gitbutlerapp/gitbutler · error

Commit '{commit_id_str}' not found. Try running 'but status'

Error message

Commit '{commit_id_str}' not found. Try running 'but status' to see available commits.

What it means

`but resolve <commit-id>` resolves the ID through the legacy IdMap, which supports both CLI IDs and partial SHAs (resolve.rs:162-167). Zero matches means the ID is unknown in this workspace — typo, stale short ID, or wrong project — and the message points you at `but status` to list available commits.

Source

Thrown at crates/but/src/command/legacy/resolve.rs:164

                t.success.paint("✓ Marked as resolved:"),
                t.attention.paint(path)
            )?;
        }
    }
    Ok(())
}

/// Resolve a user-provided commit identifier (CLI ID or partial SHA) to an
/// object id, along with its display ref rendered from the same map.
fn parse_commit_id(ctx: &mut Context, commit_id_str: &str) -> Result<(gix::ObjectId, String)> {
    // Create an IdMap to resolve commit IDs (supports both CLI IDs and partial SHAs)
    let id_map = IdMap::legacy_new_from_context(ctx)?;

    // Resolve the commit ID using the IdMap
    let matches = id_map.parse_using_context(commit_id_str, ctx)?;

    if matches.is_empty() {
        bail!(
            "Commit '{commit_id_str}' not found. Try running 'but status' to see available commits."
        );
    }

    if matches.len() > 1 {
        bail!(
            "Commit ID '{commit_id_str}' is ambiguous. Please provide more characters to uniquely identify the commit."
        );
    }

    // Extract the commit OID from the matched CliId
    match &matches[0] {
        CliId::Commit {
            commit: CommitId { commit_id, .. },
            id: _,
        } => {
            let commit_ref = theme::Commit(CommitIdRef {
                commit_id: *commit_id,

View on GitHub (pinned to caf1f223d3)

Solutions

1. Run `but status` and copy a current commit ID.
2. Lengthen the partial SHA or use the CLI ID printed by status.
3. Confirm you are in the same workspace/project the ID came from.

Example fix

# before
but resolve 4z1   # no matches -> Commit '4z1' not found

# after
but status        # copy a valid commit ID
but resolve 5c

but status | grep -F '<id>' || { echo 'unknown commit id'; exit 2; }
but resolve '<id>'

When it happens

Trigger: `but resolve <id>` where `parse_using_context` returns an empty vec: partial SHA too short or wrong, ID copied from another workspace/clone, or the commit removed by a rebase/squash since the ID was copied.

Common situations: Partial SHAs that were unique in a different clone; IDs invalidated when history was rewritten; simple typos in short IDs.

Related errors

• Commit ID '{commit_id_str}' is ambiguous. Please provide mor
• '{commit_id_str}' does not refer to a commit
• No branch found for ID: {branch_id}
• Could not find branch: {branch_id}
• Ambiguous branch '{branch_id}', matches multiple items

AI-assisted analysis of gitbutlerapp/gitbutler@caf1f223d3 (2026-08-20). Data as JSON: /api/errors/2771109f27e0ae54. Report an issue: GitHub.