man1/git-stash.1

'\" t
.\"     Title: git-stash
.\"    Author: [FIXME: author] [see http://docbook.sf.net/el/author]
.\" Generator: DocBook XSL Stylesheets v1.79.1 <http://docbook.sf.net/>
.\"      Date: 09/10/2018
.\"    Manual: Git Manual
.\"    Source: Git 2.19.0
.\"  Language: English
.\"
.TH "GIT\-STASH" "1" "09/10/2018" "Git 2\&.19\&.0" "Git Manual"
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.\" * Define some portability stuff
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.\" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
.\" http://bugs.debian.org/507673
.\" http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/groff/2009-02/msg00013.html
.\" ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
.ie \n(.g .ds Aq \(aq
.el       .ds Aq '
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.\" * set default formatting
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.\" disable hyphenation
.nh
.\" disable justification (adjust text to left margin only)
.ad l
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.\" * MAIN CONTENT STARTS HERE *
.\" -----------------------------------------------------------------
.SH "NAME"
git-stash \- Stash the changes in a dirty working directory away
.SH "SYNOPSIS"
.sp
.nf
\fIgit stash\fR list [<options>]
\fIgit stash\fR show [<stash>]
\fIgit stash\fR drop [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<stash>]
\fIgit stash\fR ( pop | apply ) [\-\-index] [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<stash>]
\fIgit stash\fR branch <branchname> [<stash>]
\fIgit stash\fR [push [\-p|\-\-patch] [\-k|\-\-[no\-]keep\-index] [\-q|\-\-quiet]
             [\-u|\-\-include\-untracked] [\-a|\-\-all] [\-m|\-\-message <message>]
             [\-\-] [<pathspec>\&...]]
\fIgit stash\fR clear
\fIgit stash\fR create [<message>]
\fIgit stash\fR store [\-m|\-\-message <message>] [\-q|\-\-quiet] <commit>
.fi
.sp
.SH "DESCRIPTION"
.sp
Use \fBgit stash\fR when you want to record the current state of the working directory and the index, but want to go back to a clean working directory\&. The command saves your local modifications away and reverts the working directory to match the \fBHEAD\fR commit\&.
.sp
The modifications stashed away by this command can be listed with \fBgit stash list\fR, inspected with \fBgit stash show\fR, and restored (potentially on top of a different commit) with \fBgit stash apply\fR\&. Calling \fBgit stash\fR without any arguments is equivalent to \fBgit stash push\fR\&. A stash is by default listed as "WIP on \fIbranchname\fR \&...", but you can give a more descriptive message on the command line when you create one\&.
.sp
The latest stash you created is stored in \fBrefs/stash\fR; older stashes are found in the reflog of this reference and can be named using the usual reflog syntax (e\&.g\&. \fBstash@{0}\fR is the most recently created stash, \fBstash@{1}\fR is the one before it, \fBstash@{2\&.hours\&.ago}\fR is also possible)\&. Stashes may also be referenced by specifying just the stash index (e\&.g\&. the integer \fBn\fR is equivalent to \fBstash@{n}\fR)\&.
.SH "OPTIONS"
.PP
push [\-p|\-\-patch] [\-k|\-\-[no\-]keep\-index] [\-u|\-\-include\-untracked] [\-a|\-\-all] [\-q|\-\-quiet] [\-m|\-\-message <message>] [\-\-] [<pathspec>\&...]
.RS 4
Save your local modifications to a new
\fIstash entry\fR
and roll them back to HEAD (in the working tree and in the index)\&. The <message> part is optional and gives the description along with the stashed state\&.
.sp
For quickly making a snapshot, you can omit "push"\&. In this mode, non\-option arguments are not allowed to prevent a misspelled subcommand from making an unwanted stash entry\&. The two exceptions to this are
\fBstash \-p\fR
which acts as alias for
\fBstash push \-p\fR
and pathspecs, which are allowed after a double hyphen
\fB\-\-\fR
for disambiguation\&.
.sp
When pathspec is given to
\fIgit stash push\fR, the new stash entry records the modified states only for the files that match the pathspec\&. The index entries and working tree files are then rolled back to the state in HEAD only for these files, too, leaving files that do not match the pathspec intact\&.
.sp
If the
\fB\-\-keep\-index\fR
option is used, all changes already added to the index are left intact\&.
.sp
If the
\fB\-\-include\-untracked\fR
option is used, all untracked files are also stashed and then cleaned up with
\fBgit clean\fR, leaving the working directory in a very clean state\&. If the
\fB\-\-all\fR
option is used instead then the ignored files are stashed and cleaned in addition to the untracked files\&.
.sp
With
\fB\-\-patch\fR, you can interactively select hunks from the diff between HEAD and the working tree to be stashed\&. The stash entry is constructed such that its index state is the same as the index state of your repository, and its worktree contains only the changes you selected interactively\&. The selected changes are then rolled back from your worktree\&. See the \(lqInteractive Mode\(rq section of
\fBgit-add\fR(1)
to learn how to operate the
\fB\-\-patch\fR
mode\&.
.sp
The
\fB\-\-patch\fR
option implies
\fB\-\-keep\-index\fR\&. You can use
\fB\-\-no\-keep\-index\fR
to override this\&.
.RE
.PP
save [\-p|\-\-patch] [\-k|\-\-[no\-]keep\-index] [\-u|\-\-include\-untracked] [\-a|\-\-all] [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<message>]
.RS 4
This option is deprecated in favour of
\fIgit stash push\fR\&. It differs from "stash push" in that it cannot take pathspecs, and any non\-option arguments form the message\&.
.RE
.PP
list [<options>]
.RS 4
List the stash entries that you currently have\&. Each
\fIstash entry\fR
is listed with its name (e\&.g\&.
\fBstash@{0}\fR
is the latest entry,
\fBstash@{1}\fR
is the one before, etc\&.), the name of the branch that was current when the entry was made, and a short description of the commit the entry was based on\&.
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
stash@{0}: WIP on submit: 6ebd0e2\&.\&.\&. Update git\-stash documentation
stash@{1}: On master: 9cc0589\&.\&.\&. Add git\-stash
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
The command takes options applicable to the
\fIgit log\fR
command to control what is shown and how\&. See
\fBgit-log\fR(1)\&.
.RE
.PP
show [<stash>]
.RS 4
Show the changes recorded in the stash entry as a diff between the stashed contents and the commit back when the stash entry was first created\&. When no
\fB<stash>\fR
is given, it shows the latest one\&. By default, the command shows the diffstat, but it will accept any format known to
\fIgit diff\fR
(e\&.g\&.,
\fBgit stash show \-p stash@{1}\fR
to view the second most recent entry in patch form)\&. You can use stash\&.showStat and/or stash\&.showPatch config variables to change the default behavior\&.
.RE
.PP
pop [\-\-index] [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<stash>]
.RS 4
Remove a single stashed state from the stash list and apply it on top of the current working tree state, i\&.e\&., do the inverse operation of
\fBgit stash push\fR\&. The working directory must match the index\&.
.sp
Applying the state can fail with conflicts; in this case, it is not removed from the stash list\&. You need to resolve the conflicts by hand and call
\fBgit stash drop\fR
manually afterwards\&.
.sp
If the
\fB\-\-index\fR
option is used, then tries to reinstate not only the working tree\(cqs changes, but also the index\(cqs ones\&. However, this can fail, when you have conflicts (which are stored in the index, where you therefore can no longer apply the changes as they were originally)\&.
.sp
When no
\fB<stash>\fR
is given,
\fBstash@{0}\fR
is assumed, otherwise
\fB<stash>\fR
must be a reference of the form
\fBstash@{<revision>}\fR\&.
.RE
.PP
apply [\-\-index] [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<stash>]
.RS 4
Like
\fBpop\fR, but do not remove the state from the stash list\&. Unlike
\fBpop\fR,
\fB<stash>\fR
may be any commit that looks like a commit created by
\fBstash push\fR
or
\fBstash create\fR\&.
.RE
.PP
branch <branchname> [<stash>]
.RS 4
Creates and checks out a new branch named
\fB<branchname>\fR
starting from the commit at which the
\fB<stash>\fR
was originally created, applies the changes recorded in
\fB<stash>\fR
to the new working tree and index\&. If that succeeds, and
\fB<stash>\fR
is a reference of the form
\fBstash@{<revision>}\fR, it then drops the
\fB<stash>\fR\&. When no
\fB<stash>\fR
is given, applies the latest one\&.
.sp
This is useful if the branch on which you ran
\fBgit stash push\fR
has changed enough that
\fBgit stash apply\fR
fails due to conflicts\&. Since the stash entry is applied on top of the commit that was HEAD at the time
\fBgit stash\fR
was run, it restores the originally stashed state with no conflicts\&.
.RE
.PP
clear
.RS 4
Remove all the stash entries\&. Note that those entries will then be subject to pruning, and may be impossible to recover (see
\fIExamples\fR
below for a possible strategy)\&.
.RE
.PP
drop [\-q|\-\-quiet] [<stash>]
.RS 4
Remove a single stash entry from the list of stash entries\&. When no
\fB<stash>\fR
is given, it removes the latest one\&. i\&.e\&.
\fBstash@{0}\fR, otherwise
\fB<stash>\fR
must be a valid stash log reference of the form
\fBstash@{<revision>}\fR\&.
.RE
.PP
create
.RS 4
Create a stash entry (which is a regular commit object) and return its object name, without storing it anywhere in the ref namespace\&. This is intended to be useful for scripts\&. It is probably not the command you want to use; see "push" above\&.
.RE
.PP
store
.RS 4
Store a given stash created via
\fIgit stash create\fR
(which is a dangling merge commit) in the stash ref, updating the stash reflog\&. This is intended to be useful for scripts\&. It is probably not the command you want to use; see "push" above\&.
.RE
.SH "DISCUSSION"
.sp
A stash entry is represented as a commit whose tree records the state of the working directory, and its first parent is the commit at \fBHEAD\fR when the entry was created\&. The tree of the second parent records the state of the index when the entry is made, and it is made a child of the \fBHEAD\fR commit\&. The ancestry graph looks like this:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
       \&.\-\-\-\-W
      /    /
\-\-\-\-\-H\-\-\-\-I
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
where \fBH\fR is the \fBHEAD\fR commit, \fBI\fR is a commit that records the state of the index, and \fBW\fR is a commit that records the state of the working tree\&.
.SH "EXAMPLES"
.PP
Pulling into a dirty tree
.RS 4
When you are in the middle of something, you learn that there are upstream changes that are possibly relevant to what you are doing\&. When your local changes do not conflict with the changes in the upstream, a simple
\fBgit pull\fR
will let you move forward\&.
.sp
However, there are cases in which your local changes do conflict with the upstream changes, and
\fBgit pull\fR
refuses to overwrite your changes\&. In such a case, you can stash your changes away, perform a pull, and then unstash, like this:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
$ git pull
 \&.\&.\&.
file foobar not up to date, cannot merge\&.
$ git stash
$ git pull
$ git stash pop
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
.RE
.PP
Interrupted workflow
.RS 4
When you are in the middle of something, your boss comes in and demands that you fix something immediately\&. Traditionally, you would make a commit to a temporary branch to store your changes away, and return to your original branch to make the emergency fix, like this:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
# \&.\&.\&. hack hack hack \&.\&.\&.
$ git checkout \-b my_wip
$ git commit \-a \-m "WIP"
$ git checkout master
$ edit emergency fix
$ git commit \-a \-m "Fix in a hurry"
$ git checkout my_wip
$ git reset \-\-soft HEAD^
# \&.\&.\&. continue hacking \&.\&.\&.
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
You can use
\fIgit stash\fR
to simplify the above, like this:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
# \&.\&.\&. hack hack hack \&.\&.\&.
$ git stash
$ edit emergency fix
$ git commit \-a \-m "Fix in a hurry"
$ git stash pop
# \&.\&.\&. continue hacking \&.\&.\&.
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
.RE
.PP
Testing partial commits
.RS 4
You can use
\fBgit stash push \-\-keep\-index\fR
when you want to make two or more commits out of the changes in the work tree, and you want to test each change before committing:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
# \&.\&.\&. hack hack hack \&.\&.\&.
$ git add \-\-patch foo            # add just first part to the index
$ git stash push \-\-keep\-index    # save all other changes to the stash
$ edit/build/test first part
$ git commit \-m \(aqFirst part\(aq     # commit fully tested change
$ git stash pop                  # prepare to work on all other changes
# \&.\&.\&. repeat above five steps until one commit remains \&.\&.\&.
$ edit/build/test remaining parts
$ git commit foo \-m \(aqRemaining parts\(aq
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
.RE
.PP
Recovering stash entries that were cleared/dropped erroneously
.RS 4
If you mistakenly drop or clear stash entries, they cannot be recovered through the normal safety mechanisms\&. However, you can try the following incantation to get a list of stash entries that are still in your repository, but not reachable any more:
.sp
.if n \{\
.RS 4
.\}
.nf
git fsck \-\-unreachable |
grep commit | cut \-d\e  \-f3 |
xargs git log \-\-merges \-\-no\-walk \-\-grep=WIP
.fi
.if n \{\
.RE
.\}
.sp
.RE
.SH "SEE ALSO"
.sp
\fBgit-checkout\fR(1), \fBgit-commit\fR(1), \fBgit-reflog\fR(1), \fBgit-reset\fR(1)
.SH "GIT"
.sp
Part of the \fBgit\fR(1) suite