Resolving Merge Conflicts

Introduction

In collaborative software development, merge conflicts are a common occurrence when multiple developers are working on the same files. This lesson will guide you through understanding and resolving merge conflicts effectively.

Understanding Merge Conflicts

A merge conflict occurs when Git cannot automatically resolve differences between two commits. This typically happens when:

• Two developers modify the same line in a file.
• One developer deletes a file that another developer has modified.
• Changes from different branches conflict with each other.

When a merge conflict arises, Git will pause the merging process and mark the conflicted files for manual resolution.

Resolving Merge Conflicts

Step-by-Step Process

1. Identify Conflicted Files: After a merge attempt, run the command:

git status

2. Open Conflicted Files: Open the file(s) listed as having conflicts. Git will mark the conflicted areas like this:

<<<<<<< HEAD
Your changes
=======
Incoming changes
>>>>>>> branch-name

3. Resolve Conflicts: Edit the file to resolve the conflicts by keeping the desired changes and removing the conflict markers.
4. Add Resolved Files: After resolving the conflicts, stage the changes:

git add filename

5. Complete the Merge: Finally, commit the resolved changes:

git commit -m "Resolved merge conflict in filename"

Best Practices

• Communicate frequently with your team to minimize conflicts.
• Pull changes from the remote branch frequently to stay updated.
• Use feature branches for new developments to isolate changes.
• Consider using tools like git mergetool for a visual representation of conflicts.

FAQ

git merge --abort