git reset

Three modes. One footgun. Learn it cold.

🎯 What & why

Move the current branch pointer to a different commit, optionally adjusting the index and working tree. Three modes: --soft (just move HEAD), --mixed (default — move HEAD + reset index), --hard (move HEAD + reset index + reset working tree). One footgun, three speeds.

🧠 Mental model

Reset is branch-pointer surgery. --soft moves the pointer; --mixed also resets the index to match the new commit (your working tree changes survive but become unstaged); --hard resets everything, discarding uncommitted work. There is no recovery for --hard outside the reflog.

🛠️ Synopsis

git reset [-q] [<tree-ish>] [--] <pathspec>...
git reset (--patch | -p) [<tree-ish>] [--] [<pathspec>...]
git reset [--soft | --mixed [-N] | --hard | --merge | --keep] [-q] [<commit>]

🎚️ Switches & options

Flag	What it does
`--soft <commit>`	Move HEAD to `<commit>`. Index and working tree untouched. Your changes appear as 'staged for commit'.
`--mixed <commit>`	(default) Move HEAD; reset index to match. Working tree untouched — your changes appear as 'unstaged'.
`--hard <commit>`	⚠️ Move HEAD; reset index and working tree. ⚠️ Destroys uncommitted work.
`--keep <commit>`	Like `--hard` but refuses if it would discard local changes.
`--merge <commit>`	Reset like `--hard` but preserves working-tree changes that aren't between the commits.
`<commit> -- <path>`	Restore `<path>` in the index from `<commit>`. Doesn't move HEAD.

💡 Use cases

Re-do the most recent commit (soft reset, edit, recommit).
Move a branch tip backward to abandon some commits (mixed/hard).
Recover from a botched merge or rebase (--hard to a known good ref).
Match local branch exactly to upstream.

🧪 Examples

Undo the last commit but keep changes staged for a redo.

$ git reset --soft HEAD~1

Undo the last commit and unstage everything (keep edits).

$ git reset HEAD~1   # default: --mixed

Nuke local commits AND working-tree changes back to a known state.

$ git reset --hard origin/main   # ⚠️ destructive

Unstage a single file (legacy form — modern is git restore --staged).

$ git reset HEAD -- src/main.c

🎓 Recommendations

Internalize the three modes. Run them in a sandbox repo until the difference is muscle memory.
For unstaging and file restore operations, use git restore instead — clearer intent.
reset --hard of a published branch then push: only do it with --force-with-lease and team consent.

🪤 Common pitfalls

--hard discards working-tree changes silently. There is no confirmation. You can sometimes recover via the reflog if the commits still exist; you cannot recover never-committed working-tree changes.
reset moves the current branch — not HEAD by itself. If HEAD is detached, reset still works but the branch isn't being moved.
Resetting in the middle of a merge needs --merge or --abort-flow handling.

🔗 Related modules

📝 Quiz

Hit each option, then Check answers. Score is recorded; Next is always open.