142 lines
6.5 KiB
Markdown
142 lines
6.5 KiB
Markdown
---
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stage: Create
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group: Source Code
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info: To determine the technical writer assigned to the Stage/Group associated with this page, see https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/engineering/ux/technical-writing/#assignments
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type: reference, concepts
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---
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# Squash and merge **(FREE)**
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> - [Moved](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-foss/-/merge_requests/18956) to GitLab Free in 11.0.
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With squash and merge you can combine all your merge request's commits into one
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and retain a clean history.
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## Overview
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Squashing lets you tidy up the commit history of a branch when accepting a merge
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request. It applies all of the changes in the merge request as a single commit,
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and then merges that commit using the merge method set for the project.
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In other words, squashing a merge request turns a long list of commits:
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![List of commits from a merge request](img/squash_mr_commits.png)
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Into a single commit on merge:
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![A squashed commit followed by a merge commit](img/squash_squashed_commit.png)
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NOTE:
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The squashed commit in this example is followed by a merge commit, because the merge method for this repository uses a merge commit. You can disable merge commits in
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**Project Settings > General > Merge requests > Merge method > Fast-forward merge**.
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The squashed commit's default commit message is taken from the merge request title.
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NOTE:
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This only takes effect if there are at least 2 commits. As there is nothing to squash, the commit message does not change if there is only 1 commit.
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It can be customized before merging a merge request.
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![A squash commit message editor](img/squash_mr_message.png)
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Squashing also works with the fast-forward merge strategy, see [squashing and fast-forward merge](#squash-and-fast-forward-merge) for more details.
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## Use cases
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When working on a feature branch, you sometimes want to commit your current
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progress, but don't really care about the commit messages. Those 'work in
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progress commits' don't necessarily contain important information and as such
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you'd rather not include them in your target branch.
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With squash and merge, when the merge request is ready to be merged,
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all you have to do is enable squashing before you press merge to join
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the commits in the merge request into a single commit.
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This way, the history of your base branch remains clean with
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meaningful commit messages and:
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- It's simpler to [revert](revert_changes.md) if necessary.
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- The merged branch retains the full commit history.
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## Enabling squash for a merge request
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Anyone who can create or edit a merge request can choose for it to be squashed
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on the merge request form. Users can select or clear the check box when they
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create the merge request:
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![Squash commits checkbox on edit form](img/squash_edit_form.png)
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After the merge request is submitted, Squash and Merge can still be enabled or disabled
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by editing the merge request description:
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1. Scroll to the top of the merge request page and click **Edit**.
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1. Scroll down to the end of the merge request form and select the checkbox
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**Squash commits when merge request is accepted**.
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This setting can then be overridden at the time of accepting the merge request.
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At the end of the merge request widget, next to the **Merge** button, the **Squash commits** checkbox
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can be either selected or unselected:
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![Squash commits checkbox on accept merge request form](img/squash_mr_widget.png)
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Note that Squash and Merge might not be available depending on the project's configuration
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for [Squash Commit Options](#squash-commits-options).
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## Commit metadata for squashed commits
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The squashed commit has the following metadata:
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- Message: the message of the squash commit, or a customized message.
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- Author: the author of the merge request.
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- Committer: the user who initiated the squash.
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## Squash and fast-forward merge
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When a project has the [fast-forward merge setting enabled](fast_forward_merge.md#enabling-fast-forward-merges), the merge
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request must be able to be fast-forwarded without squashing in order to squash
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it. This is because squashing is only available when accepting a merge request,
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so a merge request may need to be rebased before squashing, even though
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squashing can itself be considered equivalent to rebasing.
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## Squash Commits Options
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> - [Introduced](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/issues/17613) in GitLab 13.2.
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> - Deployed behind a feature flag, disabled by default.
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> - [Enabled by default](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab/-/merge_requests/39382) in GitLab 13.3.
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> - Enabled on GitLab.com.
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> - Can be enabled per project.
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> - Recommended for production use.
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With Squash Commits Options you can configure the behavior of Squash and Merge for your project.
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To set it up, navigate to your project's **Settings > General** and expand **Merge requests**.
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You can choose from these options, which affect existing and new merge requests
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submitted to your project:
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- **Do not allow**: users cannot use Squash and Merge to squash all the commits immediately before
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merging. The checkbox to enable or disable it is unchecked and hidden from the users.
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- **Allow**: users can enable Squash and Merge on a merge request basis.
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The checkbox is unchecked (disabled) by default, but and the user is allowed to enable it.
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- **Encourage**: users can enable Squash and Merge on a merge request basis.
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The checkbox is checked (enabled) by default to encourage its use, but the user is allowed to
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disable it.
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- **Require**: Squash and Merge is enabled for all merge requests, so it is always performed.
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The checkbox to enable or disable it is checked and hidden from the users.
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The Squash and Merge checkbox is displayed when you create a merge request and when you edit the description of an existing one, except when Squash Commit Options is set to **Do not allow** or **Require**.
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NOTE:
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If your project is set to **Do not allow** Squash and Merge, the users still have the option to
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squash commits locally through the command line and force-push to their remote branch before merging.
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<!-- ## Troubleshooting
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Include any troubleshooting steps that you can foresee. If you know beforehand what issues
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one might have when setting this up, or when something is changed, or on upgrading, it's
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important to describe those, too. Think of things that may go wrong and include them here.
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This is important to minimize requests for support, and to avoid doc comments with
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questions that you know someone might ask.
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Each scenario can be a third-level heading, e.g. `### Getting error message X`.
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If you have none to add when creating a doc, leave this section in place
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but commented out to help encourage others to add to it in the future. -->
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