Stash, Restore, Revert, Discard, Reset

These commands all suggest “undoing,” but they operate on different targets.

Where They Fit

Working Tree
   ↓ git add
Staging Area
   ↓ git commit
Commit History

Stash

Temporarily store unfinished changes and clean the working tree.

git stash push -m "Camera WIP"
git stash list
git stash pop

Before
Camera.cpp modified
Scene.cpp modified

git stash

After
Working Tree clean
Changes stored in the stash

This is convenient for brief task switches, but a WIP commit may be clearer for important work that needs to be preserved longer.

Restore

Undo changes that have not yet been committed.

git restore Camera.cpp

Unstage only:

git restore --staged Camera.cpp

In the latter case, the file modifications remain.

Revert

Create a new commit that cancels the effect of an existing commit.

A ─ B ─ C
        ↑ Incorrect change

git revert C

A ─ B ─ C ─ R
            ↑ New commit applying the inverse of C

This is useful for safely undoing changes in shared history.

Discard

This is a common GUI term rather than an official Git command.

“Discard Changes” usually means internally using restore to undo working-tree changes.

Reset

Reset is more powerful.

Move the position pointed to by the branch/HEAD and, depending on the mode, update the index/working tree as well.

In particular:

git reset --hard

This is destructive because uncommitted changes can be lost.

Comparison at a Glance

A basic memory aid:

File changes before a commit → restore
Set changes aside temporarily → stash
Undo an already shared commit → revert
Move history itself → reset, with great care