The emerging debate of Git rebase vs. Git merge rages on in developer communities, but I’m here to offer a viewpoint from my countless commits and branching fiascos throughout my journey up until now.

Let me confess: I’m a rebase zealot. That clean, linear Git history – tracing changes like an unfolding code story. Rebasing is almost like magic, it tells you the history of your codebase very precisely.

But let’s not romanticize it. Rebasing isn’t always sunshine and roses.

The Merge: Easy but Dreadful

Merging – the “click and forget” option. Seems tempting on the surface, right?Unfortunately, its simplicity quickly turns into a mess when you try to untangle the web it weaves throughout the repository history. Each merge becomes another layer of confusion, spiraling into a monolithic nightmare for anyone trying to decipher git history.

While I strive to maintain clean commits within my branches, I’ve found myself needing the merge only in exceptional cases: Where a rebasing would be too bad, or when squashing commits feels inappropriate. I usually reserve it strictly for pull requests. Each PR gets its own unique merge commit with its number marking its contribution to the base branch, Which is easy to trace back.

Rebase: A Double-Edged Sword

Yes, rebasing is powerful, but as Uncle Ben from Spiderman said, “With great power, comes great responsibility.“

  • The Squash Symphony: The key to successful rebasing lies in squashing related commits into singular units. Remember, those cascading conflicts when numerous tiny changes in the same file? They’re your enemy during rebase. Squashing minimizes these risks, smoothing your journey through commit history with efficiency.
  • Backup Branches are Your Safety Net: Especially when facing a large PR, the best practice of forking a backup branch before embarking on the rebasing journey will save you from mishaps. Experience can betray you; a missed commit during rebase becomes a far more manageable issue with a backup to revert to, keeping your sanity intact and your development process streamlined.

Revise with Caution: Navigating Rebasing’s Minefield

  • Never Rebase Upstream: Resist the temptation to rebase a branch connected directly to the remote repository. This goes against Git’s intended workflow, causing confusion among collaborators when they try to reconcile changes. Instead, work on your local branch, carefully integrate it with the latest upstream changes before pushing your revised branch back to the repository.

  • When Collaboration Conflicts: Rebasing conflicts can arise even amidst coordinated efforts. If you are working with teammates, frequent communication is paramount! Ensure everyone understands the changes happening on each branch to avoid a thunderstorm of merge conflicts down the line.

  • Consider exploring alternative solutions: rebasing your branch against the designated main branch before merging it back, promoting smoother collaboration and more predictable history progression.

  • Refrain from Force-Pushes in shared branch: If you’re collaborating, avoid force-pushing! That destructive act obliterates anyone else’s changes on the shared branches you’re connected to.

Lastly, remember, a clear history reflects clean code. Embrace Git rebase with caution, wield the squashing wisely, and cherish those backup branches as they are your defense against rebasing mishaps. And above all, remember: merging is almost always less elegant than it seems.