Hi Junio, Thanks for reply. Let consider two pretty similar use cases. ************ SCENARIO 1 ************ mkdir bisect cd bisect/ git init git touch coffee git commit -am "create coffee" git branch develop echo sugar >> coffee git commit -am "add sugar" # we are still in master branch git checkout develop # get back to coffe without sugar git touch tee # cooking tee in develop branch git commit -am "tee" git merge master # cat coffee # after merge coffe has sugar ex +g/sugar/d -cwq coffee # introducing 'bug' by removing sugar from coffee git commit -am "merged/amended" --amend # the history is amended echo "sugar" >> tee git commit -am "sugar for tee" # just advance for measure # -------------- We are getting following state ------------------ git status # develop branch git log --full-history --graph --pretty=oneline * 83e9577b4a5d553fdc16806fdea9757229ea9222 sugar for tee * 23a4aa69a9d5c03aa145844005555b7ee00c4d63 merged/amended |\ | * 4c1caf7cb2417181c035a953afdf2389dd130aef add sugar * | c080fb4df39d721e2f2e0fdd91fe16d8bdd77515 tee |/ * 3c3043b7d0a0d260c78db55b565f26e430aa5c80 create coffee cat coffee # nothing # discovering coffee has no sugar git checkout 4c1c # but we remember it should to have cat coffee # ..."sugar" git bisect start git bisect good git bisect bad develop # 23a4 cat coffee # nothing git bisect bad # c080 cat coffee # nothing git bisect bad # c080fb4df39d721e2f2e0fdd91fe16d8bdd77515 is the first bad commit commit c080fb4df39d721e2f2e0fdd91fe16d8bdd77515 Author: Oleg Taranenko <olegtaranenko@xxxxxxxxx> Date: Fri Jul 29 09:08:47 2016 +0200 tee :000000 100644 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000 e69de29bb2d1d6434b8b29ae775ad8c2e48c5391 A tee We are getting first bad commit c080, but git bisect fails. We remember is was introduced in the 23a4 commit via wrong merge and history amending. ************ SCENARIO 2 ************ cd .. mkdir bisect2 cd bisect2 git init git touch coffee git commit -am "create coffee" echo sugar >> coffee # we are still in master branch git commit -am "add sugar" git branch develop echo milk >> coffee git commit -am "add milk to coffee" # get back to coffe without sugar git checkout develop ex "+g/sugar/d" -cwq coffee echo milk >> coffee git commit -am "coffee: replace sugar with milk" # cooking tee in develop branch git touch tee git commit -am "tee" git checkout master git merge develop #Here we are getting real conflict cat coffee #<<<<<<< HEAD #sugar #======= #>>>>>>> develop #milk #resolving git checkout develop --theirs -- coffee cat coffee # milk git commit -am "conflict resolved" echo "sugar" >> tee git commit -am "sugar for tee" # just advance for measure ---------- State ----------------- git log --full-history --graph --pretty=oneline * b88a3cb3df58fc018d635d559d212707e953f84d sugar for tee * 138824139c0237fe05419d4f40a693e4c19405a3 conflict resolved |\ | * e1ddbfe05d632d6f12dd7ff9d9b61475c2cde867 tee | * ddfb5188c98b8fc803a036ac4eee0610e2bba53f coffee: replace sugar with milk * | 0e1c55363e5b2fb04a6072fa470f90770b3eee22 add milk to coffee |/ * 465d0c68c597f1534c3c1e19ed9a086c5da190ae add sugar * 24b73ce9085a6d411c06c08cca0536dc8f2239c7 create coffee cat coffee # only milk, no sugar... bug git checkout 792d cat coffee # OK, milk & sugar git bisect start git bisect good git bisect bad master # e1dd cat coffee # milk only git bisect bad # ddfb cat coffee # milk only git bisect bad # first bad commit !! It happens, git really found that somebody (me) was replaced sugar with milk, because ancestor of both branches already has sugar, and commit ddfb explicit removes it. As we can see, both strategies can coexisting, and now I ever can't state for sure, which one is more intuitive correct. I think if repo has relative straight history, more productive to use bisect with auto search in un-reachable commits. For messy repositories (especially, with lots of aliens code) more safe to use --reachable bisecting strategy. Then, I suggest as well additional to defaulting via 'git config bisect.reachable true/false' use per bisect session switch git bisect start --[un-]reachable-commits # which will override default setting Thanks you for reading to this point, Oleg On Fri, Jul 29, 2016 at 8:03 PM, Junio C Hamano <gitster@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > Oleg Taranenko <olegtaranenko@xxxxxxxxx> writes: > >> What I suggest change logic of bisecting to something like >> >> git config bisect.reachable true > > Such a configuration should not be needed. > > When a history with this shape is given to "git bisect": > > ----o---o---X---Y---B > \ / > o---G > > and you gave G as good, and B as bad, it is a BUG that needs to be > fixed if bisect strayed outside G, X, Y and B. Setting your new > configuration to false would mean "please run a buggy version of > bisect", which does not make much sense, I would think. > > > > > -- 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