diff --git a/Documentation/RelNotes/2.51.0.adoc b/Documentation/RelNotes/2.51.0.adoc
index ca0e39e1e82964..8ff921809a9107 100644
--- a/Documentation/RelNotes/2.51.0.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/RelNotes/2.51.0.adoc
@@ -84,6 +84,10 @@ Performance, Internal Implementation, Development Support etc.
 
  * Code clean-up around object access API.
 
+ * Define .precision to more canned parse-options type to avoid bugs
+   coming from using a variable with a wrong type to capture the
+   parsed values.
+
 
 Fixes since v2.50
 -----------------
@@ -166,6 +170,14 @@ including security updates, are included in this release.
  * Leakfix with a new and a bit invasive test on pack-bitmap files.
    (merge bfd5522e98 ly/load-bitmap-leakfix later to maint).
 
+ * "git fetch --prune" used to be O(n^2) expensive when there are many
+   refs, which has been corrected.
+   (merge 87d8d8c5d0 ph/fetch-prune-optim later to maint).
+
+ * When a ref creation at refs/heads/foo/bar fails, the files backend
+   now removes refs/heads/foo/ if the directory is otherwise not used.
+   (merge a3a7f20516 ps/refs-files-remove-empty-parent later to maint).
+
  * Other code cleanup, docfix, build fix, etc.
    (merge b257adb571 lo/my-first-ow-doc-update later to maint).
    (merge 8b34b6a220 ly/sequencer-update-squash-is-fixup-only later to maint).
@@ -188,3 +200,4 @@ including security updates, are included in this release.
    (merge de404249ab ps/perlless-test-fixes later to maint).
    (merge 953049eed8 ts/merge-orig-head-doc-fix later to maint).
    (merge 0c83bbc704 rj/freebsd-sysinfo-build-fix later to maint).
+   (merge ad7780b38f ps/doc-pack-refs-auto-with-files-backend-fix later to maint).
diff --git a/Documentation/config/sendemail.adoc b/Documentation/config/sendemail.adoc
index 54f1248e647273..47223346579727 100644
--- a/Documentation/config/sendemail.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/config/sendemail.adoc
@@ -31,8 +31,8 @@ sendemail.confirm::
 	values.
 
 sendemail.mailmap::
-	If true, makes linkgit:git-send-email[1] assume `--mailmap`,
-	otherwise assume `--no-mailmap`. False by default.
+	If `true`, makes linkgit:git-send-email[1] assume `--mailmap`,
+	otherwise assume `--no-mailmap`. `False` by default.
 
 sendemail.mailmap.file::
 	The location of a linkgit:git-send-email[1] specific augmenting
@@ -96,6 +96,11 @@ sendemail.xmailer::
 	linkgit:git-send-email[1] command-line options. See its
 	documentation for details.
 
+sendemail.outlookidfix::
+	If `true`, makes linkgit:git-send-email[1] assume `--outlook-id-fix`,
+	and if `false` assume `--no-outlook-id-fix`. If not specified, it will
+	behave the same way as if `--outlook-id-fix` is not specified.
+
 sendemail.signedOffCc (deprecated)::
 	Deprecated alias for `sendemail.signedOffByCc`.
 
diff --git a/Documentation/git-pack-refs.adoc b/Documentation/git-pack-refs.adoc
index 652c5497715a0f..42b90051e695a5 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-pack-refs.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-pack-refs.adoc
@@ -66,7 +66,10 @@ Pack refs as needed depending on the current state of the ref database. The
 behavior depends on the ref format used by the repository and may change in the
 future.
 +
-	- "files": No special handling for `--auto` has been implemented.
+	- "files": Loose references are packed into the `packed-refs` file
+	  based on the ratio of loose references to the size of the
+	  `packed-refs` file. The bigger the `packed-refs` file, the more loose
+	  references need to exist before we repack.
 +
 	- "reftable": Tables are compacted such that they form a geometric
 	  sequence. For two tables N and N+1, where N+1 is newer, this
diff --git a/Documentation/git-send-email.adoc b/Documentation/git-send-email.adoc
index 7bd09c254b271e..5335502d68fc7b 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-send-email.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/git-send-email.adoc
@@ -280,12 +280,14 @@ must be used for each option.
 	Path to a store of trusted CA certificates for SMTP SSL/TLS
 	certificate validation (either a directory that has been processed
 	by `c_rehash`, or a single file containing one or more PEM format
-	certificates concatenated together: see verify(1) -CAfile and
-	-CApath for more information on these). Set it to an empty string
-	to disable certificate verification. Defaults to the value of the
-	`sendemail.smtpSSLCertPath` configuration variable, if set, or the
-	backing SSL library's compiled-in default otherwise (which should
-	be the best choice on most platforms).
+	certificates concatenated together: see the description of the
+	`-CAfile` _<file>_ and the `-CApath` _<dir>_ options of
+	https://docs.openssl.org/master/man1/openssl-verify/
+	[OpenSSL's verify(1) manual page] for more information on these).
+	Set it to an empty string to disable certificate verification.
+	Defaults to the value of the `sendemail.smtpSSLCertPath` configuration
+	variable, if set, or the backing SSL library's compiled-in default
+	otherwise (which should be the best choice on most platforms).
 
 --smtp-user=<user>::
 	Username for SMTP-AUTH. Default is the value of `sendemail.smtpUser`;
@@ -598,9 +600,20 @@ available online. Community maintained credential helpers are also available:
 	- https://github.com/AdityaGarg8/git-credential-email[git-credential-yahoo]
 	  (cross platform, dedicated helper for authenticating Yahoo accounts)
 
+	- https://github.com/AdityaGarg8/git-credential-email[git-credential-aol]
+	  (cross platform, dedicated helper for authenticating AOL accounts)
+
 You can also see linkgit:gitcredentials[7] for more OAuth based authentication
 helpers.
 
+Proton Mail does not provide an SMTP server to send emails. If you are a paid
+customer of Proton Mail, you can use
+https://proton.me/mail/bridge[Proton Mail Bridge]
+officially provided by Proton Mail to create a local SMTP server for sending
+emails. For both free and paid users, community maintained projects like
+https://github.com/AdityaGarg8/git-credential-email[git-protonmail] can be
+used.
+
 Note: the following core Perl modules that may be installed with your
 distribution of Perl are required:
 
@@ -614,6 +627,35 @@ These additional Perl modules are also required:
 https://metacpan.org/pod/Authen::SASL[Authen::SASL] and
 https://metacpan.org/pod/Mail::Address[Mail::Address].
 
+Exploiting the `sendmailCmd` option of `git send-email`
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+
+Apart from sending emails via an SMTP server, `git send-email` can also send
+emails through any application that supports sendmail-like commands. You can
+read documentation of `--sendmail-cmd=<command>` above for more information.
+This ability can be very useful if you want to use another application as an
+SMTP client for `git send-email`, or if your email provider uses proprietary
+APIs instead of SMTP to send emails.
+
+As an example, lets see how to configure https://marlam.de/msmtp/[msmtp], a
+popular SMTP client found in many Linux distributions. Edit `~/.gitconfig`
+to instruct `git-send-email` to use it for sending emails.
+
+----
+[sendemail]
+	sendmailCmd = /usr/bin/msmtp # Change this to the path where msmtp is installed
+----
+
+Links of a few such community maintained helpers are:
+
+	- https://marlam.de/msmtp/[msmtp]
+	  (popular SMTP client with many features, available for Linux and macOS)
+
+	- https://github.com/AdityaGarg8/git-credential-email[git-protonmail]
+	  (cross platform client that can send emails using the ProtonMail API)
+
+	- https://github.com/AdityaGarg8/git-credential-email[git-msgraph]
+	  (cross platform client that can send emails using the Microsoft Graph API)
 
 SEE ALSO
 --------
diff --git a/builtin/am.c b/builtin/am.c
index a800003340f6ec..c9d925f7b96071 100644
--- a/builtin/am.c
+++ b/builtin/am.c
@@ -2406,6 +2406,7 @@ int cmd_am(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_CALLBACK,
 			.long_name = "show-current-patch",
 			.value = &resume_mode,
+			.precision = sizeof(resume_mode),
 			.argh = "(diff|raw)",
 			.help = N_("show the patch being applied"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_CMDMODE | PARSE_OPT_OPTARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG | PARSE_OPT_LITERAL_ARGHELP,
diff --git a/builtin/fetch.c b/builtin/fetch.c
index d231a669d70945..87a0cca7994ff3 100644
--- a/builtin/fetch.c
+++ b/builtin/fetch.c
@@ -1340,9 +1340,10 @@ static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
 	int result = 0;
 	struct ref *ref, *stale_refs = get_stale_heads(rs, ref_map);
 	struct strbuf err = STRBUF_INIT;
-	const char *dangling_msg = dry_run
-		? _("   (%s will become dangling)")
-		: _("   (%s has become dangling)");
+	struct string_list refnames = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
+
+	for (ref = stale_refs; ref; ref = ref->next)
+		string_list_append(&refnames, ref->name);
 
 	if (!dry_run) {
 		if (transaction) {
@@ -1353,15 +1354,9 @@ static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
 					goto cleanup;
 			}
 		} else {
-			struct string_list refnames = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
-
-			for (ref = stale_refs; ref; ref = ref->next)
-				string_list_append(&refnames, ref->name);
-
 			result = refs_delete_refs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
 						  "fetch: prune", &refnames,
 						  0);
-			string_list_clear(&refnames, 0);
 		}
 	}
 
@@ -1373,12 +1368,14 @@ static int prune_refs(struct display_state *display_state,
 					   _("(none)"), ref->name,
 					   &ref->new_oid, &ref->old_oid,
 					   summary_width);
-			refs_warn_dangling_symref(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
-						  stderr, dangling_msg, ref->name);
 		}
+		string_list_sort(&refnames);
+		refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
+					   stderr, "   ", dry_run, &refnames);
 	}
 
 cleanup:
+	string_list_clear(&refnames, 0);
 	strbuf_release(&err);
 	free_refs(stale_refs);
 	return result;
diff --git a/builtin/rebase.c b/builtin/rebase.c
index 2e8c4ee6784d84..e90562a3b8a84e 100644
--- a/builtin/rebase.c
+++ b/builtin/rebase.c
@@ -1128,6 +1128,7 @@ int cmd_rebase(int argc,
 			.short_name = 'n',
 			.long_name = "no-stat",
 			.value = &options.flags,
+			.precision = sizeof(options.flags),
 			.help = N_("do not show diffstat of what changed upstream"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG,
 			.defval = REBASE_DIFFSTAT,
diff --git a/builtin/remote.c b/builtin/remote.c
index 7cbda285ebed33..18843b6bf6ccb5 100644
--- a/builtin/remote.c
+++ b/builtin/remote.c
@@ -1521,9 +1521,6 @@ static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
 	struct ref_states states = REF_STATES_INIT;
 	struct string_list refs_to_prune = STRING_LIST_INIT_NODUP;
 	struct string_list_item *item;
-	const char *dangling_msg = dry_run
-		? _(" %s will become dangling!")
-		: _(" %s has become dangling!");
 
 	get_remote_ref_states(remote, &states, GET_REF_STATES);
 
@@ -1555,7 +1552,7 @@ static int prune_remote(const char *remote, int dry_run)
 	}
 
 	refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(get_main_ref_store(the_repository),
-				   stdout, dangling_msg, &refs_to_prune);
+				   stdout, " ", dry_run, &refs_to_prune);
 
 	string_list_clear(&refs_to_prune, 0);
 	free_remote_ref_states(&states);
diff --git a/builtin/update-index.c b/builtin/update-index.c
index 538b619ba4f3bb..0c1d4ed55beb08 100644
--- a/builtin/update-index.c
+++ b/builtin/update-index.c
@@ -981,6 +981,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "assume-unchanged",
 			.value = &mark_valid_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_valid_only),
 			.help = N_("mark files as \"not changing\""),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = MARK_FLAG,
@@ -989,6 +990,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "no-assume-unchanged",
 			.value = &mark_valid_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_valid_only),
 			.help = N_("clear assumed-unchanged bit"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = UNMARK_FLAG,
@@ -997,6 +999,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "skip-worktree",
 			.value = &mark_skip_worktree_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_skip_worktree_only),
 			.help = N_("mark files as \"index-only\""),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = MARK_FLAG,
@@ -1005,6 +1008,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "no-skip-worktree",
 			.value = &mark_skip_worktree_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_skip_worktree_only),
 			.help = N_("clear skip-worktree bit"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = UNMARK_FLAG,
@@ -1079,6 +1083,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "fsmonitor-valid",
 			.value = &mark_fsmonitor_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_fsmonitor_only),
 			.help = N_("mark files as fsmonitor valid"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = MARK_FLAG,
@@ -1087,6 +1092,7 @@ int cmd_update_index(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_SET_INT,
 			.long_name = "no-fsmonitor-valid",
 			.value = &mark_fsmonitor_only,
+			.precision = sizeof(mark_fsmonitor_only),
 			.help = N_("clear fsmonitor valid bit"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = UNMARK_FLAG,
diff --git a/builtin/write-tree.c b/builtin/write-tree.c
index 5a8dc377ec07b0..cfec044710a56a 100644
--- a/builtin/write-tree.c
+++ b/builtin/write-tree.c
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ int cmd_write_tree(int argc,
 			.type = OPTION_BIT,
 			.long_name = "ignore-cache-tree",
 			.value = &flags,
+			.precision = sizeof(flags),
 			.help = N_("only useful for debugging"),
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_HIDDEN | PARSE_OPT_NOARG,
 			.defval = WRITE_TREE_IGNORE_CACHE_TREE,
diff --git a/parse-options.c b/parse-options.c
index a9a39ecaef6c36..5224203ffe7bf8 100644
--- a/parse-options.c
+++ b/parse-options.c
@@ -68,6 +68,64 @@ static char *fix_filename(const char *prefix, const char *file)
 		return prefix_filename_except_for_dash(prefix, file);
 }
 
+static int do_get_int_value(const void *value, size_t precision, intmax_t *ret)
+{
+	switch (precision) {
+	case sizeof(int8_t):
+		*ret = *(int8_t *)value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int16_t):
+		*ret = *(int16_t *)value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int32_t):
+		*ret = *(int32_t *)value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int64_t):
+		*ret = *(int64_t *)value;
+		return 0;
+	default:
+		return -1;
+	}
+}
+
+static intmax_t get_int_value(const struct option *opt, enum opt_parsed flags)
+{
+	intmax_t ret;
+	if (do_get_int_value(opt->value, opt->precision, &ret))
+		BUG("invalid precision for option %s", optname(opt, flags));
+	return ret;
+}
+
+static enum parse_opt_result set_int_value(const struct option *opt,
+					   enum opt_parsed flags,
+					   intmax_t value)
+{
+	switch (opt->precision) {
+	case sizeof(int8_t):
+		*(int8_t *)opt->value = value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int16_t):
+		*(int16_t *)opt->value = value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int32_t):
+		*(int32_t *)opt->value = value;
+		return 0;
+	case sizeof(int64_t):
+		*(int64_t *)opt->value = value;
+		return 0;
+	default:
+		BUG("invalid precision for option %s", optname(opt, flags));
+	}
+}
+
+static int signed_int_fits(intmax_t value, size_t precision)
+{
+	size_t bits = precision * CHAR_BIT;
+	intmax_t upper_bound = INTMAX_MAX >> (bitsizeof(intmax_t) - bits);
+	intmax_t lower_bound = -upper_bound - 1;
+	return lower_bound <= value && value <= upper_bound;
+}
+
 static enum parse_opt_result do_get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 					  const struct option *opt,
 					  enum opt_parsed flags,
@@ -89,35 +147,55 @@ static enum parse_opt_result do_get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 		return opt->ll_callback(p, opt, NULL, unset);
 
 	case OPTION_BIT:
+	{
+		intmax_t value = get_int_value(opt, flags);
 		if (unset)
-			*(int *)opt->value &= ~opt->defval;
+			value &= ~opt->defval;
 		else
-			*(int *)opt->value |= opt->defval;
-		return 0;
+			value |= opt->defval;
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, value);
+	}
 
 	case OPTION_NEGBIT:
+	{
+		intmax_t value = get_int_value(opt, flags);
 		if (unset)
-			*(int *)opt->value |= opt->defval;
+			value |= opt->defval;
 		else
-			*(int *)opt->value &= ~opt->defval;
-		return 0;
+			value &= ~opt->defval;
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, value);
+	}
 
 	case OPTION_BITOP:
+	{
+		intmax_t value = get_int_value(opt, flags);
 		if (unset)
 			BUG("BITOP can't have unset form");
-		*(int *)opt->value &= ~opt->extra;
-		*(int *)opt->value |= opt->defval;
-		return 0;
+		value &= ~opt->extra;
+		value |= opt->defval;
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, value);
+	}
 
 	case OPTION_COUNTUP:
-		if (*(int *)opt->value < 0)
-			*(int *)opt->value = 0;
-		*(int *)opt->value = unset ? 0 : *(int *)opt->value + 1;
-		return 0;
+	{
+		size_t bits = CHAR_BIT * opt->precision;
+		intmax_t upper_bound = INTMAX_MAX >> (bitsizeof(intmax_t) - bits);
+		intmax_t value = get_int_value(opt, flags);
+
+		if (value < 0)
+			value = 0;
+		if (unset)
+			value = 0;
+		else if (value < upper_bound)
+			value++;
+		else
+			return error(_("value for %s exceeds %"PRIdMAX),
+				     optname(opt, flags), upper_bound);
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, value);
+	}
 
 	case OPTION_SET_INT:
-		*(int *)opt->value = unset ? 0 : opt->defval;
-		return 0;
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, unset ? 0 : opt->defval);
 
 	case OPTION_STRING:
 		if (unset)
@@ -199,23 +277,7 @@ static enum parse_opt_result do_get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 			return error(_("value %s for %s not in range [%"PRIdMAX",%"PRIdMAX"]"),
 				     arg, optname(opt, flags), (intmax_t)lower_bound, (intmax_t)upper_bound);
 
-		switch (opt->precision) {
-		case 1:
-			*(int8_t *)opt->value = value;
-			return 0;
-		case 2:
-			*(int16_t *)opt->value = value;
-			return 0;
-		case 4:
-			*(int32_t *)opt->value = value;
-			return 0;
-		case 8:
-			*(int64_t *)opt->value = value;
-			return 0;
-		default:
-			BUG("invalid precision for option %s",
-			    optname(opt, flags));
-		}
+		return set_int_value(opt, flags, value);
 	}
 	case OPTION_UNSIGNED:
 	{
@@ -266,7 +328,9 @@ static enum parse_opt_result do_get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 }
 
 struct parse_opt_cmdmode_list {
-	int value, *value_ptr;
+	intmax_t value;
+	void *value_ptr;
+	size_t precision;
 	const struct option *opt;
 	const char *arg;
 	enum opt_parsed flags;
@@ -280,7 +344,7 @@ static void build_cmdmode_list(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *ctx,
 
 	for (; opts->type != OPTION_END; opts++) {
 		struct parse_opt_cmdmode_list *elem = ctx->cmdmode_list;
-		int *value_ptr = opts->value;
+		void *value_ptr = opts->value;
 
 		if (!(opts->flags & PARSE_OPT_CMDMODE) || !value_ptr)
 			continue;
@@ -292,10 +356,13 @@ static void build_cmdmode_list(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *ctx,
 
 		CALLOC_ARRAY(elem, 1);
 		elem->value_ptr = value_ptr;
-		elem->value = *value_ptr;
+		elem->precision = opts->precision;
+		if (do_get_int_value(value_ptr, opts->precision, &elem->value))
+			optbug(opts, "has invalid precision");
 		elem->next = ctx->cmdmode_list;
 		ctx->cmdmode_list = elem;
 	}
+	BUG_if_bug("invalid 'struct option'");
 }
 
 static char *optnamearg(const struct option *opt, const char *arg,
@@ -317,7 +384,13 @@ static enum parse_opt_result get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 	char *opt_name, *other_opt_name;
 
 	for (; elem; elem = elem->next) {
-		if (*elem->value_ptr == elem->value)
+		intmax_t new_value;
+
+		if (do_get_int_value(elem->value_ptr, elem->precision,
+				     &new_value))
+			BUG("impossible: invalid precision");
+
+		if (new_value == elem->value)
 			continue;
 
 		if (elem->opt &&
@@ -327,7 +400,7 @@ static enum parse_opt_result get_value(struct parse_opt_ctx_t *p,
 		elem->opt = opt;
 		elem->arg = arg;
 		elem->flags = flags;
-		elem->value = *elem->value_ptr;
+		elem->value = new_value;
 	}
 
 	if (result || !elem)
@@ -586,10 +659,14 @@ static void parse_options_check(const struct option *opts)
 		    opts->long_name && !(opts->flags & PARSE_OPT_NONEG))
 			optbug(opts, "OPTION_SET_INT 0 should not be negatable");
 		switch (opts->type) {
-		case OPTION_COUNTUP:
+		case OPTION_SET_INT:
 		case OPTION_BIT:
 		case OPTION_NEGBIT:
-		case OPTION_SET_INT:
+		case OPTION_BITOP:
+		case OPTION_COUNTUP:
+			if (!signed_int_fits(opts->defval, opts->precision))
+				optbug(opts, "has invalid defval");
+			/* fallthru */
 		case OPTION_NUMBER:
 			if ((opts->flags & PARSE_OPT_OPTARG) ||
 			    !(opts->flags & PARSE_OPT_NOARG))
diff --git a/parse-options.h b/parse-options.h
index 91c3e3c29b3dda..312045604d98d1 100644
--- a/parse-options.h
+++ b/parse-options.h
@@ -172,6 +172,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG|(f), \
 	.callback = NULL, \
@@ -182,6 +183,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG|(f), \
 }
@@ -190,6 +192,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | (f), \
 	.defval = (i), \
@@ -238,6 +241,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG|PARSE_OPT_NONEG, \
 	.defval = (set), \
@@ -248,6 +252,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG, \
 	.defval = (b), \
@@ -260,6 +265,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_HIDDEN, \
 	.defval = 1, \
@@ -269,6 +275,7 @@ struct option {
 	.short_name = (s), \
 	.long_name = (l), \
 	.value = (v), \
+	.precision = sizeof(*v), \
 	.help = (h), \
 	.flags = PARSE_OPT_CMDMODE|PARSE_OPT_NOARG|PARSE_OPT_NONEG | (f), \
 	.defval = (i), \
diff --git a/refs.c b/refs.c
index 0efeb11311a1ab..73913b6627be95 100644
--- a/refs.c
+++ b/refs.c
@@ -439,9 +439,9 @@ static int for_each_filter_refs(const char *refname, const char *referent,
 struct warn_if_dangling_data {
 	struct ref_store *refs;
 	FILE *fp;
-	const char *refname;
 	const struct string_list *refnames;
-	const char *msg_fmt;
+	const char *indent;
+	int dry_run;
 };
 
 static int warn_if_dangling_symref(const char *refname, const char *referent UNUSED,
@@ -449,44 +449,34 @@ static int warn_if_dangling_symref(const char *refname, const char *referent UNU
 				   int flags, void *cb_data)
 {
 	struct warn_if_dangling_data *d = cb_data;
-	const char *resolves_to;
+	const char *resolves_to, *msg;
 
 	if (!(flags & REF_ISSYMREF))
 		return 0;
 
 	resolves_to = refs_resolve_ref_unsafe(d->refs, refname, 0, NULL, NULL);
 	if (!resolves_to
-	    || (d->refname
-		? strcmp(resolves_to, d->refname)
-		: !string_list_has_string(d->refnames, resolves_to))) {
+	    || !string_list_has_string(d->refnames, resolves_to)) {
 		return 0;
 	}
 
-	fprintf(d->fp, d->msg_fmt, refname);
-	fputc('\n', d->fp);
+	msg = d->dry_run
+		? _("%s%s will become dangling after %s is deleted\n")
+		: _("%s%s has become dangling after %s was deleted\n");
+	fprintf(d->fp, msg, d->indent, refname, resolves_to);
 	return 0;
 }
 
-void refs_warn_dangling_symref(struct ref_store *refs, FILE *fp,
-			       const char *msg_fmt, const char *refname)
-{
-	struct warn_if_dangling_data data = {
-		.refs = refs,
-		.fp = fp,
-		.refname = refname,
-		.msg_fmt = msg_fmt,
-	};
-	refs_for_each_rawref(refs, warn_if_dangling_symref, &data);
-}
-
 void refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(struct ref_store *refs, FILE *fp,
-				const char *msg_fmt, const struct string_list *refnames)
+				const char *indent, int dry_run,
+				const struct string_list *refnames)
 {
 	struct warn_if_dangling_data data = {
 		.refs = refs,
 		.fp = fp,
 		.refnames = refnames,
-		.msg_fmt = msg_fmt,
+		.indent = indent,
+		.dry_run = dry_run,
 	};
 	refs_for_each_rawref(refs, warn_if_dangling_symref, &data);
 }
diff --git a/refs.h b/refs.h
index 2d58af3d88257a..efa182c6a144ca 100644
--- a/refs.h
+++ b/refs.h
@@ -452,10 +452,9 @@ static inline const char *has_glob_specials(const char *pattern)
 	return strpbrk(pattern, "?*[");
 }
 
-void refs_warn_dangling_symref(struct ref_store *refs, FILE *fp,
-			       const char *msg_fmt, const char *refname);
 void refs_warn_dangling_symrefs(struct ref_store *refs, FILE *fp,
-				const char *msg_fmt, const struct string_list *refnames);
+				const char *indent, int dry_run,
+				const struct string_list *refnames);
 
 /*
  * Flags for controlling behaviour of pack_refs()
diff --git a/refs/files-backend.c b/refs/files-backend.c
index 92c3d2c318a054..89ae4517a97558 100644
--- a/refs/files-backend.c
+++ b/refs/files-backend.c
@@ -2760,6 +2760,8 @@ static void files_transaction_cleanup(struct files_ref_store *refs,
 
 		if (lock) {
 			unlock_ref(lock);
+			try_remove_empty_parents(refs, update->refname,
+						 REMOVE_EMPTY_PARENTS_REF);
 			update->backend_data = NULL;
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/t/helper/test-parse-options.c b/t/helper/test-parse-options.c
index f2663dd0c07279..68579d83f3939e 100644
--- a/t/helper/test-parse-options.c
+++ b/t/helper/test-parse-options.c
@@ -131,6 +131,7 @@ int cmd__parse_options(int argc, const char **argv)
 			.short_name = 'B',
 			.long_name = "no-fear",
 			.value = &boolean,
+			.precision = sizeof(boolean),
 			.help = "be brave",
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 			.defval = 1,
@@ -148,9 +149,16 @@ int cmd__parse_options(int argc, const char **argv)
 		OPT_SET_INT(0, "set23", &integer, "set integer to 23", 23),
 		OPT_CMDMODE(0, "mode1", &integer, "set integer to 1 (cmdmode option)", 1),
 		OPT_CMDMODE(0, "mode2", &integer, "set integer to 2 (cmdmode option)", 2),
-		OPT_CALLBACK_F(0, "mode34", &integer, "(3|4)",
-			"set integer to 3 or 4 (cmdmode option)",
-			PARSE_OPT_CMDMODE, mode34_callback),
+		{
+			.type = OPTION_CALLBACK,
+			.long_name = "mode34",
+			.value = &integer,
+			.precision = sizeof(integer),
+			.argh = "(3|4)",
+			.help = "set integer to 3 or 4 (cmdmode option)",
+			.flags = PARSE_OPT_CMDMODE,
+			.callback = mode34_callback,
+		},
 		OPT_CALLBACK('L', "length", &integer, "str",
 			"get length of <str>", length_callback),
 		OPT_FILENAME('F', "file", &file, "set file to <file>"),
@@ -170,6 +178,7 @@ int cmd__parse_options(int argc, const char **argv)
 			.type = OPTION_COUNTUP,
 			.short_name = '+',
 			.value = &boolean,
+			.precision = sizeof(boolean),
 			.help = "same as -b",
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG | PARSE_OPT_NODASH,
 		},
@@ -177,6 +186,7 @@ int cmd__parse_options(int argc, const char **argv)
 			.type = OPTION_COUNTUP,
 			.long_name = "ambiguous",
 			.value = &ambiguous,
+			.precision = sizeof(ambiguous),
 			.help = "positive ambiguity",
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 		},
@@ -184,6 +194,7 @@ int cmd__parse_options(int argc, const char **argv)
 			.type = OPTION_COUNTUP,
 			.long_name = "no-ambiguous",
 			.value = &ambiguous,
+			.precision = sizeof(ambiguous),
 			.help = "negative ambiguity",
 			.flags = PARSE_OPT_NOARG | PARSE_OPT_NONEG,
 		},
diff --git a/t/t1006-cat-file.sh b/t/t1006-cat-file.sh
index f123ef1e360aca..1f61b666a7d382 100755
--- a/t/t1006-cat-file.sh
+++ b/t/t1006-cat-file.sh
@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ $content"
     # FIXME: %(rest) is incompatible with object names that include whitespace,
     # e.g. HEAD:path/to/a/file with spaces. Use the resolved OID as input to
     # test this instead of the raw object name.
-    if echo "$object_name" | grep " "; then
+    if echo "$object_name" | grep -q " "; then
 	test_rest=test_expect_failure
     else
 	test_rest=test_expect_success
diff --git a/t/t1400-update-ref.sh b/t/t1400-update-ref.sh
index 7359af02a2aaeb..96648a6e5dfd89 100755
--- a/t/t1400-update-ref.sh
+++ b/t/t1400-update-ref.sh
@@ -2349,4 +2349,23 @@ test_expect_success 'update-ref should also create reflog for HEAD' '
 	test_cmp expect actual
 '
 
+test_expect_success REFFILES 'empty directories are pruned when aborting a transaction' '
+	test_path_is_missing .git/refs/heads/nested &&
+	git update-ref --stdin <<-EOF &&
+	create refs/heads/nested/something HEAD
+	prepare
+	abort
+	EOF
+	test_path_is_missing .git/refs/heads/nested
+'
+
+test_expect_success REFFILES 'empty directories are pruned when not committing' '
+	test_path_is_missing .git/refs/heads/nested &&
+	git update-ref --stdin <<-EOF &&
+	create refs/heads/nested/something HEAD
+	prepare
+	EOF
+	test_path_is_missing .git/refs/heads/nested
+'
+
 test_done