gastownhall/beads · error

--merged-into object ID %q does not resolve to a commit: %w

Error message

--merged-into object ID %q does not resolve to a commit: %w

What it means

After ref matching fails and the selector is treated as a full object ID, bd calls `resolveWorktreeCommitOID` to confirm it points at a commit. If `git rev-parse` fails or the object is not a commit, this wrapped error reports both the selector and the underlying git error.

Source

Thrown at cmd/bd/worktree_cmd.go:1745

		return pinnedWorktreeComparator{}, fmt.Errorf(
			"--merged-into value %q is ambiguous; use a full ref name or a non-ref full object ID (matches: %s)",
			selector,
			strings.Join(matches, ", "),
		)
	}
	if len(matches) == 1 {
		return pinWorktreeComparatorRef(ctx, git, executionRoot, target, selector, matches[0], true)
	}
	if !fullOID {
		return pinnedWorktreeComparator{}, fmt.Errorf(
			"--merged-into value %q does not name an existing unambiguous ref",
			selector,
		)
	}

	oid, err := resolveWorktreeCommitOID(ctx, git, executionRoot, selector)
	if err != nil {
		return pinnedWorktreeComparator{}, fmt.Errorf(
			"--merged-into object ID %q does not resolve to a commit: %w",
			selector,
			err,
		)
	}
	if oid == target.headOID {
		return pinnedWorktreeComparator{}, fmt.Errorf(
			"--merged-into object ID %q is the target HEAD itself; use a ref or descendant commit that independently proves containment",
			selector,
		)
	}
	return pinnedWorktreeComparator{
		selector: selector,
		explicit: true,
		oid:      oid,
	}, nil
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 71377f2769)

Solutions

1. Verify with `git cat-file -t <oid>` that the object exists and is a `commit`
2. Copy the OID again with `git rev-parse <ref>` from the same repository
3. Use a branch/ref name instead of a raw OID

Example fix

// before
bd worktree remove --merged-into 4b825dc642cb6eb9a060e54bf8d69288fbee4904  # a tree
// after
bd worktree remove --merged-into $(git rev-parse refs/heads/main)  # a commit

// shell pre-check
type=$(git cat-file -t "$OID" 2>/dev/null || true)
[ "$type" = "commit" ] || echo "$OID is not a commit (got: $type)"

if err := runBd(); err != nil {
    if strings.Contains(err.Error(), "does not resolve to a commit") {
        // fall back to resolving a ref name instead of a raw OID
    }
}

When it happens

Trigger: `--merged-into <full-oid>` where the OID does not exist in the repository, is malformed, or resolves to a non-commit object (tree, blob, tag object peeled to nothing).

Common situations: Copying an OID from a different repository; passing a tree or blob hash instead of a commit hash; truncated hash that was mistakenly assumed full-length; object pruned by `git gc`.

Related errors

• --merged-into object ID %q is the target HEAD itself; use a
• comparison ref %q does not resolve to a commit: %w
• auto-export: git add failed: %w
• failed to read .gitignore: %w
• failed to write .gitignore: %w

AI-assisted analysis of gastownhall/beads@71377f2769 (2026-08-30). Data as JSON: /api/errors/57954348c1e52be3. Report an issue: GitHub.