Git Merge Cancel - Shell/Bash

When working with Git, you may find yourself in a situation where you want to cancel a merge that you have started. This can happen when you run into conflicts that you're not sure how to resolve, or when you realize that you've merged the wrong branch. In this article, we'll explore how to cancel a merge that you've started using Git in the Shell/Bash terminal.

Checking the Status of Your Current Merge

Before you cancel a merge, you need to identify which merge you're currently working on. You can do this by checking the status of your current merge using the following command:

git status

When you run this command, Git will display a message that tells you whether you're currently in the middle of a merge. If you are, the message will look something like this:

On branch my-branch
You have unmerged paths.
  (fix conflicts and run "git commit")

Unmerged paths:
  (use "git add <file>..." to mark resolution)

    both modified:   file.txt

no changes added to commit (use "git add" and/or "git commit -a")

In this example, Git tells us that we have unmerged paths, which refers to conflicts that we're currently trying to resolve. In this case, we'll want to cancel this merge to start fresh.

Canceling the Merge

To cancel the merge that you're currently working on, you can use the following command:

git merge --abort

This command will undo the merge that you've started and take you back to the state of your repository before you began the merge. Your local working copy of the files will remain unchanged, and you'll be able to start a new merge if necessary.

Conclusion

Canceling a merge in Git can be a useful tool when you run into conflicts or realize that you've merged the wrong branch. By checking the status of your current merge and using the git merge --abort command, you can easily undo a merge and start fresh.