"git reset" updates the ref which HEAD points to (or HEAD itself, if detached), due to being a symbolic ref (unless detached). Therefore, "updating/resetting HEAD" is a possible source of confusion especially when compared with "git checkout", and the change in d537c74 (git-reset.txt: make modes description more consistent, 2010-09-15) did not quite help. Clean up after d537c74 (myself) and try to be even clearer about which ref is changed by "git reset". Avoid the term "symbolic ref", because who can tell *HEAD from HEAD from &HEAD? Signed-off-by: Michael J Gruber <git@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> --- Documentation/git-reset.txt | 7 ++++--- 1 files changed, 4 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-) diff --git a/Documentation/git-reset.txt b/Documentation/git-reset.txt index b2832fc..96c964d 100644 --- a/Documentation/git-reset.txt +++ b/Documentation/git-reset.txt @@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ SYNOPSIS DESCRIPTION ----------- In the first and second form, copy entries from <commit> to the index. -In the third form, set the current branch head (HEAD) to <commit>, optionally +In the third form, set the current branch head (which HEAD points to) to <commit>, optionally modifying index and working tree to match. The <commit> defaults to HEAD in all forms. @@ -44,8 +44,9 @@ you can use it to selectively reset hunks. See the ``Interactive Mode'' section of linkgit:git-add[1] to learn how to operate the `\--patch` mode. 'git reset' [--<mode>] [<commit>]:: - This form resets the current branch head to <commit> and - possibly updates the index (resetting it to the tree of <commit>) and + This form resets the current branch head (which HEAD points to) to <commit>; + if HEAD points to a commit (aka detached HEAD) then HEAD is reset to <commit>. + This form also possibly updates the index (resetting it to the tree of <commit>) and the working tree depending on <mode>, which must be one of the following: + -- 1.7.6.845.gc3c05 -- To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe git" in the body of a message to majordomo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html