Moving, Renaming and Deleting Files
In general, changes to file locations or file names, and removing a file from the repository is done the same way as any other staging operation. However, there are some additional considerations.
Remove
Use Local | Remove to remove files from the local repository and optionally to delete them in the working tree.
If the local file in the working tree is already removed, staging the file deletion will have the same effect, however, the Remove command also allows you to remove files from the repository while keeping them locally.
Tip
If you remove a file from a repository but wish to keep the file in your local Working Tree, you should consider ignoring the file in order to prevent it from being accidentally re-added to the repository in a future commit.
Moving / Renaming Files
In general, Git’s move/rename tracking happens automatically based off the content similarities in a file, e.g. when logging or blaming a file, the move / rename operation will be detected and changes to the file can be tracked before and after the move / rename.
As a result, there is no need for an explicit move operation: just move your files with your favorite tools (IDE, file explorer, from command line).
However, Git does possess a git move command for convenience which performs a normal file system move and then stages the removed and the newly added file to the Index.
Due to demand from users for access to the git move operation, SmartGit provides Local | Move or Rename.
Note
It is recommended not to make major changes to the contents of a file in the same commit as a move / rename on the file, as this may cause git to be unable to follow the file through the rename. Consider instead splitting the content changes, and the move/rename into two distinct commits.
Delete
Use Local | Delete to delete local files (or directories) from the working tree. You either may permanently delete the files directly, or move them to the trash (operating-system specific, e.g. the recycle bin on Windows).