Git History Cleanup: The Interactive Rebase

Use this process to delete “debug” commits, fix typos in messages, or combine multiple small commits into one clean feature commit.

1. Setup (One-time)

Ensure VS Code is your default editor so you don’t get stuck in the terminal (Vim).


# Set VS Code as the global editor  
git config --global core.editor "code --wait"

Note: If “code” command is not found, use VS Code Command Palette (Cmd+Shift+P) and run “Install ‘code’ command in PATH”.

2. The Cleanup Workflow

Step 1: Target the History

Determine how many commits back you need to go (e.g., the last 5).


git rebase -i HEAD~5

Step 2: Edit the Instruction File

VS Code will open a list of commits. Order: Oldest is at the top.

Command	Short	What it does
pick	p	Keeps the commit exactly as it is.
fixup	f	Merges the code into the commit above it and deletes the message.
reword	r	Keeps the code but lets you rename the commit message.
drop	d	Deletes the commit and the code changes entirely.

Example of a “Debug Cleanup”:


pick a1b2c3d Initial feature implementation  
f    e5f6g7h debug: check variable x  <-- Merges into 'Initial feature'  
f    i9j0k1l PLEASE WORK              <-- Merges into 'Initial feature'  
pick m2n3o4p Final clean bug fix

Action: Save the file and close the tab.

3. The “Force” Sync

Because you changed the history, GitHub will reject a normal push. You must overwrite the remote branch.


# ONLY do this on your own branches, never on a shared main branch!  
git push origin your-branch-name --force

4. Emergency Escape Hatch

If things go wrong during the rebase (conflicts or accidental deletions):

To Abort: git rebase –abort (Returns everything to exactly how it was).
To Undo a Push: Use git reflog to find your previous state (this is for advanced recovery).