly, and have built their own aliases for that: a quick check of how the branch has diverged from its push and upstream branches, a detailed comparison of what was pushed with the local version, and a graph of where the branch and its push branch diverged. Most users have no such aliases and only see what plain "git status" tells them. Showing both by default gives them that check without having to discover the variable first.

Make "@{upstream} @{push}" the default. With push.default left at "simple", @{push} is either the same as @{upstream} or does not resolve at all, so the output stays the same. It only changes for those who set push.default to "current" or "matching", or configure a push refspec, in two cases:

  - In a triangular workflow, a comparison with the push branch is
    shown after the one with the upstream.

  - A branch without an upstream is compared with the branch it is
    pushed to, where nothing was shown before.

No existing test relied on the old default, since none of them had a push branch different from the upstream without also setting status.compareBranches. Add tests for the new default on a branch whose upstream and push branch are the same, on a branch in a triangular workflow, and on a branch without an upstream. The existing test that sets the variable to "@{upstream}" uses a branch where both are the same, so it passes with either default. Add one on a triangular branch to show that it restores the old output.

[1] https://lore.kernel.org/git/xmqq8qe0f2iq.fsf@gitster.g/

Signed-off-by: Harald Nordgren <haraldnordgren@gmail.com>
---
    status: compare against both upstream and push branch by default
    
    Make @{upstream} @{push} the default for status.compareBranches. With
    the default push.default of simple the output does not change. With
    current or matching, a branch pushed somewhere other than its upstream
    now shows both comparisons.
    
    Changes in v3:
    
     * Try to make a stronger case in commit message.
    
    Changes in v2:
    
     * Kept the existing tests unchanged, including the explicit
       "@{upstream} @{push}" config and the "@{upstream}" test on main
     * Added tests for the new default with the same upstream and push
       branch, in a triangular workflow, and without an upstream
     * Added a test showing that "@{upstream}" restores the old output on a
       triangular branch
     * Reworded the commit message to point to 3ea95ac9c5 and explain which
       setups see a change

Published-As: https://github.com/gitgitgadget/git/releases/tag/pr-git-2458%2FHaraldNordgren%2Fstatus-compare-branches-default-v3
Fetch-It-Via: git fetch https://github.com/gitgitgadget/git pr-git-2458/HaraldNordgren/status-compare-branches-default-v3
Pull-Request: https://github.com/git/git/pull/2458

Range-diff vs v2:

 1:  39512b9ea1 ! 1:  ae9063c16a status: compare against both upstream and push branch by default
     @@ Commit message
          noise. So the comparison was made opt in [1], with the idea of
          flipping the default later if people like the option.
      
     +    Even when nobody else pushes to the push branch, the comparison with it
     +    is useful:
     +
     +      - When returning to a topic after working on something else, it is
     +        a reminder of how the branch differs from what was last pushed.
     +
     +      - It tells whether the branch was rebased or rewritten locally since
     +        the last push, and needs a forced push.
     +
     +      - When the answer is already known, it is a quick way to validate
     +        what is about to be pushed out, much like sendemail.annotate lets
     +        one review each patch before "git send-email" sends it.
     +
     +    Some who work mostly in triangular workflows check this regularly, and
     +    have built their own aliases for that: a quick check of how the branch
     +    has diverged from its push and upstream branches, a detailed comparison
     +    of what was pushed with the local version, and a graph of where the
     +    branch and its push branch diverged. Most users have no such aliases
     +    and only see what plain "git status" tells them. Showing both by
     +    default gives them that check without having to discover the variable
     +    first.
     +
          Make "@{upstream} @{push}" the default. With push.default left at
          "simple", @{push} is either the same as @{upstream} or does not
          resolve at all, so the output stays the same. It only changes for
     @@ Commit message
            - A branch without an upstream is compared with the branch it is
              pushed to, where nothing was shown before.
      
     -    Those who find the comparison with the push branch to be noise can
     -    set status.compareBranches to "@{upstream}" to get the old output
     -    back. Having configured push.default and a push remote to get there,
     -    they are the users best placed to find that setting. Those who are
     -    just starting to push somewhere other than where they pull from
     -    benefit the most from seeing both comparisons without having to
     -    discover the variable first.
     -
          No existing test relied on the old default, since none of them had a
          push branch different from the upstream without also setting
          status.compareBranches. Add tests for the new default on a branch

 Documentation/config/status.adoc | 11 +++---
 remote.c                         |  1 +
 t/t6040-tracking-info.sh         | 57 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 3 files changed, 64 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)