git HEAD detached from after reset --hard

Question

I needed to do away with changes that I made to the working directory and go back and start from the last commit, so I did git reset --hard

Now when I do git commit and git status I get this string in red saying "HEAD detached from: and some 7 char number. I did few commits since then but not sure about this red message.

Did I muck it up and what am I suppose to do to "fix" it? or it is not broken? Thanks

Possible duplicate of [How can I reconcile detached HEAD with master/origin?](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5772192/how-can-i-reconcile-detached-head-with-master-origin) — PeeHaa, Mar 31 '16 at 17:06

score 4 · Answer 1 · answered Mar 31 '16 at 17:04

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Nothing is really broken, you're just on a detached HEAD. Simply give it a name, like any other branch, and continue working on it:

$ git checkout -b my_new_branch

answered Mar 31 '16 at 17:04

Mureinik

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how to go back to master? – WestCoastProjects Jun 10 '20 at 21:33
@javadba you can use checkout: `git checkout master`. – Mureinik Jun 11 '20 at 06:04
figured that out. I had a couple of times over the years that I did not know what to do here: but now all is clear . – WestCoastProjects Jun 11 '20 at 06:27

score 4 · Accepted Answer · answered Mar 31 '16 at 17:05

Create a branch, then merge it/rebase it to the original branch (let's suppose master). It should solve the problem.

$ git checkout -b temp_branch
$ git rebase master
$ git checkout master
$ git merge temp_branch

Apparently you didn't just reset the workspace but moved the HEAD to another commit.

score 0 · Answer 3 · edited May 23 '17 at 12:01

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You can find an answer here: GIT restore last detached HEAD

Also, the Pluralsight video "How Git Works" explains how this happens and what to do about it.

edited May 23 '17 at 12:01

Community

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answered Mar 31 '16 at 17:04

user3777273

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git HEAD detached from after reset --hard

3 Answers3