view mercurial/help/revisions.txt @ 27571:6a6e78f84cc6 stable

merge: while checking for unknown files don't follow symlinks (issue5027)

Previously, we were using Python's native 'os.path.isfile' method which follows
symlinks. In this case, since we're operating on repo contents, we don't want
to follow symlinks.

There's a behaviour change here, as shown by the second part of the added test.
Consider a symlink 'f' pointing to a file containing 'abc'. If we try and
replace it with a file with contents 'abc', previously we would have let it
though. Now we don't. Although this breaks naive inspection with tools like
'cat' and 'diff', on balance I believe this is the right change.

Mercurial supports several ways to specify individual revisions.

A plain integer is treated as a revision number. Negative integers are
treated as sequential offsets from the tip, with -1 denoting the tip,
-2 denoting the revision prior to the tip, and so forth.

A 40-digit hexadecimal string is treated as a unique revision
identifier.

A hexadecimal string less than 40 characters long is treated as a
unique revision identifier and is referred to as a short-form
identifier. A short-form identifier is only valid if it is the prefix
of exactly one full-length identifier.

Any other string is treated as a bookmark, tag, or branch name. A
bookmark is a movable pointer to a revision. A tag is a permanent name
associated with a revision. A branch name denotes the tipmost open branch head
of that branch - or if they are all closed, the tipmost closed head of the
branch. Bookmark, tag, and branch names must not contain the ":" character.

The reserved name "tip" always identifies the most recent revision.

The reserved name "null" indicates the null revision. This is the
revision of an empty repository, and the parent of revision 0.

The reserved name "." indicates the working directory parent. If no
working directory is checked out, it is equivalent to null. If an
uncommitted merge is in progress, "." is the revision of the first
parent.