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[=<when>] | --no-color] [--show-current]
  12         [-v [--abbrev=<length> | --no-abbrev]]
  13         [--column[=<options>] | --no-column] [--sort=<key>]
  14         [(--merged | --no-merged) [<commit>]]
  15         [--contains [<commit]] [--no-contains [<commit>]]
  16         [--points-at <object>] [--format=<format>]
  17         [(-r | --remotes) | (-a | --all)]
  18         [--list] [<pattern>...]
  19 'git branch' [--track | --no-track] [-f] <branchname> [<start-point>]
  20 'git branch' (--set-upstream-to=<upstream> | -u <upstream>) [<branchname>]
  21 'git branch' --unset-upstream [<branchname>]
  22 'git branch' (-m | -M) [<oldbranch>] <newbranch>
  23 'git branch' (-c | -C) [<oldbranch>] <newbranch>
  24 'git branch' (-d | -D) [-r] <branchname>...
  25 'git branch' --edit-description [<branchname>]
  26
  27 DESCRIPTION
  28 -----------
  29
  30 If `--list` is given, or if there are no non-option arguments, existing
  31 branches are listed; the current branch will be highlighted in green and
  32 marked with an asterisk.  Any branches checked out in linked worktrees will
  33 be highlighted in cyan and marked with a plus sign. Option `-r` causes the
  34 remote-tracking branches to be listed,
  35 and option `-a` shows both local and remote branches.
  36
  37 If a `<pattern>`
  38 is given, it is used as a shell wildcard to restrict the output to
  39 matching branches. If multiple patterns are given, a branch is shown if
  40 it matches any of the patterns.
  41
  42 Note that when providing a
  43 `<pattern>`, you must use `--list`; otherwise the command may be interpreted
  44 as branch creation.
  45
  46 With `--contains`, shows only the branches that contain the named commit
  47 (in other words, the branches whose tip commits are descendants of the
  48 named commit), `--no-contains` inverts it. With `--merged`, only branches
  49 merged into the named commit (i.e. the branches whose tip commits are
  50 reachable from the named commit) will be listed.  With `--no-merged` only
  51 branches not merged into the named commit will be listed.  If the <commit>
  52 argument is missing it defaults to `HEAD` (i.e. the tip of the current
  53 branch).
  54
  55 The command's second form creates a new branch head named <branchname>
  56 which points to the current `HEAD`, or <start-point> if given. As a
  57 special case, for <start-point>, you may use `"A...B"` as a shortcut for
  58 the merge base of `A` and `B` if there is exactly one merge base. You
  59 can leave out at most one of `A` and `B`, in which case it defaults to
  60 `HEAD`.
  61
  62 Note that this will create the new branch, but it will not switch the
  63 working tree to it; use "git switch <newbranch>" to switch to the
  64 new branch.
  65
  66 When a local branch is started off a remote-tracking branch, Git sets up the
  67 branch (specifically the `branch.<name>.remote` and `branch.<name>.merge`
  68 configuration entries) so that 'git pull' will appropriately merge from
  69 the remote-tracking branch. This behavior may be changed via the global
  70 `branch.autoSetupMerge` configuration flag. That setting can be
  71 overridden by using the `--track` and `--no-track` options, and
  72 changed later using `git branch --set-upstream-to`.
  73
  74 With a `-m` or `-M` option, <oldbranch> will be renamed to <newbranch>.
  75 If <oldbranch> had a corresponding reflog, it is renamed to match
  76 <newbranch>, and a reflog entry is created to remember the branch
  77 renaming. If <newbranch> exists, -M must be used to force the rename
  78 to happen.
  79
  80 The `-c` and `-C` options have the exact same semantics as `-m` and
  81 `-M`, except instead of the branch being renamed it along with its
  82 config and reflog will be copied to a new name.
  83
  84 With a `-d` or `-D` option, `<branchname>` will be deleted.  You may
  85 specify more than one branch for deletion.  If the branch currently
  86 has a reflog then the reflog will also be deleted.
  87
  88 Use `-r` together with `-d` to delete remote-tracking branches. Note, that it
  89 only makes sense to delete remote-tracking branches if they no longer exist
  90 in the remote repository or if 'git fetch' was configured not to fetch
  91 them again. See also the 'prune' subcommand of linkgit:git-remote[1] for a
  92 way to clean up all obsolete remote-tracking branches.
  93
  94
  95 OPTIONS
  96 -------
  97 -d::
  98 --delete::
  99         Delete a branch. The branch must be fully merged in its
 100         upstream branch, or in `HEAD` if no upstream was set with
 101         `--track` or `--set-upstream-to`.
 102
 103 -D::
 104         Shortcut for `--delete --force`.
 105
 106 --create-reflog::
 107         Create the branch's reflog.  This activates recording of
 108         all changes made to the branch ref, enabling use of date
 109         based sha1 expressions such as "<branchname>@\{yesterday}".
 110         Note that in non-bare repositories, reflogs are usually
 111         enabled by default by the `core.logAllRefUpdates` config option.
 112         The negated form `--no-create-reflog` only overrides an earlier
 113         `--create-reflog`, but currently does not negate the setting of
 114         `core.logAllRefUpdates`.
 115
 116 -f::
 117 --force::
 118         Reset <branchname> to <startpoint>, even if <branchname> exists
 119         already. Without `-f`, 'git branch' refuses to change an existing branch.
 120         In combination with `-d` (or `--delete`), allow deleting the
 121         branch irrespective of its merged status. In combination with
 122         `-m` (or `--move`), allow renaming the branch even if the new
 123         branch name already exists, the same applies for `-c` (or `--copy`).
 124
 125 -m::
 126 --move::
 127         Move/rename a branch and the corresponding reflog.
 128
 129 -M::
 130         Shortcut for `--move --force`.
 131
 132 -c::
 133 --copy::
 134         Copy a branch and the corresponding reflog.
 135
 136 -C::
 137         Shortcut for `--copy --force`.
 138
 139 --color[=<when>]::
 140         Color branches to highlight current, local, and
 141         remote-tracking branches.
 142         The value must be always (the default), never, or auto.
 143
 144 --no-color::
 145         Turn off branch colors, even when the configuration file gives the
 146         default to color output.
 147         Same as `--color=never`.
 148
 149 -i::
 150 --ignore-case::
 151         Sorting and filtering branches are case insensitive.
 152
 153 --column[=<options>]::
 154 --no-column::
 155         Display branch listing in columns. See configuration variable
 156         column.branch for option syntax.`--column` and `--no-column`
 157         without options are equivalent to 'always' and 'never' respectively.
 158 +
 159 This option is only applicable in non-verbose mode.
 160
 161 -r::
 162 --remotes::
 163         List or delete (if used with -d) the remote-tracking branches.
 164         Combine with `--list` to match the optional pattern(s).
 165
 166 -a::
 167 --all::
 168         List both remote-tracking branches and local branches.
 169         Combine with `--list` to match optional pattern(s).
 170
 171 -l::
 172 --list::
 173         List branches.  With optional `<pattern>...`, e.g. `git
 174         branch --list 'maint-*'`, list only the branches that match
 175         the pattern(s).
 176
 177 --show-current::
 178         Print the name of the current branch. In detached HEAD state,
 179         nothing is printed.
 180
 181 -v::
 182 -vv::
 183 --verbose::
 184         When in list mode,
 185         show sha1 and commit subject line for each head, along with
 186         relationship to upstream branch (if any). If given twice, print
 187         the path of the linked worktree (if any) and the name of the upstream
 188         branch, as well (see also `git remote show <remote>`).  Note that the
 189         current worktree's HEAD will not have its path printed (it will always
 190         be your current directory).
 191
 192 -q::
 193 --quiet::
 194         Be more quiet when creating or deleting a branch, suppressing
 195         non-error messages.
 196
 197 --abbrev=<length>::
 198         Alter the sha1's minimum display length in the output listing.
 199         The default value is 7 and can be overridden by the `core.abbrev`
 200         config option.
 201
 202 --no-abbrev::
 203         Display the full sha1s in the output listing rather than abbreviating them.
 204
 205 -t::
 206 --track::
 207         When creating a new branch, set up `branch.<name>.remote` and
 208         `branch.<name>.merge` configuration entries to mark the
 209         start-point branch as "upstream" from the new branch. This
 210         configuration will tell git to show the relationship between the
 211         two branches in `git status` and `git branch -v`. Furthermore,
 212         it directs `git pull` without arguments to pull from the
 213         upstream when the new branch is checked out.
 214 +
 215 This behavior is the default when the start point is a remote-tracking branch.
 216 Set the branch.autoSetupMerge configuration variable to `false` if you
 217 want `git switch`, `git checkout` and `git branch` to always behave as if `--no-track`
 218 were given. Set it to `always` if you want this behavior when the
 219 start-point is either a local or remote-tracking branch.
 220
 221 --no-track::
 222         Do not set up "upstream" configuration, even if the
 223         branch.autoSetupMerge configuration variable is true.
 224
 225 --set-upstream::
 226         As this option had confusing syntax, it is no longer supported.
 227         Please use `--track` or `--set-upstream-to` instead.
 228
 229 -u <upstream>::
 230 --set-upstream-to=<upstream>::
 231         Set up <branchname>'s tracking information so <upstream> is
 232         considered <branchname>'s upstream branch. If no <branchname>
 233         is specified, then it defaults to the current branch.
 234
 235 --unset-upstream::
 236         Remove the upstream information for <branchname>. If no branch
 237         is specified it defaults to the current branch.
 238
 239 --edit-description::
 240         Open an editor and edit the text to explain what the branch is
 241         for, to be used by various other commands (e.g. `format-patch`,
 242         `request-pull`, and `merge` (if enabled)). Multi-line explanations
 243         may be used.
 244
 245 --contains [<commit>]::
 246         Only list branches which contain the specified commit (HEAD
 247         if not specified). Implies `--list`.
 248
 249 --no-contains [<commit>]::
 250         Only list branches which don't contain the specified commit
 251         (HEAD if not specified). Implies `--list`.
 252
 253 --merged [<commit>]::
 254         Only list branches whose tips are reachable from the
 255         specified commit (HEAD if not specified). Implies `--list`,
 256         incompatible with `--no-merged`.
 257
 258 --no-merged [<commit>]::
 259         Only list branches whose tips are not reachable from the
 260         specified commit (HEAD if not specified). Implies `--list`,
 261         incompatible with `--merged`.
 262
 263 <branchname>::
 264         The name of the branch to create or delete.
 265         The new branch name must pass all checks defined by
 266         linkgit:git-check-ref-format[1].  Some of these checks
 267         may restrict the characters allowed in a branch name.
 268
 269 <start-point>::
 270         The new branch head will point to this commit.  It may be
 271         given as a branch name, a commit-id, or a tag.  If this
 272         option is omitted, the current HEAD will be used instead.
 273
 274 <oldbranch>::
 275         The name of an existing branch to rename.
 276
 277 <newbranch>::
 278         The new name for an existing branch. The same restrictions as for
 279         <branchname> apply.
 280
 281 --sort=<key>::
 282         Sort based on the key given. Prefix `-` to sort in descending
 283         order of the value. You may use the --sort=<key> option
 284         multiple times, in which case the last key becomes the primary
 285         key. The keys supported are the same as those in `git
 286         for-each-ref`. Sort order defaults to the value configured for the
 287         `branch.sort` variable if exists, or to sorting based on the
 288         full refname (including `refs/...` prefix). This lists
 289         detached HEAD (if present) first, then local branches and
 290         finally remote-tracking branches. See linkgit:git-config[1].
 291
 292
 293 --points-at <object>::
 294         Only list branches of the given object.
 295
 296 --format <format>::
 297         A string that interpolates `%(fieldname)` from a branch ref being shown
 298         and the object it points at.  The format is the same as
 299         that of linkgit:git-for-each-ref[1].
 300
 301 CONFIGURATION
 302 -------------
 303 `pager.branch` is only respected when listing branches, i.e., when
 304 `--list` is used or implied. The default is to use a pager.
 305 See linkgit:git-config[1].
 306
 307 EXAMPLES
 308 --------
 309
 310 Start development from a known tag::
 311 +
 312 ------------
 313 $ git clone git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/.../linux-2.6 my2.6
 314 $ cd my2.6
 315 $ git branch my2.6.14 v2.6.14   <1>
 316 $ git switch my2.6.14
 317 ------------
 318 +
 319 <1> This step and the next one could be combined into a single step with
 320     "checkout -b my2.6.14 v2.6.14".
 321
 322 Delete an unneeded branch::
 323 +
 324 ------------
 325 $ git clone git://git.kernel.org/.../git.git my.git
 326 $ cd my.git
 327 $ git branch -d -r origin/todo origin/html origin/man   <1>
 328 $ git branch -D test                                    <2>
 329 ------------
 330 +
 331 <1> Delete the remote-tracking branches "todo", "html" and "man". The next
 332     'fetch' or 'pull' will create them again unless you configure them not to.
 333     See linkgit:git-fetch[1].
 334 <2> Delete the "test" branch even if the "master" branch (or whichever branch
 335     is currently checked out) does not have all commits from the test branch.
 336
 337 Listing branches from a specific remote::
 338 +
 339 ------------
 340 $ git branch -r -l '<remote>/<pattern>'                 <1>
 341 $ git for-each-ref 'refs/remotes/<remote>/<pattern>'    <2>
 342 ------------
 343 +
 344 <1> Using `-a` would conflate <remote> with any local branches you happen to
 345     have been prefixed with the same <remote> pattern.
 346 <2> `for-each-ref` can take a wide range of options. See linkgit:git-for-each-ref[1]
 347
 348 Patterns will normally need quoting.
 349
 350 NOTES
 351 -----
 352
 353 If you are creating a branch that you want to switch to immediately,
 354 it is easier to use the "git switch" command with its `-c` option to
 355 do the same thing with a single command.
 356
 357 The options `--contains`, `--no-contains`, `--merged` and `--no-merged`
 358 serve four related but different purposes:
 359
 360 - `--contains <commit>` is used to find all branches which will need
 361   special attention if <commit> were to be rebased or amended, since those
 362   branches contain the specified <commit>.
 363
 364 - `--no-contains <commit>` is the inverse of that, i.e. branches that don't
 365   contain the specified <commit>.
 366
 367 - `--merged` is used to find all branches which can be safely deleted,
 368   since those branches are fully contained by HEAD.
 369
 370 - `--no-merged` is used to find branches which are candidates for merging
 371   into HEAD, since those branches are not fully contained by HEAD.
 372
 373 SEE ALSO
 374 --------
 375 linkgit:git-check-ref-format[1],
 376 linkgit:git-fetch[1],
 377 linkgit:git-remote[1],
 378 link:user-manual.html#what-is-a-branch[``Understanding history: What is
 379 a branch?''] in the Git User's Manual.
 380
 381 GIT
 382 ---
 383 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite