Reading conflict markers in Git - Step-by-Step Execution

Process Flow - Reading conflict markers

Git detects conflict

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Insert conflict markers in file

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User opens file

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User sees conflict markers

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User resolves conflict

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User stages resolved file

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Conflict resolved, continue merge

When Git finds conflicting changes, it adds markers in the file. The user then sees these markers, resolves the conflict, and stages the file to finish the merge.

Execution Sample

Git

<<<<<<< HEAD
Line from current branch
=======
Line from incoming branch
>>>>>>> feature-branch

This shows the conflict markers Git adds to a file when two branches have conflicting changes.

Process Table

Step	Action	File Content Snippet	Explanation
1	Git detects conflict during merge		Git finds changes in the same file lines from two branches
2	Git inserts conflict markers	<<<<<<< HEAD Line from current branch ======= Line from incoming branch >>>>>>> feature-branch	Markers show conflicting sections from each branch
3	User opens file	<<<<<<< HEAD Line from current branch ======= Line from incoming branch >>>>>>> feature-branch	User sees conflict markers in the file
4	User edits file to resolve conflict	Line from current branch (chosen version)	User removes markers and chooses correct lines
5	User stages resolved file		Marks conflict as resolved for Git
6	Merge completes successfully		No more conflicts remain
7	Exit		Conflict resolved, merge finished

💡 User resolves conflict and stages file, so Git finishes merge

Status Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 2	After Step 4	Final
file_content	Original file content	<<<<<<< HEAD Line from current branch ======= Line from incoming branch >>>>>>> feature-branch	Line from current branch (resolved content)	Line from current branch (resolved content)

Key Moments - 3 Insights

Why do I see <<<<<<< HEAD and ======= in my file?

These are Git conflict markers showing the conflicting changes from your current branch (HEAD) and the incoming branch. See execution_table step 2.

What should I do with the lines between the markers?

You must choose which lines to keep or combine them, then remove all conflict markers before staging. See execution_table step 4.

Can I commit the file with conflict markers still inside?

No, Git will not allow committing files with unresolved conflicts. You must resolve and stage first. See execution_table step 5.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, what does the marker <<<<<<< HEAD represent?

A A comment added by Git

B The start of the current branch's conflicting changes

C The end of the incoming branch's changes

D The resolved code section

💡 Hint

Check execution_table row 2 where conflict markers are inserted

At which step does the user remove conflict markers and choose the correct lines?

A Step 3

B Step 5

C Step 4

D Step 2

💡 Hint

Look at execution_table row 4 describing user edits

If the user does not stage the resolved file, what happens?

A Git continues to show conflict markers

B Merge completes successfully

C Git deletes the file

D Git automatically resolves conflict

💡 Hint

Refer to execution_table steps 5 and 6 about staging and merge completion

Concept Snapshot

Git conflict markers show where two branches changed the same lines.
Markers: <<<<<<< HEAD (current branch), ======= (separator), >>>>>>> branch-name (incoming branch).
User must edit file to remove markers and choose correct code.
Stage resolved file to finish merge.
Unresolved conflicts block commits.

Full Transcript

When Git tries to merge two branches and finds changes in the same lines, it cannot decide which to keep. So, it inserts conflict markers in the file. These markers look like <<<<<<< HEAD, =======, and >>>>>>> branch-name. The lines between <<<<<<< HEAD and ======= come from your current branch. The lines between ======= and >>>>>>> come from the branch you are merging in. You open the file and see these markers. Your job is to edit the file, remove the markers, and keep the correct lines. After fixing, you stage the file with git add. This tells Git the conflict is resolved. Then the merge can finish. If you do not remove the markers and stage the file, Git will keep showing conflicts and not let you commit. This process helps you manually decide how to combine changes safely.