git-advanced-workflows

Run git rebase -i with the merge base of your branch, then use squash, fixup, reword, or drop to reorganize commits. Afterward, push with git push --force-with-lease to safely update the remote branch.

Use git bisect: mark a bad commit and a known good commit, then Git checks out middle commits for you to test. You can automate it with git bisect run followed by a test script that exits 0 for good and non-zero for bad.

Rebase is best for cleaning up local commits and keeping a feature branch current with main, producing linear history. Merge is better for integrating completed features and for public branches shared with others, since rebasing shared history causes conflicts.

Use git reflog to view recent ref movements and find the lost commit hash, then run git branch recovered-branch <hash> or git reset --hard <hash>. Reflog retains entries for about 90 days, making it a reliable safety net.

Git worktrees let you check out multiple branches in separate directories simultaneously, avoiding stashing or switching. Use git worktree add for urgent hotfixes while continuing feature work, and remove them with git worktree remove when done.

Plain --force can overwrite teammates' commits on shared branches without warning. Use --force-with-lease instead, which fails the push if the remote branch has been updated by someone else since your last fetch.