Subject: Re: checkout on an empty directory fails

From: Thomas Rast <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 5 Jan 2012 12:13:32 +0100

René Doß <[email-masked]> writes:

> I have a clean derectory ang the git database. Now I want check out
> the master.

Ok, but why?  What problem were you really trying to solve?

> red@linux-nrd1:~/iso/a> git checkout master
> D       SP601_RevC_annotated_master_ucf_8-28-09.ucf
> D       rtl/ether_speed.vhd
> D       rtl/ether_top.vhd
> D       rtl/ether_tx.vhd
> D       rtl/takt.vhd
> D       sim/makefile
> D       sim/tb_ether_top.vhd
> Already on 'master'

git-checkout considers this an uncommitted change compared to the
current branch (HEAD).  It actually ensures that you do not lose such
changes.

To get your files back, you can use the file-argument form of checkout

  git checkout -- .

or the "really give me back the HEAD state, period" form of git-reset

  git reset --hard

Both of those *will* destroy uncommitted changes with no recourse or
backup, so be careful.

-- 
Thomas Rast
trast@{inf,student}.ethz.ch