How do I revert a merge commit that has already been pushed to remote?

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To revert a merge commit that has already been pushed to a remote Git repository, you can follow these steps:

Important Note: Reverting a merge commit creates a new commit that undoes the changes introduced by the merge. This is a safe way to handle unwanted merges because it preserves the commit history. However, if other people have already pulled the merge commit, they will also need to update their branches with the revert commit.

Here's how to revert a merge commit:

  1. Identify the Merge Commit to Revert:

    First, identify the merge commit you want to revert. You can use git log to view the commit history and find the SHA-1 hash of the merge commit you want to revert.

    bash
  • git log --graph --oneline --decorate --all

    This command will display a graph of the commit history with commit hashes and branch names.

  • Create a Revert Commit:

    Use the git revert command followed by the SHA-1 hash of the merge commit you want to revert. This will create a new commit that undoes the changes introduced by the merge.

    bash
  • git revert -m 1 <merge-commit-hash>

    Replace <merge-commit-hash> with the actual SHA-1 hash of the merge commit. The -m 1 option specifies that you want to revert the changes from the first parent of the merge commit, which is typically the branch you merged into.

  • Review and Commit the Revert:

    Git will open your default text editor for you to review the commit message for the revert. Save and exit the text editor to create the commit.

    If you want to use a custom commit message directly on the command line, you can specify it like this:

    bash
  • git commit -m "Revert merge commit <merge-commit-hash>"

  • Push the Revert Commit to Remote:

    After creating the revert commit, you can push it to the remote repository to undo the merge on the remote.

    bash
    1. git push origin <branch-name>

      Replace <branch-name> with the name of the branch from which you want to remove the merge.

    Now, the merge commit has been reverted, and the changes it introduced have been undone in the branch. This approach maintains the commit history and is safe for collaborating with others. Other team members will need to pull the changes from the remote repository to update their branches and reflect the merge revert.

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