How to restore a deleted file in GitHub?

 
Step 1: Identify the commit where the file was deleted
 

First, you need to find the SHA-1 hash (commit ID) of the commit just before the file deletion. Limiting the log to the file path shows you only relevant entries.

• Open your terminal in the repository root.
• Run this command, replacing path/to/your/file with the deleted file’s path:

git log -- path/to/your/file

 
Step 2: Check out the file from that commit
 

Once you have the commit hash (for example abc1234), you can retrieve the deleted file into your working directory without altering your current branch.

• Use git checkout specifying the commit hash and file path:

git checkout abc1234 -- path/to/your/file

This restores the file state from commit abc1234 into your working directory.

 
Step 3: Stage the restored file
 

With the file back in your working directory, you need to add it to the staging area so it can be committed.

• Stage the file using:

git add path/to/your/file

 
Step 4: Commit the restoration
 

Create a new commit that records the file restoration on your current branch.

• Run:

git commit -m "Restore deleted file path/to/your/file"

 
Step 5: Push your changes to GitHub
 

Finally, upload your new commit to the remote repository so the file is restored on GitHub.

• If you’re on main (or another branch), push with:

git push origin main

After the push completes, navigate to your GitHub repository to confirm that the deleted file has been restored.