# git-merge-file(1) Manual Page

## NAME

git-merge-file - Run a three-way file merge

## SYNOPSIS

git merge-file [-L <current-name> [-L <base-name> [-L <other-name>]]] [--ours|--theirs|--union] [-p|--stdout] [-q|--quiet] [--marker-size=<n>] <current-file> <base-file> <other-file>

## DESCRIPTION

git merge-file incorporates all changes that lead from the `<base-file>` to `<other-file>` into `<current-file>`. The result ordinarily goes into `<current-file>`. git merge-file is useful for combining separate changes to an original. Suppose `<base-file>` is the original, and both `<current-file>` and `<other-file>` are modifications of `<base-file>`, then git merge-file combines both changes.

A conflict occurs if both `<current-file>` and `<other-file>` have changes in a common segment of lines. If a conflict is found, git merge-file normally outputs a warning and brackets the conflict with lines containing <<<<<<< and >>>>>>> markers. A typical conflict will look like this:

    <<<<<<< A
    lines in file A
    =======
    lines in file B
    >>>>>>> B

If there are conflicts, the user should edit the result and delete one of the alternatives. When `--ours`, `--theirs`, or `--union` option is in effect, however, these conflicts are resolved favouring lines from `<current-file>`, lines from `<other-file>`, or lines from both respectively. The length of the conflict markers can be given with the `--marker-size` option.

The exit value of this program is negative on error, and the number of conflicts otherwise. If the merge was clean, the exit value is 0.

git merge-file is designed to be a minimal clone of RCS merge; that is, it implements all of RCS merge's functionality which is needed by git(1).

## OPTIONS

-L <label>

  This option may be given up to three times, and specifies labels to be used in place of the corresponding file names in conflict reports. That is, `git merge-file -L x -L y -L z a b c` generates output that looks like it came from files x, y and z instead of from files a, b and c.

-p

  Send results to standard output instead of overwriting `<current-file>`.

-q

  Quiet; do not warn about conflicts.

--ours
--theirs
--union

  Instead of leaving conflicts in the file, resolve conflicts favouring our (or their or both) side of the lines.

## EXAMPLES

git merge-file README.my README README.upstream

  combines the changes of README.my and README.upstream since README, tries to merge them and writes the result into README.my.

git merge-file -L a -L b -L c tmp/a123 tmp/b234 tmp/c345

  merges tmp/a123 and tmp/c345 with the base tmp/b234, but uses labels `a` and `c` instead of `tmp/a123` and `tmp/c345`.

## Author

Written by Johannes Schindelin <johannes.schindelin@gmx.de>

## Documentation

Documentation by Johannes Schindelin and the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>, with parts copied from the original documentation of RCS merge.

## GIT

Part of the git(1) suite