Commit-editmsg

Launch Editor: Git opens your configured editor with this file.

User Edits: You write your commit message. You may also delete all comment lines – Git will ignore any line starting with # when parsing the final message.

Save & Exit: You save the file and close the editor.

Read by Git: Git reads .git/COMMIT_EDITMSG.

Strip Comments: Git removes all comment lines (lines starting with #).

Validation:

Create Commit Object: Git creates a new commit object with that message.

Cleanup (optional but typical): Git may delete or overwrite COMMIT_EDITMSG after the commit succeeds. However, in many cases, the file persists with the last commit message until the next commit starts. Do not rely on it for permanent storage.

The COMMIT-EDITMSG file enforces (or at least encourages) best practices that -m actively discourages.

You saved an empty file, or a file with only comments (#). Git reads COMMIT-EDITMSG, strips comments, and sees nothing. Fix: Run git commit again and write a message. COMMIT-EDITMSG

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