]> git.ipfire.org Git - thirdparty/git.git/commitdiff
branch: add --delete-merged <pattern>
authorHarald Nordgren <haraldnordgren@gmail.com>
Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:58:34 +0000 (13:58 +0000)
committerJunio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Thu, 30 Jul 2026 16:55:45 +0000 (09:55 -0700)
    git branch (--delete-merged <pattern>)... [<branch-pattern>...]

deletes local branches matching the optional branch patterns when their
configured upstream matches one of the --delete-merged arguments and
their tip is reachable from that upstream. The work has already landed
on the upstream they track, so the local copy is no longer needed.

Each <pattern> may name a ref, a remote, or a shell glob. The option can
be repeated to widen the upstream match. Keeping the candidate patterns
as positional arguments lets users bound the set of local branches that
may be deleted independently of the upstream selection.

A branch is not deleted when:

  * it is checked out in any worktree
  * its configured upstream ref no longer exists, since a missing
    upstream is not by itself a sign of integration
  * pushing it to the remote configured by branch.<name>.remote would
    update its upstream, as determined by that remote's configured push
    and fetch refspecs. For example, a local "main" that tracks
    "origin/main" is kept even when remote.pushDefault names a fork.
    Right after a pull it merely looks fully merged.
  * it is the local upstream of a branch that is not being deleted, so
    no branch is deleted out from under stacked work.

A branch whose work is not yet merged into its upstream is silently
skipped, so one unmerged topic does not abort the whole sweep.

Collect protected local upstreams without changing the candidate set
during ref iteration, then remove them after iteration. This makes the
result independent of ref iteration order. If a protected branch's own
upstream is deleted by the same sweep, clear its upstream configuration.

Signed-off-by: Harald Nordgren <haraldnordgren@gmail.com>
Signed-off-by: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
Documentation/git-branch.adoc
builtin/branch.c
t/t3200-branch.sh

index b0d66a6deb8b8c0d91ddae47762f4ce68c5afc44..47661782045e99550e3676532b7dc79b271b9ce5 100644 (file)
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ git branch (-m|-M) [<old-branch>] <new-branch>
 git branch (-c|-C) [<old-branch>] <new-branch>
 git branch (-d|-D) [-r] <branch-name>...
 git branch --edit-description [<branch-name>]
+git branch (--delete-merged <pattern>)... [<branch-pattern>...]
 
 DESCRIPTION
 -----------
@@ -201,6 +202,38 @@ This option is only applicable in non-verbose mode.
        Print the name of the current branch. In detached `HEAD` state,
        nothing is printed.
 
+`--delete-merged <pattern>`::
+       Delete local branches whose configured upstream matches
+       _<pattern>_, but only when their tip is reachable from that
+       upstream. In other words, the work on the branch has already
+       landed on the upstream it tracks, so the local copy is no longer
+       needed. _<pattern>_ may name a ref, a remote (using the branch its
+       `HEAD` points at), or a shell-style glob. The option can be
+       repeated to widen the upstream match.
+       Optional _<branch-pattern>_ arguments limit which local branches
+       are considered, e.g. `git branch --delete-merged 'origin/*'
+       'topic-*'`.
++
+A branch is not deleted when:
++
+--
+* its configured upstream ref no longer exists,
+* it is checked out in any worktree,
+* pushing it to the remote configured by
+  `branch.<name>.remote` would update its upstream, so it cannot be
+  distinguished from a branch that just looks fully merged right
+  after a pull; this is determined by the remote's configured push and
+  fetch refspecs,
+* it is the local upstream of a branch that is not being deleted.
+--
++
+When such a local upstream branch has its own upstream deleted by the
+same operation, its upstream configuration is cleared.
++
+A branch whose work has not yet been merged into its upstream is
+silently skipped. Delete it with `git branch -D` if you want to
+remove it anyway.
+
 `-v`::
 `-vv`::
 `--verbose`::
index 7b0aa685728ea503345454d5b207b98dee9e9ffe..f1a73bcea1cee1234a7bedbb8807b5eaa69ecf75 100644 (file)
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
 #include "branch.h"
 #include "path.h"
 #include "string-list.h"
+#include "strmap.h"
 #include "column.h"
 #include "utf8.h"
 #include "ref-filter.h"
@@ -38,6 +39,8 @@ static const char * const builtin_branch_usage[] = {
        N_("git branch [<options>] (-c | -C) [<old-branch>] <new-branch>"),
        N_("git branch [<options>] [-r | -a] [--points-at]"),
        N_("git branch [<options>] [-r | -a] [--format]"),
+       N_("git branch [<options>] (--delete-merged <pattern>)... "
+          "[<branch-pattern>...]"),
        NULL
 };
 
@@ -700,6 +703,184 @@ static int parse_opt_forked(const struct option *opt, const char *arg, int unset
        return 0;
 }
 
+struct stacked_branch_data {
+       struct strset *deletable_branch_names;
+       struct strset *protected_branch_names;
+};
+
+static int collect_stacked_branch_base(const struct reference *ref,
+                                      void *cb_data)
+{
+       struct stacked_branch_data *data = cb_data;
+       const char *branch_name;
+       struct branch *branch;
+       const char *upstream_refname;
+       const char *upstream_branch_name;
+
+       if (!skip_prefix(ref->name, "refs/heads/", &branch_name))
+               BUG("expected local branch ref, got '%s'", ref->name);
+       if (strset_contains(data->deletable_branch_names, branch_name))
+               return 0;
+
+       branch = branch_get(branch_name);
+       upstream_refname = branch_get_upstream(branch, NULL);
+       if (!upstream_refname ||
+           !skip_prefix(upstream_refname, "refs/heads/",
+                        &upstream_branch_name) ||
+           !strset_contains(data->deletable_branch_names,
+                           upstream_branch_name))
+               return 0;
+
+       strset_add(data->protected_branch_names, upstream_branch_name);
+       return 0;
+}
+
+static void protect_stacked_branch_bases(struct ref_store *refs,
+                                        struct strset *deletable_branch_names,
+                                        struct strset *protected_branch_names)
+{
+       struct stacked_branch_data data = {
+               .deletable_branch_names = deletable_branch_names,
+               .protected_branch_names = protected_branch_names,
+       };
+       struct refs_for_each_ref_options opts = {
+               .prefix = "refs/heads/",
+       };
+       struct hashmap_iter iter;
+       struct strmap_entry *entry;
+
+       refs_for_each_ref_ext(refs, collect_stacked_branch_base, &data, &opts);
+
+       strset_for_each_entry(protected_branch_names, &iter, entry)
+               strset_remove(deletable_branch_names, entry->key);
+}
+
+static void clear_deleted_upstreams(struct strset *protected_branch_names,
+                                   struct strset *deletable_branch_names)
+{
+       struct strbuf key = STRBUF_INIT;
+       struct hashmap_iter iter;
+       struct strmap_entry *entry;
+
+       strset_for_each_entry(protected_branch_names, &iter, entry) {
+               struct branch *branch = branch_get(entry->key);
+               const char *upstream_refname = branch_get_upstream(branch, NULL);
+               const char *upstream_branch_name;
+
+               if (!upstream_refname ||
+                   !skip_prefix(upstream_refname, "refs/heads/",
+                                &upstream_branch_name) ||
+                   !strset_contains(deletable_branch_names,
+                                   upstream_branch_name))
+                       continue;
+
+               strbuf_addf(&key, "branch.%s.merge", branch->name);
+               repo_config_set_gently(the_repository, key.buf, NULL);
+               strbuf_reset(&key);
+               strbuf_addf(&key, "branch.%s.remote", branch->name);
+               repo_config_set_gently(the_repository, key.buf, NULL);
+               strbuf_reset(&key);
+       }
+
+       strbuf_release(&key);
+}
+
+static int branch_pushes_to_upstream(struct branch *branch,
+                                    const char *upstream)
+{
+       struct remote *remote = remote_get(remote_for_branch(branch, NULL));
+       char *push_refname = NULL;
+       char *tracking = NULL;
+       int ret = 0;
+
+       if (!remote)
+               return 0;
+       if (remote->push.nr)
+               push_refname = apply_refspecs(&remote->push, branch->refname);
+       else
+               push_refname = xstrdup(branch->refname);
+       if (push_refname)
+               tracking = apply_refspecs(&remote->fetch, push_refname);
+       if (tracking && !strcmp(tracking, upstream))
+               ret = 1;
+
+       free(push_refname);
+       free(tracking);
+       return ret;
+}
+
+static int delete_merged_branches(const struct strvec *upstreams,
+                                const char **argv, unsigned int flags)
+{
+       struct ref_store *refs = get_main_ref_store(the_repository);
+       struct ref_filter filter = REF_FILTER_INIT;
+       struct ref_array candidates = { 0 };
+       struct strset deletable_branch_names = STRSET_INIT;
+       struct strset protected_branch_names = STRSET_INIT;
+       struct strvec branches_to_delete = STRVEC_INIT;
+       struct hashmap_iter iter;
+       struct strmap_entry *entry;
+       int ret = 0;
+
+       for (size_t i = 0; i < upstreams->nr; i++)
+               if (ref_filter_forked_add(&filter, upstreams->v[i]) < 0)
+                       die(_("'%s' is not a valid branch or pattern"),
+                           upstreams->v[i]);
+
+       filter.kind = FILTER_REFS_BRANCHES;
+       filter.name_patterns = argv;
+       filter_refs(&candidates, &filter, filter.kind);
+
+       for (int i = 0; i < candidates.nr; i++) {
+               const char *branch_refname = candidates.items[i]->refname;
+               const char *branch_name;
+               struct branch *branch;
+               const char *upstream_refname;
+
+               if (!skip_prefix(branch_refname, "refs/heads/", &branch_name))
+                       BUG("filter returned non-branch ref '%s'", branch_refname);
+               if (branch_checked_out(branch_refname))
+                       continue;
+
+               branch = branch_get(branch_name);
+               upstream_refname = branch_get_upstream(branch, NULL);
+               if (!upstream_refname || !refs_ref_exists(refs, upstream_refname))
+                       continue;
+               if (branch_pushes_to_upstream(branch, upstream_refname))
+                       continue;
+               if (check_branch_commit(branch_name, branch_name,
+                                       &candidates.items[i]->objectname, NULL,
+                                       FILTER_REFS_BRANCHES, DELETE_BRANCH_SKIP_UNMERGED))
+                       continue;
+
+               strset_add(&deletable_branch_names, branch_name);
+       }
+
+       protect_stacked_branch_bases(refs, &deletable_branch_names,
+                                    &protected_branch_names);
+
+       strset_for_each_entry(&deletable_branch_names, &iter, entry)
+               strvec_push(&branches_to_delete, entry->key);
+
+       if (branches_to_delete.nr)
+               ret = delete_branches(branches_to_delete.nr, branches_to_delete.v,
+                                     FILTER_REFS_BRANCHES,
+                                     DELETE_BRANCH_SKIP_UNMERGED |
+                                     DELETE_BRANCH_NO_HEAD_FALLBACK |
+                                     flags);
+
+       if (!ret)
+               clear_deleted_upstreams(&protected_branch_names,
+                                       &deletable_branch_names);
+
+       strvec_clear(&branches_to_delete);
+       strset_clear(&protected_branch_names);
+       strset_clear(&deletable_branch_names);
+       ref_array_clear(&candidates);
+       ref_filter_clear(&filter);
+       return ret;
+}
+
 static GIT_PATH_FUNC(edit_description, "EDIT_DESCRIPTION")
 
 static int edit_branch_description(const char *branch_name)
@@ -764,6 +945,7 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
        /* possible actions */
        int delete = 0, rename = 0, copy = 0, list = 0,
            unset_upstream = 0, show_current = 0, edit_description = 0;
+       struct strvec delete_merged = STRVEC_INIT;
        const char *new_upstream = NULL;
        int noncreate_actions = 0;
        /* possible options */
@@ -817,6 +999,9 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
                OPT_BOOL(0, "create-reflog", &reflog, N_("create the branch's reflog")),
                OPT_BOOL(0, "edit-description", &edit_description,
                         N_("edit the description for the branch")),
+               OPT_CALLBACK_F(0, "delete-merged", &delete_merged, N_("pattern"),
+                       N_("delete merged branches whose upstream matches <pattern> (repeatable)"),
+                       PARSE_OPT_NONEG, parse_opt_strvec),
                OPT__FORCE(&force, N_("force creation, move/rename, deletion"), PARSE_OPT_NOCOMPLETE),
                OPT_MERGED(&filter, N_("print only branches that are merged")),
                OPT_NO_MERGED(&filter, N_("print only branches that are not merged")),
@@ -864,7 +1049,8 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
                             0);
 
        if (!delete && !rename && !copy && !edit_description && !new_upstream &&
-           !show_current && !unset_upstream && argc == 0)
+           !show_current && !unset_upstream && !delete_merged.nr &&
+           argc == 0)
                list = 1;
 
        if (filter.with_commit || filter.no_commit ||
@@ -874,7 +1060,7 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
 
        noncreate_actions = !!delete + !!rename + !!copy + !!new_upstream +
                            !!show_current + !!list + !!edit_description +
-                           !!unset_upstream;
+                           !!unset_upstream + !!delete_merged.nr;
        if (noncreate_actions > 1)
                usage_with_options(builtin_branch_usage, options);
 
@@ -916,6 +1102,10 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
                                      (delete > 1 ? DELETE_BRANCH_FORCE : 0) |
                                      (quiet ? DELETE_BRANCH_QUIET : 0));
                goto out;
+       } else if (delete_merged.nr) {
+               ret = delete_merged_branches(&delete_merged, argv,
+                                            quiet ? DELETE_BRANCH_QUIET : 0);
+               goto out;
        } else if (show_current) {
                print_current_branch_name();
                ret = 0;
@@ -1087,6 +1277,7 @@ int cmd_branch(int argc,
        ret = 0;
 
 out:
+       strvec_clear(&delete_merged);
        string_list_clear(&sorting_options, 0);
        return ret;
 }
index eaadbdf549135e39129c4304d893e98c6273e364..322c5a20ccab83b7990717db38d54afb013ef155 100755 (executable)
@@ -1870,4 +1870,218 @@ test_expect_success '--forked requires a value' '
        test_grep "requires a value" err
 '
 
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged: setup' '
+       git init -b main upstream &&
+       (
+               cd upstream &&
+               test_commit base &&
+               git checkout -b next &&
+               test_commit next-work &&
+               git checkout main
+       ) &&
+       git init -b main other &&
+       test_commit -C other other-base &&
+       git init -b main fork
+'
+
+setup_repo_for_delete_merged () {
+       rm -rf repo &&
+       git clone upstream repo &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git remote add fork ../fork &&
+               git remote add other ../other &&
+               git config push.default current &&
+               git fetch other
+       )
+}
+
+create_merged_branch () {
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git checkout -b "$1" --track origin/next &&
+               git commit --allow-empty -m "$1 work" &&
+               git push origin "$1:next"
+       )
+}
+
+check_branches () {
+       git for-each-ref --format="%(refname:short)" refs/heads/ >actual &&
+       cat >expect &&
+       test_cmp expect actual
+}
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged keeps cloned main without explicit push configuration' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               test_cmp_config origin branch.main.remote &&
+               test_cmp_config refs/heads/main branch.main.merge &&
+               git checkout --detach &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged */* &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF
+               main
+               EOF
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged deletes only selected merged branches' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       create_merged_branch also-merged &&
+       create_merged_branch merged &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git checkout -b unmerged --track origin/next &&
+               git commit --allow-empty -m "unmerged work" &&
+               git checkout -b tracks-other --track other/main &&
+               sha=$(git rev-parse --short merged) &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/next merged >actual 2>&1 &&
+               echo "Deleted branch merged (was $sha)." >expect &&
+               test_cmp expect actual &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF
+               also-merged
+               main
+               tracks-other
+               unmerged
+               EOF
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged keeps main despite a different default push remote' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       create_merged_branch on-next &&
+       create_merged_branch checked-out &&
+       create_merged_branch upstream-gone &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git config remote.pushDefault fork &&
+               git checkout -b local-to-delete --track main &&
+               git config branch.upstream-gone.merge refs/heads/topic &&
+               git checkout -b tracks-other --track other/main &&
+               git checkout checked-out &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/* --delete-merged main &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF
+               checked-out
+               main
+               tracks-other
+               upstream-gone
+               EOF
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged maps push refspecs to upstreams' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git checkout -b topic &&
+               git config remote.origin.push "refs/heads/topic:refs/heads/published" &&
+               git push origin &&
+               git branch --set-upstream-to=origin/published topic &&
+               git checkout -b other-topic --track origin/published &&
+               git checkout --detach &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/published &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF
+               main
+               topic
+               EOF
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged keeps the upstream of a surviving branch' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       create_merged_branch feature &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git checkout -b topic --track feature &&
+               git commit --allow-empty -m "topic work" &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/next 2>err &&
+
+               test_must_be_empty err &&
+               check_branches <<-\EOF &&
+               feature
+               main
+               topic
+               EOF
+
+               git config --local --get-regexp "branch\\.(feature|topic)\\.(merge|remote)" >actual &&
+               cat >expect <<-\EOF &&
+               branch.feature.remote origin
+               branch.feature.merge refs/heads/next
+               branch.topic.remote .
+               branch.topic.merge refs/heads/feature
+               EOF
+               test_cmp expect actual
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged clears the deleted upstream of a protected branch' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git branch --track lower origin/next &&
+               git branch --track mid lower &&
+               git checkout -b tip --track mid &&
+               git commit --allow-empty -m "tip work" &&
+               sha=$(git rev-parse --short lower) &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/next --delete-merged lower >actual 2>&1 &&
+               echo "Deleted branch lower (was $sha)." >expect &&
+               test_cmp expect actual &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF &&
+               main
+               mid
+               tip
+               EOF
+
+               git config --local --get-regexp "branch\\.(mid|tip)\\.(merge|remote)" >actual &&
+               cat >expect <<-\EOF &&
+               branch.tip.remote .
+               branch.tip.merge refs/heads/mid
+               EOF
+               test_cmp expect actual
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged result is independent of stacked branch names' '
+       setup_repo_for_delete_merged &&
+       (
+               cd repo &&
+               git branch --track c-lower origin/next &&
+               git branch --track b-mid c-lower &&
+               git checkout -b a-tip --track b-mid &&
+               git commit --allow-empty -m "tip work" &&
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/next --delete-merged "c-*" &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF &&
+               a-tip
+               b-mid
+               main
+               EOF
+
+               git branch --delete-merged origin/next --delete-merged "c-*" >actual 2>&1 &&
+               test_must_be_empty actual &&
+
+               check_branches <<-\EOF
+               a-tip
+               b-mid
+               main
+               EOF
+       )
+'
+
+test_expect_success '--delete-merged requires a value' '
+       test_must_fail git -C forked branch --delete-merged 2>err &&
+       test_grep "requires a value" err
+'
 test_done