Undoing Changes

The git reset command moves the branch pointer and optionally updates the staging area and working directory.

Reset Modes

Mode	HEAD	Staging	Working Dir
--soft	✓ moves	unchanged	unchanged
--mixed	✓ moves	✓ reset	unchanged
--hard	✓ moves	✓ reset	✓ reset

Using Reset

Soft Reset

Moves HEAD but keeps changes staged:

git reset --soft HEAD~1

Use case: Redo the last commit with different message.

Mixed Reset (Default)

Moves HEAD and unstages changes:

git reset HEAD~1
# or
git reset --mixed HEAD~1

Use case: Undo commit but keep changes for editing.

Hard Reset

Moves HEAD and discards all changes:

git reset --hard HEAD~1

Warning: This permanently deletes uncommitted changes!

Common Reset Targets

Target	Description
HEAD	Current commit
HEAD~1	Previous commit
HEAD~3	Three commits ago
abc1234	Specific commit
origin/main	Remote branch

Unstaging Files

Remove files from staging area:

git reset HEAD filename.txt
# or (newer)
git restore --staged filename.txt

Recovering from Reset

If you accidentally reset:

# Find lost commit
git reflog

# Reset back to it
git reset --hard abc1234

Reset vs Revert

Command	Effect
reset	Rewrites history (use locally)
revert	Creates new commit (safe for shared)

Exercise: Reset Staging Area

Reset the staging area while keeping working directory changes: