> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://gx.mubbie.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# conflicts

> Preview merge conflicts before merging, without touching the working tree

`gx conflicts` uses `git merge-tree` to predict merge conflicts without actually performing a merge. Your working tree and index are never modified -- this is a completely read-only operation.

## Usage

```bash theme={null}
gx conflicts [target] [flags]
```

## Arguments

| Argument | Description                                              |
| -------- | -------------------------------------------------------- |
| `target` | Branch to check conflicts against (default: HEAD branch) |

## Flags

| Flag        | Description                                                                    |
| ----------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| `--dry-run` | Always read-only (supported for consistency; the command is already read-only) |

## Example Output

<CodeGroup>
  ```bash No conflicts theme={null}
  $ gx conflicts

  Checking feature/auth against main...

  OK No conflicts. Clean merge.
    8 files changed, 245 insertions(+), 32 deletions(-)
  ```

  ```bash Conflicts found theme={null}
  $ gx conflicts

  Checking feature/auth against main...

  X 2 conflicts found

    src/auth.go     (Kim + James)
    src/config.go

    6 other files merge cleanly
  ```
</CodeGroup>

When conflicts are found, gx shows:

* The conflicting file paths
* The authors who last touched each side (when they differ), helping you know who to coordinate with
* How many other files would merge cleanly

## Git Version Compatibility

gx uses the modern `git merge-tree --write-tree` form (available in Git 2.38+). If that is not available, it automatically falls back to the legacy 3-argument form:

```
git merge-tree <merge-base> HEAD <target>
```

Both approaches produce the same result. The fallback happens transparently.

<Tip>
  Run `gx conflicts` before starting a merge or rebase to know what you are getting into. It is especially useful before `gx sync` on a large stack.
</Tip>

<Accordion title="Edge cases">
  * If you are already on the target branch, gx prints `> You're already on <target>. Switch to a feature branch to check conflicts.`
  * If the target branch does not exist, gx prints an error
  * The author attribution shows who last touched each conflicting file on each side, which helps identify who to coordinate with for resolution
  * The "other files merge cleanly" count is derived from `git diff --stat` between the merge base and target
</Accordion>