delete local branch called "remote"

Question

I've done something incredibily stupid. I figured I should ask before I tried to "fix" it and accidentally make things worse.

I tried to list all remote branches in my git repo:

git branch remote

Obviously this isn't the correct command. Instead of listing remote branches, I created a local branch called remote. I should have done:

git branch -r

Can I just remove this branch with:

git branch -d remote

Will this have any effect on my remote branches? I don't want to accidentally delete anything on the remote side.

No, that command will only delete the local branch with that name, so you're safe. Happy gitting :-) — cmbuckley
– cmbuckley, Commented Apr 10, 2013 at 19:47
That should be safe, as @cbuckley says. Additionally, if you really want to be paranoid about it, git update-ref -d refs/heads/remote is a bit more explicit (as remote branches reside under refs/remotes/<remotename>/<branchname>, while local branches are under refs/heads/<branchname>). — twalberg
– twalberg, Commented Apr 10, 2013 at 20:07

user41871 · Accepted Answer · 2013-04-10 20:31:52Z

3

Yes,

git branch -d remote

Take a look:

MYHOST:git wwheeler$ cd seiso/
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$ git branch
* master
  trunk
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$ git branch remote
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$ git branch
* master
  remote
  trunk
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$ git branch -d remote
Deleted branch remote (was 15dc59f).
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$ git branch
* master
  trunk
MYHOST:seiso wwheeler$

answered Apr 10, 2013 at 20:31

user41871

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Comments

Mark Dominus · Accepted Answer · 2013-04-10 20:25:23Z

2

I have made that mistake too. One easy thing to do is rm .git/refs/heads/remote.

Much of the git repository structure is straightforward, and you can learn a lot by poking around in it.

answered Apr 10, 2013 at 20:25

Mark Dominus

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1 Comment

tir38 Over a year ago

Reading @twalberg 's comment above kept me from asking "well is .git/refs/heads/remote the remote repo or my branch called remote"? Thanks for the answer.

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