comment

doc/forum/move_files_under_git-annex_and_graft_history__63__/comment_4_f07514643cbc841f79135ed5db9fe022._comment

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+[[!comment format=mdwn
+ username="joey"
+ subject="""comment 4"""
+ date="2024-02-10T14:50:03Z"
+ content="""
+Another way to use git replace, that is simpler, and requires less
+repository hacking:
+
+Checkout the commit just before that problem file was added:
+
+	git checkout 32358
+
+Squash merge the content of master into the working tree:
+
+	git merge --squash master
+
+Convert the problem file to an annexed file:
+
+	git rm --cached $file
+	git annex add --force-large $file
+
+Commit the result and replace the master branch with the new commit:
+
+	git commit -m 'rewritten history with $file converted to annexed'
+	git replace master HEAD
+
+Now you can checkout the master branch, and see the file is annexed there
+now:
+
+	git checkout master
+	git-annex find $file
+
+And finally, make one more commit, which can be empty, to have something
+new to force push to origin:
+
+	git commit --allow-empty -m 'empty commit after rewrite of history'
+	git push --force origin master
+
+Now a new clone from origin will get only the rewritten history, and there
+is no need to mess with replace refs, and no errors. You will still have
+access to the original history in your repo, and can interoperate with
+those clones. And origin will still contain the content of the problem file
+until you go in and delete it.
+
+Of course, it's also possible, rather than squashing the whole problematic
+history into one commit, to regenerate specific commits to use the annexed
+file.
+"""]]