Reversion (software development)

Return to a previous version of the code or content

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Not to be confused with reverse engineering.

In software development (and, by extension, in content-editing environments, especially wikis, that make use of the software development process of revision control), reversion or reverting is the abandonment of one or more recent changes in favor of a return to a previous version of the material at hand (typically software source code in the context of application development; HTML, CSS or script code in the context of web development; or content and formatting thereof in the context of wikis).

A revert may be done for a lot of reasons, including: fixing errors introduced by previous edits; restoring the material to a state that was not contentious until new disputes can be resolved; undoing scope creep; regression testing; and even petty malice, vandalistic intent, or personal unhappiness with the author of a previous change. While the process is generally agreed to be a sound and sometimes necessary one, particular instantiations of its use may be at least as controversial as the changes being reverted.

See also