how to reset git repository once and for all into a clean state

Question

I do not work with git or the linux command line very often and it seems I mess it up a lot. I am a windows person and I use cygwin to emulate that environment.

Situation:

I have multiple repositories tracked, one I work on and a few others that are read only for me.

sometimes, when I do not pull from them for a long time (one was over 2k commits ahead of me) then sometimes git status tells me, that the branches have diverged. I do not know how this happens, but I am then 2k commits behind and 1 ahead. Pulling then fails due to some files causing conflicts, that cannot be resolved.

This leaves me with the issue, that I now have a repository from which I cannot pull from anymore, because it has conflicts.

So my question is: how can I effectively pull from that repository again without running into conflicts? I do not care for any changes.

This is the solution I have to do each time it messes up:

git log --max-parents=0 head # copy ID on bottom
git reset --hard <ID-you-have-copied>
git clean -f -d
git pull

This is stupid and I like to have that in one command. I know of git aliases, but I have no idea, how to get the commit ID from command 1 into command 2. I am also fine with a shell script I can put somewhere, that does this for me, but it should be dynamic, without a hard coded ID.

It looks like I have to reset the branch just behind that faulty non-existent commit and then I can forward again

Is there something obvious that I am missing?

Answer 1

I am not sure what the git --max-parents=0 head command is.

But I guess you could simply do this instead (origin & master may be replaced with desired remote and branch names):

git fetch origin master
git reset --hard FETCH_HEAD
git clean -f -d

This resets current branch pointer and working tree to the latest fetched commit (and removes untracked files in the same manner as your command).

NOTE: This removes all local changes in the repository, both committed and not committed changes. (committed changes can still be restored by referring to the git reflog though)