Git Version Control Master Cheat Sheet: Rebasing, Stashing & Emergency Undos

git add -p

Interactively reviews diff chunks (hunks) allowing you to stage only related changes.

git add overlooked-file.ts
git commit --amend --no-edit

Silently absorbs staged files into the previous commit without creating a duplicate commit.

git status -sb

Displays current branch tracking info and staged/unstaged files in compact notation.

git reset --soft HEAD~1

Rewinds the commit pointer by 1 while keeping your code changes safely in the staging index.

git restore --staged sensitive-secret.env

Removes the file from the staging area while leaving your disk contents untouched.

git restore .

Reverts all modified tracked files in the working directory back to the last commit.

# 1. Find lost commit SHA:
git reflog

# 2. Restore state:
git reset --hard HEAD@{2}

Lists every action taken in your local repository, allowing complete recovery of lost commits.

git switch -c feature/auth-passkeys

Modern replacement for `git checkout -b`.

git rebase -i HEAD~3

Opens an editor allowing you to `squash` (combine) or `reword` dirty commits into one clean release commit.

git fetch origin
git rebase origin/main

Replays your local commits cleanly on top of the latest upstream main branch.

git stash -u -m "WIP: payment webhook refactor"

Saves your working directory and new untracked files with a descriptive label.

git stash pop

Re-applies saved changes and drops them from the stash stack.

git stash show -p stash@{0}

Inspects the full unified diff of a stash snapshot.