How to reset a remote Git repository to remove all commits?

Question

How can I reset a remote and local Git repository to remove all commits?

I would like to start fresh with the current Head as the initial commit.

Answer 1

Completely reset?

1. Delete the .git directory locally.

2. Recreate the git repostory:

   $ cd (project-directory)
   $ git init
   $ (add some files)
   $ git add .
   $ git commit -m 'Initial commit'
   

3. Push to remote server, overwriting. Remember you're going to mess everyone else up doing this … you better be the only client.

   $ git remote add origin <url>
   $ git push --force --set-upstream origin master
   

Answer 2

First, follow the instructions in this question to squash everything to a single commit. Then make a forced push to the remote:

$ git push origin +master

And optionally delete all other branches both locally and remotely:

$ git push origin :<branch>
$ git branch -d <branch>

Answer 3

Were I you I would do something like this:

Before doing anything please keep a copy (better safe than sorry)

git checkout master
git checkout -b temp 
git reset --hard <sha-1 of your first commit> 
git add .
git commit -m 'Squash all commits in single one'
git push origin temp

After doing that you can delete other branches.

Result: You are going to have a branch with only 2 commits.

Use git log --oneline to see your commits in a minimalistic way and to find SHA-1 for commits!