Documentation/git-branch.txt

   1 git-branch(1)
   2 =============
   3
   4 NAME
   5 ----
   6 git-branch - List, create, or delete branches
   7
   8 SYNOPSIS
   9 --------
  10 [verse]
  11 'git-branch' [--color | --no-color] [-r | -a]
  12            [-v [--abbrev=<length> | --no-abbrev]]
  13            [--contains <commit>]
  14 'git-branch' [--track | --no-track] [-l] [-f] <branchname> [<start-point>]
  15 'git-branch' (-m | -M) [<oldbranch>] <newbranch>
  16 'git-branch' (-d | -D) [-r] <branchname>...
  17
  18 DESCRIPTION
  19 -----------
  20 With no arguments given a list of existing branches
  21 will be shown, the current branch will be highlighted with an asterisk.
  22 Option `-r` causes the remote-tracking branches to be listed,
  23 and option `-a` shows both.
  24 With `--contains <commit>`, shows only the branches that
  25 contains the named commit (in other words, the branches whose
  26 tip commits are descendant of the named commit).
  27
  28 In its second form, a new branch named <branchname> will be created.
  29 It will start out with a head equal to the one given as <start-point>.
  30 If no <start-point> is given, the branch will be created with a head
  31 equal to that of the currently checked out branch.
  32
  33 Note that this will create the new branch, but it will not switch the
  34 working tree to it; use "git checkout <newbranch>" to switch to the
  35 new branch.
  36
  37 When a local branch is started off a remote branch, git sets up the
  38 branch so that linkgit:git-pull[1] will appropriately merge from
  39 the remote branch. This behavior may be changed via the global
  40 `branch.autosetupmerge` configuration flag. That setting can be
  41 overridden by using the `--track` and `--no-track` options.
  42
  43 With a '-m' or '-M' option, <oldbranch> will be renamed to <newbranch>.
  44 If <oldbranch> had a corresponding reflog, it is renamed to match
  45 <newbranch>, and a reflog entry is created to remember the branch
  46 renaming. If <newbranch> exists, -M must be used to force the rename
  47 to happen.
  48
  49 With a `-d` or `-D` option, `<branchname>` will be deleted.  You may
  50 specify more than one branch for deletion.  If the branch currently
  51 has a reflog then the reflog will also be deleted.
  52
  53 Use -r together with -d to delete remote-tracking branches. Note, that it
  54 only makes sense to delete remote-tracking branches if they no longer exist
  55 in remote repository or if linkgit:git-fetch[1] was configured not to fetch
  56 them again. See also 'prune' subcommand of linkgit:git-remote[1] for way to
  57 clean up all obsolete remote-tracking branches.
  58
  59
  60 OPTIONS
  61 -------
  62 -d::
  63         Delete a branch. The branch must be fully merged in HEAD.
  64
  65 -D::
  66         Delete a branch irrespective of its merged status.
  67
  68 -l::
  69         Create the branch's reflog.  This activates recording of
  70         all changes made to the branch ref, enabling use of date
  71         based sha1 expressions such as "<branchname>@\{yesterday}".
  72
  73 -f::
  74         Force the creation of a new branch even if it means deleting
  75         a branch that already exists with the same name.
  76
  77 -m::
  78         Move/rename a branch and the corresponding reflog.
  79
  80 -M::
  81         Move/rename a branch even if the new branchname already exists.
  82
  83 --color::
  84         Color branches to highlight current, local, and remote branches.
  85
  86 --no-color::
  87         Turn off branch colors, even when the configuration file gives the
  88         default to color output.
  89
  90 -r::
  91         List or delete (if used with -d) the remote-tracking branches.
  92
  93 -a::
  94         List both remote-tracking branches and local branches.
  95
  96 -v, --verbose::
  97         Show sha1 and commit subject line for each head.
  98
  99 --abbrev=<length>::
 100         Alter minimum display length for sha1 in output listing,
 101         default value is 7.
 102
 103 --no-abbrev::
 104         Display the full sha1s in output listing rather than abbreviating them.
 105
 106 --track::
 107         When creating a new branch, set up configuration so that git-pull
 108         will automatically retrieve data from the start point, which must be
 109         a branch. Use this if you always pull from the same upstream branch
 110         into the new branch, and if you don't want to use "git pull
 111         <repository> <refspec>" explicitly. This behavior is the default
 112         when the start point is a remote branch. Set the
 113         branch.autosetupmerge configuration variable to `false` if you want
 114         git-checkout and git-branch to always behave as if '--no-track' were
 115         given. Set it to `always` if you want this behavior when the
 116         start-point is either a local or remote branch.
 117
 118 --no-track::
 119         Ignore the branch.autosetupmerge configuration variable.
 120
 121 <branchname>::
 122         The name of the branch to create or delete.
 123         The new branch name must pass all checks defined by
 124         linkgit:git-check-ref-format[1].  Some of these checks
 125         may restrict the characters allowed in a branch name.
 126
 127 <start-point>::
 128         The new branch will be created with a HEAD equal to this.  It may
 129         be given as a branch name, a commit-id, or a tag.  If this option
 130         is omitted, the current branch is assumed.
 131
 132 <oldbranch>::
 133         The name of an existing branch to rename.
 134
 135 <newbranch>::
 136         The new name for an existing branch. The same restrictions as for
 137         <branchname> applies.
 138
 139
 140 Examples
 141 --------
 142
 143 Start development off of a known tag::
 144 +
 145 ------------
 146 $ git clone git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/.../linux-2.6 my2.6
 147 $ cd my2.6
 148 $ git branch my2.6.14 v2.6.14   <1>
 149 $ git checkout my2.6.14
 150 ------------
 151 +
 152 <1> This step and the next one could be combined into a single step with
 153 "checkout -b my2.6.14 v2.6.14".
 154
 155 Delete unneeded branch::
 156 +
 157 ------------
 158 $ git clone git://git.kernel.org/.../git.git my.git
 159 $ cd my.git
 160 $ git branch -d -r origin/todo origin/html origin/man   <1>
 161 $ git branch -D test                                    <2>
 162 ------------
 163 +
 164 <1> Delete remote-tracking branches "todo", "html", "man". Next 'fetch' or
 165 'pull' will create them again unless you configure them not to. See
 166 linkgit:git-fetch[1].
 167 <2> Delete "test" branch even if the "master" branch (or whichever branch is
 168 currently checked out) does not have all commits from test branch.
 169
 170
 171 Notes
 172 -----
 173
 174 If you are creating a branch that you want to immediately checkout, it's
 175 easier to use the git checkout command with its `-b` option to create
 176 a branch and check it out with a single command.
 177
 178
 179 Author
 180 ------
 181 Written by Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org> and Junio C Hamano <junkio@cox.net>
 182
 183 Documentation
 184 --------------
 185 Documentation by Junio C Hamano and the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
 186
 187 GIT
 188 ---
 189 Part of the linkgit:git[7] suite