git

name	git
description	Apply when working with Git repositories, commit history, or recovering files from previous commits

Git Skill

Git operations with focus on commit history navigation and file recovery.

MUST-NOT-FORGET

• Always verify repository root before operations: git rev-parse --show-toplevel
• Use --name-status to see A/M/D (Added/Modified/Deleted) per commit
• To recover deleted file: checkout from commit BEFORE deletion (use ^ suffix)
• Reflog survives even after reset/rebase - use it for recovery

Setup

For installation, see SETUP.md in this skill folder.

Commit History Navigation

View Recent Commits

# Last 10 commits, one line each
git log --oneline -10

# With file changes summary
git log --oneline --name-status -10

# With date and author
git log --format="%h %ad %an: %s" --date=short -10

View Files Changed in Specific Commit

# Show files with status (A=added, M=modified, D=deleted)
git show --name-status <commit_hash>

# Just the file list
git show --name-only <commit_hash>

# Full diff
git show <commit_hash>

Navigate Commits Step by Step

# Show current HEAD
git log --oneline -1

# Show parent of HEAD
git log --oneline HEAD^ -1

# Show N commits back
git log --oneline HEAD~5 -1

# Compare two commits
git diff <commit1> <commit2> --name-status

Interactive Walkback (Step Through History)

To investigate commits one-by-one, walking backwards:

# Step 1: Start at HEAD, show what changed
git log --oneline -1
git show --name-status HEAD

# Step 2: Move back one commit, show changes
git log --oneline HEAD^ -1
git show --name-status HEAD^

# Step 3: Continue back (use ~2, ~3, etc.)
git log --oneline HEAD~2 -1
git show --name-status HEAD~2

# Pattern: HEAD~N where N = steps back from current

Tip: Your current position is always HEAD. Use git log --oneline -1 to confirm where you are.

File Recovery

Find When File Was Deleted

# List all deleted files across history
git log --diff-filter=D --summary

# Find specific file deletion
git log --diff-filter=D --summary -- "**/filename.ext"

# Find EXACTLY which commit deleted a specific file (one-liner)
git log --diff-filter=D -1 -- path/to/file.ext

# With paths
git log --diff-filter=D --name-only --format="%H %s"

Find Last Commit Where File Existed

# Shows commits that touched the file (including deletion)
git log --all -- path/to/deleted/file.ext

# The first result is the deletion commit
# Use its parent (^) to get the version before deletion

Recover Deleted File

# From commit that deleted it (^ = parent commit)
git checkout <deletion_commit>^ -- path/to/file.ext

# From known good commit
git checkout <good_commit> -- path/to/file.ext

# Alternative (Git 2.23+): git restore --source=<commit> -- path/to/file

# Using show (outputs to stdout, redirect to file)
git show <commit>:path/to/file.ext > recovered_file.ext

Recover File from Reflog

# View reflog
git reflog

# Recover from specific reflog entry
git checkout HEAD@{n} -- path/to/file.ext

Guided Recovery Workflow

When user needs to recover accidentally deleted files:

Step 1: Identify Deletion

# Find recent deletions
git log --diff-filter=D --name-only --format="=== %H %s ===" -5

Note: If file was renamed (not deleted), use git log --follow -- oldname to track renames.

Step 2: Confirm Deletion Commit

# Show what was deleted in that commit
git show --name-status <commit_hash>

Step 3: Verify File Existed Before

# Check file in parent commit
git show <commit_hash>^:<path/to/file>

Step 4: Recover

# Restore the file
git checkout <commit_hash>^ -- path/to/file

Step 5: Verify Recovery

# Check file exists
Get-Item path/to/file

# Check status
git status

Batch Operations

List All Files Deleted in Last N Commits

git log --diff-filter=D --name-only --format="" -n 20 | Where-Object { $_ -ne "" } | Sort-Object -Unique

Recover Multiple Files from Same Commit

# List files first
git show --name-only <commit>^

# Recover specific files
git checkout <commit>^ -- file1.ext file2.ext file3.ext

# Recover entire directory
git checkout <commit>^ -- path/to/directory/

Comparing Versions

Compare File Across Commits

# Between two commits
git diff <commit1> <commit2> -- path/to/file

# Between commit and working directory
git diff <commit> -- path/to/file

# Between commit and staged
git diff --cached <commit> -- path/to/file

Show File Content at Specific Commit

git show <commit>:path/to/file

Undo Operations

Undo Last Commit (Keep Changes)

git reset --soft HEAD^

Undo Last Commit (Discard Changes)

git reset --hard HEAD^

Restore File to Last Committed Version

git checkout HEAD -- path/to/file

Unstage File

git reset HEAD -- path/to/file

Status and Inspection

Repository Status

git status
git status --short

Show Staged Changes

git diff --cached
git diff --cached --name-status

Show Unstaged Changes

git diff
git diff --name-status

Common Patterns

Investigate Accidental Deletion

# 1. Find what was deleted recently
git log --diff-filter=D --name-only -5

# 2. Identify the commit
git show <commit> --name-status

# 3. Recover
git checkout <commit>^ -- <file>

Recover Workflow File Deleted by Commit Workflow

When /commit accidentally deletes a file:

# 1. Check last few commits for deletions
git log --diff-filter=D --name-status -3

# 2. Find the workflow file
git log --diff-filter=D -- "**/*.md" --name-only -5

# 3. Recover from parent of deletion commit
git checkout <commit>^ -- .windsurf/workflows/filename.md

Compare What Changed Between Sessions

# Find commits from today
git log --since="today" --oneline

# Compare start to end
git diff <first_commit> <last_commit> --name-status