Undo a Git merge that hasn't been pushed yet

If you've merged branches in Git but haven’t pushed the changes yet, undoing the merge is fairly straightforward. Since nothing has been shared with the remote repository, you have full control to roll it back locally without affecting others.

Here's how you can undo the merge safely:

1. If the merge was not committed yet:

Simply use:

  git merge --abort

• This will cancel the merge process and return your working directory to the state it was in before the merge began.
  
• Useful if you encountered merge conflicts and changed your mind before committing.
  

2. If the merge was committed but not pushed:

Use the git reset command:

  git reset --hard HEAD~1

• This resets your branch to the state before the last commit (the merge commit).
  
• Warning: This will discard any changes made by the merge, so make sure you don't need anything from it.
  

3. If you want to keep the changes but just undo the merge commit:

You can do a soft reset:

  git reset --soft HEAD~1

This removes the merge commit but keeps the changes in your staging area, allowing you to inspect or recommit them.

A Few Tips:

• Always double-check your history using git log before running a reset.
  
• Use git status to see your current state and avoid accidental loss.
  

Undoing a local merge is low-risk as long as it hasn’t been pushed, so don't panic—Git has your back!