What Does gat find Do?
The gat find command provides powerful search capabilities for your Git repository, helping you locate commits, branches, and changes that might otherwise be difficult to find.
Search capabilities:
- Commit messages: Search by text content in commit messages
- Author search: Find commits by specific authors
- Date ranges: Search commits within specific time periods
- Lost commits: Find commits that are no longer on any branch
Common Recovery Scenarios
Recover a branch that was accidentally deleted by finding its last commit.
Find and recover commits that were lost after a force push operation.
Use regex patterns to find commits related to specific issues or features.
How to Find Lost Commits Using Git Reflog
git reflog keeps a local record of where your HEAD and branch references have been. This is usually the fastest way to find lost commits:
git reflogThis shows a list of recent commits you've visited, even if they're no longer in any branch.
Example Output:
Find the commit hash you want, then check it out:
git checkout a1b2c3dHow to Search for Commits by Message
Search by Commit Message
git log --all --grep="keyword"Search by Hash Fragment
git log --all --grep="a1b2c3"Search in All Branches
git log --all --oneline --grep="bug fix"How to Find Commits by Author or Date
Find Commits by Author
Find Commits by Date Range
Combine Author and Date
git log --all --author="Alice" --since="2024-01-01"How to Find Unreachable Commits
If the commit isn't in any branch but still exists in the object database:
git fsck --lost-foundThis will list dangling commits that are no longer referenced by any branch or tag.
Example Output:
You can inspect these commits with:
git show a1b2c3d4e5f6g7h8i9j0k1l2m3n4o5p6q7r8s9t0How to Find Commits by File Changes
Find Commits That Modified a Specific File
git log --all --follow -- filename.txtFind Commits That Added or Removed Specific Code
Find Commits in a Specific Branch
How to Recover Lost Commits
Create a New Branch
git branch recovered-branch a1b2c3dCherry-pick the Commit
git cherry-pick a1b2c3dReset to the Commit (if safe)
git reset --hard a1b2c3dAdvanced Search Techniques
Search Commit Content (not just message)
git log --all --grep="pattern" --all-matchFind Merge Commits
git log --all --merges --onelineFind Non-merge Commits Only
git log --all --no-merges --onelineSearch with Regular Expressions
git log --all --grep="fix.*bug" --extended-regexpFrequently Asked Questions
How do I find a commit in git?
Use `git log --grep="keyword"` to search by message, or `git reflog` to see recently accessed commits.
How do I find lost commit in git?
Check `git reflog` first for recently accessed commits, then `git fsck --lost-found` for unreachable commits.
How do I search for commits in git?
Use `git log --all --grep="search term"` to search commit messages across all branches.
How do I recover lost commits?
First find the commit hash using reflog or fsck, then create a branch: `git branch recovery <hash>`.
How to find commit by message git?
Use `git log --all --grep="message text"` to search commit messages across all branches.
How do I recover lost commits?
First find the commit hash using reflog or fsck, then create a branch: `git branch recovery <hash>`.
How do I find deleted commits?
Check `git reflog` for recently deleted references, or use `git fsck --lost-found` to find unreachable commits.
How to find commit by hash git?
Use `git show <hash>` for a full hash, or `git log --all --grep="<partial-hash>"` for partial matches.
Recovery Time Limit
Git keeps unreachable commits for about 30 days by default. After that, they may be permanently removed by garbage collection. Act quickly when recovering lost work!