Remove all traces commits.

[AlbertoSRQ]

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Hello, how could I remove all traces commits from my profile? I am trying to delete all my commits history but GitHub show some of them...
I want a clean profile and a clean Readme.md for my special respository and if I have old commits, I feel like dirty on it...well, it's possible?

Thank u!

[kalk-ak]

Well one simple option would be to create a new repo, migrate the code as a first commit then deleting the old commit. This would work for obvious reasons. f you want to keep your repository's settings, stars, or watchers, you can rewrite the history instead. This is more complex and involves a destructive force push. Here is a detailed way on how to do it generated by the Gemini.

1. Clone the repository to a new folder to ensure you're working on a fresh copy.

   git clone https://github.com/YourUsername/YourUsername.git
   cd YourUsername

2. Create a new, empty branch that has no history. We'll call it new-main.

   git checkout --orphan new-main

3. Add your new README.md file. You can create it now or copy it into the folder. And Add all the files/folders to commit

   git add .

4. Create your first, clean commit.

   git commit -m "chore: Initial commit"

5. Delete the old main branch.

   git branch -D main

6. Rename your new branch to main.

   git branch -m main

7. Force push the new, clean history to GitHub. This is the step that overwrites everything.

   git push -f origin main

After you do this, your repository on GitHub will only have one branch (main) with a single commit.

[AlbertoSRQ]

Thank you!

[AlbertoSRQ]

Thank you! :)

[AlbertoSRQ]

Ohh okay thank u! I'll try it

[kalk-ak]

If it works marking my response as answered would be appreciated. Thank you.

[AlbertoSRQ]

Thank you! :) it worked differently for me but it's useful and I will keep your advice in mind.

[AliMahmoudDev]

It's great that you're aiming for a clean and polished GitHub profile and repository! Having a "clean" history can definitely make a good impression, especially for a special README.md repository.

Let's break down how you can approach removing commit history. This can be a bit nuanced, so I'll explain different scenarios.

Important Warning: Rewriting Git history, especially on a public repository, can have significant consequences. If others have cloned your repository, rewriting history will cause major problems for them when they try to pull or push. Only do this on repositories where you are the sole contributor, or where you have explicitly coordinated with all other contributors to do a history rewrite. For your personal README.md repository, this should be fine as it's typically solo.

---

Scenario 1: You want to completely remove a specific file's history or a specific commit from the entire repository history.

This is often done using git filter-repo (recommended modern tool) or git filter-branch (older, more complex). This tool rewrites the entire history of your repository.

Using git filter-repo (Recommended):

First, you need to install git filter-repo. If you have pip (Python package installer), you can do:
pip install git-filter-repo

To remove a specific file (and its history) from your entire repository:

1. Clone a fresh copy of your repository (important to work on a fresh clone in case you mess up).
   git clone <your-repo-url>
cd <your-repo-name>
2. Run git filter-repo to delete the file:
   git filter-repo --path <path/to/your/file> --invert-paths
   Replace <path/to/your/file> with the actual path (e.g., README.md). The --invert-paths flag means "keep everything except this path."
   If you have multiple files to remove, you can list them: --path file1.txt --path file2.txt --invert-paths
3. Force push to GitHub:
   git push origin --force --all
git push origin --force --tags (if you have tags)

To remove a specific commit:

This is more complex and usually only done if a commit contains sensitive data.
git filter-repo --commit-callback 'return b"" if commit.hash.decode() == b"<COMMIT_HASH>" else commit'
Replace <COMMIT_HASH> with the actual SHA-1 hash of the commit you want to remove. Then force push.

---

Scenario 2: You want to squash all your existing commits into a single initial commit, effectively making your repository appear to have only one commit.

This is a good option if you want to keep the current state of your files but get rid of all the incremental history.

1. Ensure your local branch is up to date:
   git checkout main (or master)
   git pull origin main
2. Create a new, empty orphan branch:
   git checkout --orphan new_main
3. Add all files from your old branch to the staging area:
   git add -A
4. Commit everything as a single new commit:
   git commit -m "Initial commit"
5. Delete your old branch (locally):
   git branch -D main (or master)
6. Rename your new branch to the old branch's name:
   git branch -m main (or master)
7. Force push to GitHub, overwriting the remote history:
   git push origin --force main (or master)

This will make it look like your repository started with that single "Initial commit."

---

Scenario 3: You want to completely delete the repository and recreate it.

This is the most drastic but also the simplest way to get a completely clean slate if you don't care about issues, wikis, stars, or watchers associated with the old repo.

1. Backup your current code locally: Copy all the files from your repository to a safe place on your computer.
2. Go to your repository on GitHub: Settings > Danger Zone > Delete this repository.
3. Confirm the deletion.
4. Create a brand new repository with the exact same name on GitHub.
5. Initialize a new local Git repository:
   cd /path/to/your/backed-up-code
git init
git add .
git commit -m "First clean commit"
6. Link it to the new remote repository and push:
   git remote add origin <new-repo-url>
git push -u origin main (or master)

This will give you a repository with only the commits you make from this point forward.

---

Scenario 4: You just want to hide activity on your profile's activity graph, but keep the commits in the repository.

If the "dirty" feeling is mainly about your profile's public activity, you can achieve this by making the repository private. Private repository commits do not show up on your public activity graph. This won't remove the commits from the repo's history, but it will clean up your public profile's visual representation.

1. Go to your repository on GitHub.
2. Settings > Change repository visibility > Make private.

---

For your "special repository and if I have old commits, I feel like dirty on it...well, it's possible?"

Based on your goal of a "clean profile and a clean README.md for my special repository," I would lean towards Scenario 2 (squashing all commits) or Scenario 3 (delete and recreate) if it's a new or personal README repo and you're the only contributor.

If you specifically mean your github_username/github_username special repository (the one that shows up on your profile page), then:

• Scenario 2 (Squashing) is generally the cleanest way to reset its history while keeping its content.
• Scenario 3 (Delete and Recreate) works just as well and is perhaps simpler if you don't mind losing any non-commit-related data like issues (though a README repo usually doesn't have many).

Choose the method that best fits your needs and remember to backup your code before attempting any history rewrites!

[AlbertoSRQ]

It worked for me thank u!