Fix Missing Files Between Local and Remote in Git: A Step-by-Step Guide

Are you seeing files in your local branch but not in the remote repository? You may be running into a .gitignore issue or other tracking problems. When certain paths are listed in .gitignore, Git won’t track those files, causing them to be missing once you push to the remote.

Why files go missing in Git

.gitignore can contain rules that tell Git to skip directories or file patterns. If these directories or files are important—like images, logs, or configs—they won’t be committed or pushed, causing missing files on the remote branch.

Common .gitignore problem

For example:

// inside the .gitignore file
public/files

This ignores everything inside public/files/. Any file or folder there won’t be committed, leading to .gitignore missing files issues.

How to fix missing files in git

Step 1: Check If a file is ignored

If a file is local but missing remotely, see if .gitignore is ignoring it:

git check-ignore -v public/files/data.json

If the command references .gitignore, the file is ignored.

Step 2: Adjust .gitignore Rules

You can allow specific folders or files:

public/files
!public/files/documents/
!public/files/logs/

• public/files ignores the entire folder.
• !public/files/documents/ and !public/files/logs/ allow tracking those subfolders.

Step 3: Clear cached ignored files

If files were previously tracked or are in the index:

git rm -r --cached public/files

This removes them from Git’s index (not from your local machine) so new rules can apply.

Step 4: Re-Add the allowed files

After clearing the cache:

git add public/files/documents/ public/files/logs/
git commit -m ""Re-adding important files""
git push origin main

Step 5: Verify files in the remote repository

Use:

git ls-tree -r origin/main --name-only | grep ""public/files/""

If they show up, the issue is resolved.

Conclusion

When facing missing files between local and remote in Git, especially due to .gitignore rules, updating your ignore patterns and re-adding the necessary files fixes the problem. Follow these steps to ensure crucial assets aren’t silently ignored.

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