MergeBot: A platform of semi-structured merge conflict resolution for C/C++ code
Year: 2025
Type: software-paper
Abstract: In software version control systems, like Git, merge conflicts typically arise when multiple developers edit the same segment of a source file from different branches. Detecting merge conflicts can be automated; however, resolving merge conflicts is tedious and demanding. Developers have to manually read and trace the conflicts to reconcile the changes. In this paper, we introduce MergeBot, a platform designed for resolving merge conflicts in C/C++ codebases. MergeBot utilizes the techniques of static program analysis to recommend the resolution of merge conflicts via a user-friendly graphical user interface. In the process of resolving conflicts, MergeBot combines real-time differencing with proactive strategies to avoid introducing errors. We show the potential of extending semi-structured merge to various programming languages by employing well-defined formalization and a widely available toolchain. Our work outlines the effectiveness and limitations via a comparative evaluation on 10 widely-used open-source projects in C/C++.
Source: SoftwareX
Authors: Hua He, Xiaofan Liu, Lei Xu, Guanghui Mei, Jifeng Xuan
Institutions: Wuhan University, Nanjing University
Language: English
Subfield: Information Systems
Field: Computer Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,200
OpenAlex ID: W4409260909