tomevault-io Git Advanced Workflows
Advanced Git techniques for clean history, effective collaboration, and confident recovery.
Triggers
| Trigger Phrase | Operation |
|---|---|
rebase my branch |
Interactive or standard rebase guidance |
cherry-pick a commit |
Cherry-pick with conflict resolution |
find the breaking commit |
Git bisect workflow |
recover lost commits |
Reflog exploration and recovery |
use git worktrees |
Worktree setup and management |
Process
Phase 1: Assess the Situation
- Identify which workflow applies (rebase, cherry-pick, bisect, worktree, recovery)
- Check current branch state:
git status,git log --oneline -10 - Create a safety branch before any destructive operation:
git branch backup-<timestamp>- macOS/Linux (bash/zsh):
git branch backup-$(date +%s) - Windows PowerShell:
git branch backup-$(Get-Date -UFormat %s)
- macOS/Linux (bash/zsh):
Phase 2: Execute the Workflow
Rebase: Clean Up Feature Branch Before PR
git checkout feature/user-auth
git rebase -i main
# Squash "fix typo" commits, reword messages, reorder logically
git push --force-with-lease origin feature/user-auth
Rebase operations: pick (keep), reword (change message), edit (amend content), squash (combine keeping message), fixup (combine discarding message), drop (remove).
Autosquash pattern:
git commit --fixup HEAD # Mark as fixup for previous commit
git rebase -i --autosquash main # Auto-marks fixup commits
Split a commit:
git rebase -i HEAD~3 # Mark commit with 'edit'
git reset HEAD^ # Reset commit, keep changes in working tree (unstaged)
git add file1.py && git commit -m "feat: add validation"
git add file2.py && git commit -m "feat: add error handling"
git rebase --continue
Cherry-Pick: Apply Hotfix to Multiple Releases
git checkout main
git commit -m "fix: critical security patch"
git checkout release/2.0
git cherry-pick abc123
git checkout release/1.9
git cherry-pick abc123
# On conflict: fix files, git add, git cherry-pick --continue
Partial cherry-pick (specific files only):
git show --name-only abc123
git restore --source=abc123 -- path/to/file1.py path/to/file2.py
git commit -m "cherry-pick: apply specific changes from abc123"
Bisect: Find Bug Introduction
git bisect start
git bisect bad HEAD
git bisect good v2.1.0
# Git checks out middle commit. Run tests, mark good/bad, repeat.
git bisect reset # When done
Automated bisect:
git bisect start HEAD v2.1.0
git bisect run ./test.sh
# test.sh: exit 0 = good, 125 = skip, any other non-zero = bad
Worktree: Multi-Branch Development
git worktree add ~/worktrees/myapp-hotfix hotfix/critical-bug
# Work in the new worktree using the -C flag to avoid changing the current directory.
# e.g., git -C ~/worktrees/myapp-hotfix commit -a -m "fix: critical bug"
git worktree remove ~/worktrees/myapp-hotfix # Clean up when done
git worktree prune # Remove stale entries
Recovery: Undo Mistakes with Reflog
git reflog # Find lost commit hash
git reset --hard def456 # Restore to that state
# Or create branch: git branch recovery def456
Abort operations in progress:
git rebase --abort
git merge --abort
git cherry-pick --abort
git bisect reset
Other recovery commands:
git restore --source=abc123 path/to/file # Restore file from commit
git reset --soft HEAD^ # Undo commit, keep changes staged
git reflog # 1. Find the hash of the desired commit
git branch recovered abc123 # 2. Create a branch from that hash (within reflog retention; ~90 days by default, configurable)
Phase 3: Verify and Clean Up
- Confirm working tree is clean:
git status - Validate history:
git log --onelinematches expectations - Run tests after any history rewrite
- Remove worktrees if created:
git worktree list
Decision Guide
Rebase vs Merge
| Use Rebase | Use Merge |
|---|---|
| Cleaning local commits before push | Integrating completed features into main |
| Keeping feature branch current with main | Preserving exact collaboration history |
| Creating linear history for review | Public branches used by others |
Anti-Patterns
| Avoid | Why | Instead |
|---|---|---|
| Rebasing shared branches | Rewrites history for all collaborators | Merge for shared branches |
--force without --force-with-lease |
Overwrites teammates' work | Always --force-with-lease |
| Bisecting on dirty working tree | Checkout fails with uncommitted changes | Commit or stash first |
| Orphaned worktrees | Consume disk space silently | Remove after use |
| No backup before complex rebase | No recovery path if rebase fails | Create safety branch first |
Verification
- Working tree is clean (
git status) - Branch history matches expectations (
git log --oneline) - Tests pass after history rewrite
- Force push used
--force-with-lease - Worktrees cleaned up (
git worktree list)
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