Using command nominated for removal: whatchanged

Using command nominated for removal: whatchanged

[Chirayu Desai]

Hello,

Hope this email finds you well!

'git whatchanged' is nominated for removal.

I still use this command. I usually run 'git whatchanged -1' and 'git whatchanged <commit>' to quickly see what files have changed in a particular commit.

I guess there might be some alias I could setup to achieve the same - it's more that this command has become a muscle memory at this point so I kept hitting the removal message, and here I am.

Thanks!

Re: Using command nominated for removal: whatchanged

[Kristoffer Haugsbakk]

Hi Chirayu

Hi

On Wed, Sep 10, 2025, at 15:38, Chirayu Desai wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Hope this email finds you well!
>
> 'git whatchanged' is nominated for removal.
>
> I still use this command. I usually run 'git whatchanged -1' and 'git
> whatchanged <commit>' to quickly see what files have changed in a
> particular commit.

You can replace it with `git log`:

• Given: `git whatchanged <opts>`
• Replace with: `git log <opts> --no-merges --raw`

... with some minor output caveats about empty commits (commits with
no changes).[1]

🔗 1: https://lore.kernel.org/git/20250825085428.GA367101@coredump.intra.peff.net/

> ... I usually run 'git whatchanged -1'

`git show --raw` should give a similar output.  Although `git show`
(with diff) or `git show --stat` are nicer in my opinion.

> I guess there might be some alias I could setup to achieve the same -
> it's more that this command has become a muscle memory at this point so
> I kept hitting the removal message, and here I am.

You can set up an alias, although not the exact alias `whatchanged` since
core commands cannot be aliased (or shadowed I guess).

An alias like `watchanged` would work.

-- 
Kristoffer Haugsbakk

Re: Using command nominated for removal: whatchanged

[Junio C Hamano]

"Chirayu Desai" <git@cdesai.in> writes:

> Hello,
>
> Hope this email finds you well!
>
> 'git whatchanged' is nominated for removal.
>
> I still use this command. I usually run 'git whatchanged -1' and 'git whatchanged <commit>' to quickly see what files have changed in a particular commit.
>
> I guess there might be some alias I could setup to achieve the same - it's more that this command has become a muscle memory at this point so I kept hitting the removal message, and here I am.

Thanks for letting us know.  If you still use it, you can retrain
your fingers to use "git log" with some options instead.  The most
literal translation would be "git log --raw --no-merges", but there
are MUCH BETTER options invented since "whatchanged" was written.

If the reason you are interested in is to learn the names of the
files, then "git log --names-only" gives a lot cleaner output
without hexadecimal gibberish that has not much use for human
readers, for examplle.