Final answer:
Discarding local changes in Git is done using commands like `git checkout -- ` for specific files, `git checkout -- .` for all files, `git reset --hard` to reset the working directory and staging area, and `git clean -f` to remove untracked files. Be cautious as discarded changes cannot be recovered.
Step-by-step explanation:
When working with Git, you may find yourself needing to discard local changes that you do not want to commit. There are several commands that can help you achieve this. The most straightforward command is git checkout -- , which will discard changes in the working directory for the specified file. If you want to discard changes for all files in the working directory, you can use git checkout -- . at the root of the repository.
Another option is using git reset --hard, which will reset the staging area and the working directory to match the most recent commit. However, be careful with this command as it will permanently erase all local changes. If you only want to remove changes that have been staged (added to the index), but keep changes in the working directory, you can use git reset HEAD.
Finally, for untracked files (new files that have not been added to the index), you can use git clean -f to remove them. Combining git clean with other flags can also remove directories and give you more control over what is cleaned.
It is essential to be cautious when discarding changes in Git, as the changes cannot be recovered once they are removed.