VS Code User Rage Quits After Accidentally Deleting Everything

Description

A screenshot of a closed GitHub issue, number #32405, titled in all caps: 'THIS THING DELETED 3 MONTHS OF WORK!!!!'. The issue was opened by user 'eliecerthoms' and shows an extremely angry comment. The user recounts downloading VS Code and, while experimenting with the source control option, accidentally clicking 'discard' on five thousand files, which permanently deleted them without sending them to the recycle bin. The comment is filled with profanity and disbelief that such a destructive, irreversible action is possible. The user vows to stop using all Windows development software and repeatedly curses the implementer of the feature. At the bottom, VS Code version 1.15.0 and Windows_NT ia32 10.0.15063 are listed. The meme captures the universal developer fear of accidental mass file deletion and the rage that follows when a tool's UX is perceived to be dangerously unintuitive, leading to catastrophic data loss. It's a classic example of user frustration when guardrails are missing from powerful features

Common Tags

Vscode Git DeveloperFrustration DataLoss VersionControl UserError Ide

Comments

Anonymous ★ Top Pick The fastest way to clean up a messy codebase is to give a junior dev the 'discard all changes' button in VS Code without a confirmation dialog. It's the 'rm -rf' of GUIs

Anonymous ★ Top Pick

The fastest way to clean up a messy codebase is to give a junior dev the 'discard all changes' button in VS Code without a confirmation dialog. It's the 'rm -rf' of GUIs
Anonymous

Reminder: if a single UI button translates to `git clean -xfd && sync`, you’re not using an editor - you’re running `rm -rf .` with theme support
Anonymous

The only thing more permanent than a git commit is apparently VSCode's interpretation of 'discard changes' on untracked files - turns out it's less 'git checkout' and more 'rm -rf /*' with extra emotional damage
Anonymous

Three months of work and the first git command ever run on the repo was, effectively, git clean -fdx. The real issue was filed against the wrong repository
Anonymous

Ah yes, the classic 'discard changes' operation that senior engineers know really means 'permanently delete everything without confirmation or backup' - because who needs a staging area metaphor to actually behave like a staging area? This is why experienced devs treat new IDE features like production deployments: test in isolation, read the docs twice, and always have a backup. The real tragedy here isn't just losing three months of work; it's discovering that your version control UI can bypass the OS-level safety net (Recycle Bin) while you're still learning the tool. This is the kind of footgun that makes you understand why enterprise teams mandate specific IDE versions and configurations - and why 'works on my machine' evolved into 'works with my exact toolchain snapshot.'
Anonymous

VSCode’s “Discard All” is just a GUI for git clean -fdx - if that nuked three months of work, your DR plan was “single laptop, no replication, pray to the Recycle Bin.”
Anonymous

VS Code's 'Discard All Changes': the only feature with worse UX than a git reset --hard after three months unsaved
Anonymous

If your IDE wires “Discard All” to git clean -fdx, congrats - you’ve shipped a one-click DR exercise; when RPO equals hope, the Recycle Bin isn’t a strategy
@trainzman 4y

never seen a man as dumb as he is
1. @Box_of_the_Fox 4y
  
  If I saw discard button I'd thought that it means don't change anything. So it's not user that's stupid but UI that's shit. But that's normal for Microsoft
  
  @kitbot256 4y
  
  it's actually git behavior they implemented. But the page is epic none the less
2. @dsmagikswsa 4y
  
  Apparently he didn’t use git before, actually there is a pop up to ask you to confirm to discard option if you accidentally click the discard.
  
  @trainzman 4y
  
  Yet there's a logical difference between "unstage" and "discard"
3. @dugeru42 4y
  
  visual studio once wiped my project it crashed and leaked RAM whch was stuck i rebooted and project no more exists, only zero bytes folder remains
  
  @dsmagikswsa 4y
  
  VSCode or VS?
  
  @dugeru42 4y
  
  vs it was 2-5 years ago when i still used шindoшs
  
  @trainzman 4y
  
  Well you could tell no more than just "visual studio once"
@upgradeovec 4y

https://github.com/microsoft/vscode/issues/32405
1. @RiedleroD 4y
  
  hey… I think that's a dev I know…
@BuHoGPaD 4y

Люди делятся на три типа: Те, кто пока не бекапит данные Те, кто уже бекапит данные И те, кто проверяет, что бекапы живые People are divided into three types: Those who do not backup data yet Those who already backup data And those who check that the backups are alive
1. @QutePoet 4y
  
  But does Git repo count as backup?
  
  @BuHoGPaD 4y
  
  not if you're keep it in your local storage
  
  @kitbot256 4y
  
  That’s exactly how he managed to delete everything. Read the GitHub thread
  
  @QutePoet 4y
  
  So do as me — GitLab or Gogs VM with full backup of this VM.
@HarryCopter1 4y

Hetman partition recovery и нет проблем
@JoseAngelSanchez 4y

ALWAYS use a version control (means Git). Commit frequently in your feature branch. Push your branch to remote at the end of the day, even if it's a work in progress...
1. @Vivaldes 4y
  
  +100500
2. @Agent1378 4y
  
  Svn is fine!
@LastStranger 4y

and he didn't have git?
@trainzman 4y

And yet discard could be named more explicitly
@trainzman 4y

Anyway working with things thru commands should be taken with attention, I often pray when I merge just because
1. @dsmagikswsa 4y
  
  It is true if you think yourself as a engineer. Always know what you are doing.
@dugeru42 4y

step 2 is unnecesary
@karim_mahyari 4y

Seems about right. He used windows anyway... (But tbh, what happened to him is really painful; now I will have raised heartbeat and tense hands when I use git.)
1. @dugeru42 4y
  
  it is harder to nuke history tho so if files are in git they aren't going anywhere
2. @kitbot256 4y
  
  I use vscode on Fedora and another one on Mac.
  
  @karim_mahyari 4y
  
  Oh, I like vscode, just the windows part sounds kinda off
@DemonOfRohit 4y

People should not use inferior text editor like vscode
Max 4y

first vscode deleted his files, then windows deleted his github account, lol, they are really after him.
Max 4y

just because he wrote a wall of fuck you, that's no reason to be deleted!
@MagnusEdvardsson 4y

This is what the guy saw, clicked on "discard all" and then blamed the editor for it. It's hilarious 😂
1. @RiedleroD 4y
  
  oh lol
2. @AlexKart20129 4y
  
  "discard all changes" != "delete all files" Because the files were already there. That's really dumb behavior to delete the files and not mention that files will be deleted. Almost as dumb as not having a backup of all important source code. Two extremely dumb devs found each other.
  
  @slnt_opp 4y
  
  It is saying that all untracked files will be deleted, always did
  
  @ErisVicious 4y
  
  well if its your first commit - you`re just discarding new changes.
3. @Cynic_Alex 4y
  
  The thing is... He didn't do any CHANGES. So there's was no problem to discard em IRREVERSIBLE. He had some(~5000 omg) files linked and he was okay with discarding changes (that he didn't do at all). It is version control software or shit mixing machine? I can see why he's upset
@ItsTheShrimp 4y

just use vim lol
@ShiningFlames 4y

Thats why i just use git from cli always :v Can never be sure how are they implementing which functionality
1. @dsmagikswsa 4y
  
  You can check git output log to see the actual command.
  
  @ShiningFlames 4y
  
  After the execution :v
@MagnusEdvardsson 4y

Adding files to a folder is a change.
1. @dsmagikswsa 4y
  
  You need to reply his message so that he can see your reply.
@MagnusEdvardsson 4y

Don't really care if he does or not
@ErisVicious 4y

having whole project done as one big commit that he had discarded - is totally his fault

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VS Code User Rage Quits After Accidentally Deleting Everything

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