reflog_expire(): never update a reference to null_sha1

Currently, if --updateref is specified and the very last reflog entry
is expired or deleted, the reference's value is set to 0{40}. This is
an invalid state of the repository, and breaks, for example, "git
fsck" and "git for-each-ref".

The only place we use --updateref in our own code is when dropping
stash entries. In that code, the very next step is to check if the
reflog has been made empty, and if so, delete the "refs/stash"
reference entirely. Thus that code path ultimately leaves the
repository in a valid state.

But we don't want to the repository in an invalid state even
temporarily, and we don't want to leave an invalid state if other
callers of "git reflog expire|delete --updateref" don't think to do
the extra cleanup step.

So, if "git reflog expire|delete" leaves no more entries in the
reflog, just leave the reference unchanged.

Signed-off-by: Michael Haggerty <mhagger@alum.mit.edu>
Reviewed-by: Stefan Beller <sbeller@google.com>
Signed-off-by: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>

1 files changed, 5 insertions, 2 deletions

diff --git a/refs.c b/refs.c
index 4684ffe2a6..05a4be0c06 100644
--- a/refs.c
+++ b/refs.c
@@ -4081,10 +4081,13 @@ int reflog_expire(const char *refname, const unsigned char *sha1,
 		/*
 		 * It doesn't make sense to adjust a reference pointed
 		 * to by a symbolic ref based on expiring entries in
-		 * the symbolic reference's reflog.
+		 * the symbolic reference's reflog. Nor can we update
+		 * a reference if there are no remaining reflog
+		 * entries.
 		 */
 		int update = (flags & EXPIRE_REFLOGS_UPDATE_REF) &&
-			!(type & REF_ISSYMREF);
+			!(type & REF_ISSYMREF) &&
+			!is_null_sha1(cb.last_kept_sha1);
 
 		if (close_lock_file(&reflog_lock)) {
 			status |= error("couldn't write %s: %s", log_file,