git restore to discard working changes - Step-by-Step Execution

Process Flow - git restore to discard working changes

Modify file in working directory

↓

Run git restore <file>

↓

Discard changes, restore file to last commit

↓

File content matches last commit

This flow shows how modifying a file and then running 'git restore' discards those changes, returning the file to its last committed state.

Execution Sample

Git

git init
echo 'Hello' > file.txt
git add file.txt
git commit -m "initial"
# Modify file.txt
echo 'Hello World' > file.txt
git restore file.txt

This sequence initializes a Git repo, creates and commits a file with 'Hello', modifies it to 'Hello World', and then discards the changes using 'git restore'.

Process Table

Step	Action	File Content Before	Command Run	File Content After	Notes
1	Initialize repo, create and commit file.txt with 'Hello'	(none)	git init echo 'Hello' > file.txt git add file.txt git commit -m "initial"	Hello	Repo initialized; file created and committed
2	Modify file.txt to 'Hello World'	Hello	echo 'Hello World' > file.txt	Hello World	Working directory file changed (uncommitted)
3	Discard changes with git restore	Hello World	git restore file.txt	Hello	File restored to last committed state

💡 Changes discarded; file content matches last commit

Status Tracker

Variable	Start	After 1	After 2	After 3
file.txt content	(none)	Hello	Hello World	Hello

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why does 'git restore file.txt' remove my changes?

Because 'git restore' resets the file in the working directory to match the last commit, discarding any uncommitted changes as shown in step 3 of the execution_table.

Does 'git restore' affect committed files?

No, it only changes files in the working directory. The committed version remains safe, as seen by the file content returning to 'Hello' after restore.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, what is the content of file.txt after step 2?

A Hello World

B (none)

C Hello

D git restore file.txt

💡 Hint

Check the 'File Content After' column for step 2 in the execution_table.

At which step does the file content return to the last committed state?

A Step 1

B Step 2

C Step 3

D Never

💡 Hint

Look at the 'File Content After' column and find when it matches the initial commit.

If you modify the file but do not run 'git restore', what will the file content be?

A Hello

B Hello World

C (none)

D git restore file.txt

💡 Hint

Refer to step 2 in the execution_table where the file was modified but not restored.

Concept Snapshot

git restore <file> discards changes in the working directory.
It resets the file to the last committed version.
Use it to undo uncommitted edits safely.
Does not affect committed history.
Simple command to clean working files.

Full Transcript

This visual execution shows how 'git restore' works to discard changes in a file. First, a Git repo is initialized, a file is created with content 'Hello', added, and committed. Then, the file is modified to 'Hello World'. Running 'git restore file.txt' resets the file content back to 'Hello', the last committed state. This command only affects the working directory and does not change committed history. It is useful to undo accidental edits before committing.