diff --git a/AUTHORS b/AUTHORS
index f7d1e6638..aded955fc 100644
--- a/AUTHORS
+++ b/AUTHORS
@@ -19,5 +19,6 @@ Authors are (ordered by first commit date):
 - Emre Berge Ergenekon
 - Eric Holmes
 - Vedang Manerikar
+- Myke Hines
 
 Portions derived from other open source works are clearly marked.
diff --git a/README.mdown b/README.mdown
index c7238e6f0..b720b125e 100644
--- a/README.mdown
+++ b/README.mdown
@@ -1,3 +1,34 @@
+> [!IMPORTANT]
+>
+> # ⚠️ git-flow has moved to git-flow-next!
+>
+> **This repository is no longer maintained.** The wonderful team at [Tower](https://www.git-tower.com/) has created [**git-flow-next**](https://git-flow.sh) — a modern, fully customizable evolution of git-flow, built on a generic branch dependency model. It’s fully backward compatible with git-flow, open source, and actively maintained.
+>
+> ### Get started with git-flow-next:
+>
+> - **Website:** https://git-flow.sh
+> - **GitHub:** https://github.com/gittower/git-flow-next
+> - **Evolution Story:** Read about the journey from git-flow → git-flow-avh → git-flow-next in [their blog post](https://git-flow.sh/blog)
+>
+> ### Why git-flow-next?
+>
+> git-flow-next builds upon the foundation laid by the original git-flow, offering:
+>
+> - Full customization of branch names and workflow
+> - Modern implementation with active maintenance
+> - Backward compatibility with existing git-flow workflows
+> - Upcoming features like stacked branches and topic branch syncing
+>
+> ### Thank you ❤️
+>
+> To everyone who has used, contributed to, and supported git-flow over the past 15+ years — thank you! Your feedback, contributions, and adoption made git-flow one of the most widely-used Git workflow tools. Special thanks to Peter van der Does for maintaining git-flow-avh, and to the folks at Tower for carrying the torch forward with git-flow-next.
+
+---
+
+<small>(Below, you’ll find the original documentation for historical reference.)</small>
+
+---
+
 git-flow
 ========
 
@@ -40,37 +71,6 @@ See the [FAQ](http://github.com/nvie/gitflow/wiki/FAQ) section of the project
 Wiki.
 
 
-Please help out
----------------
-This project is still under development. Feedback and suggestions are very
-welcome and I encourage you to use the [Issues
-list](http://github.com/nvie/gitflow/issues) on Github to provide that
-feedback.
-
-Feel free to fork this repo and to commit your additions. For a list of all
-contributors, please see the [AUTHORS](AUTHORS) file.
-
-Any questions, tips, or general discussion can be posted to our Google group:
-[http://groups.google.com/group/gitflow-users](http://groups.google.com/group/gitflow-users)
-
-Contributing
-------------
-Fork the repository.  Then, run:
-
-    git clone --recursive git@github.com:<username>/gitflow.git
-    cd gitflow
-    git branch master origin/master
-    git flow init -d
-    git flow feature start <your feature>
-
-Then, do work and commit your changes.  **Hint**: ``export PATH=`pwd`:$PATH``
-from within the gitflow directory makes sure you're using the version of
-gitflow you're currently developing.
-
-    git flow feature publish <your feature>
-
-When done, open a pull request to your feature branch.
-
 License terms
 -------------
 git-flow is published under the liberal terms of the BSD License, see the
@@ -131,18 +131,3 @@ The ``-d`` flag will accept all defaults.
   		git flow support start <release> <base>
   
   For support branches, the `<base>` arg must be a commit on `master`.
-
-
-Showing your appreciation
-=========================
-A few people already requested it, so now it's here: a Flattr button.
-
-Of course, the best way to show your appreciation for the original
-[blog post](http://nvie.com/git-model) or the git-flow tool itself remains
-contributing to the community.  If you'd like to show your appreciation in
-another way, however, consider Flattr'ing me:
-
-[![Flattr this][2]][1]
-
-[1]: http://flattr.com/thing/53771/git-flow
-[2]: http://api.flattr.com/button/button-static-50x60.png
diff --git a/contrib/msysgit-install.cmd b/contrib/msysgit-install.cmd
index 5f005bfa7..994235c79 100644
--- a/contrib/msysgit-install.cmd
+++ b/contrib/msysgit-install.cmd
@@ -63,6 +63,7 @@ goto :End
 :ChkGetopt
 :: %1 is getopt.exe
 if exist "%GIT_HOME%\bin\%1" goto :EOF
+if exist "%USERPROFILE%\bin\%1" goto :EOF
 if exist "%~f$PATH:1" goto :EOF
 echo %GIT_HOME%\bin\%1 not found.>&2
 echo You have to install this file manually. See the GitFlow README.
diff --git a/git-flow b/git-flow
index 93e9f0f73..fd16d5168 100755
--- a/git-flow
+++ b/git-flow
@@ -80,6 +80,11 @@ main() {
 	# use the shFlags project to parse the command line arguments
 	. "$GITFLOW_DIR/gitflow-shFlags"
 	FLAGS_PARENT="git flow"
+
+  # allow user to request git action logging
+  DEFINE_boolean show_commands false 'show actions taken (git commands)' g
+
+  # do actual parsing
 	FLAGS "$@" || exit $?
 	eval set -- "${FLAGS_ARGV}"
 
@@ -109,7 +114,10 @@ main() {
 	fi
 
 	# run the specified action
-	cmd_$SUBACTION "$@"
+  if [ $SUBACTION != "help" ] && [ $SUBCOMMAND != "init" ] ; then
+    init
+  fi
+  cmd_$SUBACTION "$@"
 }
 
 main "$@"
diff --git a/git-flow-feature b/git-flow-feature
index e97d67825..55198ad82 100644
--- a/git-flow-feature
+++ b/git-flow-feature
@@ -36,15 +36,17 @@
 # policies, either expressed or implied, of Vincent Driessen.
 #
 
-require_git_repo
-require_gitflow_initialized
-gitflow_load_settings
-PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.feature)
+init() {
+  require_git_repo
+  require_gitflow_initialized
+  gitflow_load_settings
+  PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.feature)
+}
 
 usage() {
 	echo "usage: git flow feature [list] [-v]"
 	echo "       git flow feature start [-F] <name> [<base>]"
-	echo "       git flow feature finish [-rFkD] [<name|nameprefix>]"
+	echo "       git flow feature finish [-rFkDS] [<name|nameprefix>]"
 	echo "       git flow feature publish <name>"
 	echo "       git flow feature track <name>"
 	echo "       git flow feature diff [<name|nameprefix>]"
@@ -202,7 +204,7 @@ cmd_start() {
 
 	# update the local repo with remote changes, if asked
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 	fi
 
 	# if the origin branch counterpart exists, assert that the local branch
@@ -212,7 +214,7 @@ cmd_start() {
 	fi
 
 	# create branch
-	if ! git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"; then
+	if ! git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"; then
 		die "Could not create feature branch '$BRANCH'"
 	fi
 
@@ -232,6 +234,7 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	DEFINE_boolean rebase false "rebase instead of merge" r
 	DEFINE_boolean keep false "keep branch after performing finish" k
 	DEFINE_boolean force_delete false "force delete feature branch after finish" D
+	DEFINE_boolean squash false "squash feature during merge" S
 	parse_args "$@"
 	expand_nameprefix_arg_or_current
 
@@ -284,8 +287,8 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	# update local repo with remote changes first, if asked
 	if has "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH" $(git_remote_branches); then
 		if flag fetch; then
-			git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH"
-			git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
+			git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH"
+			git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 		fi
 	fi
 
@@ -308,11 +311,17 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	fi
 
 	# merge into BASE
-	git checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 	if [ "$(git rev-list -n2 "$DEVELOP_BRANCH..$BRANCH" | wc -l)" -eq 1 ]; then
-		git merge --ff "$BRANCH"
+		git_do merge --ff "$BRANCH"
 	else
-		git merge --no-ff "$BRANCH"
+		if noflag squash; then
+		    git_do merge --no-ff "$BRANCH"
+		else
+			git_do merge --squash "$BRANCH"
+			git_do commit
+			git_do merge "$BRANCH"
+		fi
 	fi
 
 	if [ $? -ne 0 ]; then
@@ -342,15 +351,15 @@ helper_finish_cleanup() {
 
 	# delete branch
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git push "$ORIGIN" ":refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" ":refs/heads/$BRANCH"
 	fi
 	
 	
 	if noflag keep; then
 		if flag force_delete; then
-			git branch -D "$BRANCH"
+			git_do branch -D "$BRANCH"
 		else
-			git branch -d "$BRANCH"
+			git_do branch -d "$BRANCH"
 		fi
 	fi
 
@@ -374,17 +383,17 @@ cmd_publish() {
 	# sanity checks
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 	require_branch_absent "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	# create remote branch
-	git push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 
 	# configure remote tracking
-	git config "branch.$BRANCH.remote" "$ORIGIN"
-	git config "branch.$BRANCH.merge" "refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git checkout "$BRANCH"
+	git_do config "branch.$BRANCH.remote" "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do config "branch.$BRANCH.merge" "refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout "$BRANCH"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -401,11 +410,11 @@ cmd_track() {
 	# sanity checks
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 	require_branch "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	# create tracking branch
-	git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -436,7 +445,7 @@ cmd_checkout() {
 
 	if [ "$NAME" != "" ]; then
 		expand_nameprefix_arg
-		git checkout "$BRANCH"
+		git_do checkout "$BRANCH"
 	else
 		die "Name a feature branch explicitly."
 	fi
@@ -455,12 +464,12 @@ cmd_rebase() {
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
 
-	git checkout -q "$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout -q "$BRANCH"
 	local OPTS=
 	if flag interactive; then
 		OPTS="$OPTS -i"
 	fi
-	git rebase $OPTS "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
+	git_do rebase $OPTS "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 }
 
 avoid_accidental_cross_branch_action() {
@@ -502,20 +511,20 @@ cmd_pull() {
 		# we already have a local branch called like this, so simply pull the
 		# remote changes in
 		if flag rebase; then
-			if ! git pull --rebase -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH"; then
+			if ! git_do pull --rebase -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH"; then
 				warn "Pull was aborted. There might be conflicts during rebase or '$REMOTE' might be inaccessible."
 				exit 1
 			fi
 		else
-			it pull -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH" || die "Failed to pull from remote '$REMOTE'."
+			git_do pull -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH" || die "Failed to pull from remote '$REMOTE'."
 		fi
 
 		echo "Pulled $REMOTE's changes into $BRANCH."
 	else
 		# setup the local branch clone for the first time
-		git fetch -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH" || die "Fetch failed."     # stores in FETCH_HEAD
-		git branch --no-track "$BRANCH" FETCH_HEAD || die "Branch failed."
-		git checkout -q "$BRANCH" || die "Checking out new local branch failed."
+		git_do fetch -q "$REMOTE" "$BRANCH" || die "Fetch failed."     # stores in FETCH_HEAD
+		git_do branch --no-track "$BRANCH" FETCH_HEAD || die "Branch failed."
+		git_do checkout -q "$BRANCH" || die "Checking out new local branch failed."
 		echo "Created local branch $BRANCH based on $REMOTE's $BRANCH."
 	fi
 }
diff --git a/git-flow-hotfix b/git-flow-hotfix
index b355f3019..ba485f6fe 100644
--- a/git-flow-hotfix
+++ b/git-flow-hotfix
@@ -36,17 +36,20 @@
 # policies, either expressed or implied, of Vincent Driessen.
 #
 
-require_git_repo
-require_gitflow_initialized
-gitflow_load_settings
-VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
-PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.hotfix)
+init() {
+  require_git_repo
+  require_gitflow_initialized
+  gitflow_load_settings
+  VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
+  PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.hotfix)
+}
 
 usage() {
 	echo "usage: git flow hotfix [list] [-v]"
 	echo "       git flow hotfix start [-F] <version> [<base>]"
 	echo "       git flow hotfix finish [-Fsumpk] <version>"
 	echo "       git flow hotfix publish <version>"
+	echo "       git flow hotfix track <version>"
 }
 
 cmd_default() {
@@ -166,14 +169,14 @@ cmd_start() {
 	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
 	require_tag_absent "$VERSION_PREFIX$VERSION"
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH"
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH"
 	fi
 	if has "$ORIGIN/$MASTER_BRANCH" $(git_remote_branches); then
 		require_branches_equal "$MASTER_BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$MASTER_BRANCH"
 	fi
 
 	# create branch
-	git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -196,17 +199,17 @@ cmd_publish() {
 	# sanity checks
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 	require_branch_absent "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	# create remote branch
-	git push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 
 	# configure remote tracking
 	git config "branch.$BRANCH.remote" "$ORIGIN"
 	git config "branch.$BRANCH.merge" "refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git checkout "$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout "$BRANCH"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -216,11 +219,32 @@ cmd_publish() {
 	echo
 }
 
+cmd_track() {
+	parse_args "$@"
+	require_version_arg
+
+	# sanity checks
+	require_clean_working_tree
+	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	require_branch "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
+
+	# create tracking branch
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
+
+	echo
+	echo "Summary of actions:"
+	echo "- A new remote tracking branch '$BRANCH' was created"
+	echo "- You are now on branch '$BRANCH'"
+	echo
+}
+
 cmd_finish() {
 	DEFINE_boolean fetch false "fetch from $ORIGIN before performing finish" F
 	DEFINE_boolean sign false "sign the release tag cryptographically" s
 	DEFINE_string signingkey "" "use the given GPG-key for the digital signature (implies -s)" u
 	DEFINE_string message "" "use the given tag message" m
+	DEFINE_string messagefile "" "use the contents of the given file as tag message" f
 	DEFINE_boolean push false "push to $ORIGIN after performing finish" p
 	DEFINE_boolean keep false "keep branch after performing finish" k
 	DEFINE_boolean notag false "don't tag this release" n
@@ -236,9 +260,9 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not fetch $MASTER_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not fetch $DEVELOP_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
 	fi
 	if has "$ORIGIN/$MASTER_BRANCH" $(git_remote_branches); then
@@ -252,9 +276,9 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	# in case a previous attempt to finish this release branch has failed,
 	# but the merge into master was successful, we skip it now
 	if ! git_is_branch_merged_into "$BRANCH" "$MASTER_BRANCH"; then
-		git checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not check out $MASTER_BRANCH."
-		git merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
+		git_do merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
 		  die "There were merge conflicts."
 		  # TODO: What do we do now?
 	fi
@@ -269,7 +293,8 @@ cmd_finish() {
 			flag sign && opts="$opts -s"
 			[ "$FLAGS_signingkey" != "" ] && opts="$opts -u '$FLAGS_signingkey'"
 			[ "$FLAGS_message" != "" ] && opts="$opts -m '$FLAGS_message'"
-			eval git tag $opts "$VERSION_PREFIX$VERSION" || \
+			[ "$FLAGS_messagefile" != "" ] && opts="$opts -F '$FLAGS_messagefile'"
+			eval git_do tag $opts "$VERSION_PREFIX$VERSION" "$BRANCH" || \
 			die "Tagging failed. Please run finish again to retry."
 		fi
 	fi
@@ -278,28 +303,28 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	# in case a previous attempt to finish this release branch has failed,
 	# but the merge into develop was successful, we skip it now
 	if ! git_is_branch_merged_into "$BRANCH" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"; then
-		git checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not check out $DEVELOP_BRANCH."
 
 		# TODO: Actually, accounting for 'git describe' pays, so we should
 		# ideally git merge --no-ff $tagname here, instead!
-		git merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
+		git_do merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
 		  die "There were merge conflicts."
 		  # TODO: What do we do now?
 	fi
 
 	# delete branch
 	if noflag keep; then
-		git branch -d "$BRANCH"
+		git_do branch -d "$BRANCH"
 	fi
 
 	if flag push; then
-		git push "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 			die "Could not push to $DEVELOP_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
-		git push "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 			die "Could not push to $MASTER_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
 		if noflag notag; then
-			git push --tags "$ORIGIN" || \
+			git_do push --tags "$ORIGIN" || \
 				die "Could not push tags to $ORIGIN."
 		fi
 	fi
diff --git a/git-flow-init b/git-flow-init
index 4afa1c25e..5b4e7e807 100644
--- a/git-flow-init
+++ b/git-flow-init
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 	parse_args "$@"
 	
 	if ! git rev-parse --git-dir >/dev/null 2>&1; then
-		git init
+		git_do init
 	else
 		# assure that we are not working in a repo with local changes
 		git_repo_is_headless || require_clean_working_tree
@@ -121,14 +121,14 @@ cmd_default() {
 			# name exists, checkout that branch and use it for master
 			if ! git_local_branch_exists "$master_branch" && \
 				git_remote_branch_exists "origin/$master_branch"; then
-				git branch "$master_branch" "origin/$master_branch" >/dev/null 2>&1
+				git_do branch "$master_branch" "origin/$master_branch" >/dev/null 2>&1
 			elif ! git_local_branch_exists "$master_branch"; then
 				die "Local branch '$master_branch' does not exist."
 			fi
 		fi
 
 		# store the name of the master branch
-		git config gitflow.branch.master "$master_branch"
+		git_do config gitflow.branch.master "$master_branch"
 	fi
 
 	# add a develop branch if no such branch exists yet
@@ -153,11 +153,17 @@ cmd_default() {
 			default_suggestion=
 			for guess in $(git config --get gitflow.branch.develop) \
 			             'develop' 'int' 'integration' 'master'; do
-				if git_local_branch_exists "$guess"; then
+				if git_local_branch_exists "$guess" && [ "$guess" != "$master_branch" ]; then
 					default_suggestion="$guess"
 					break
 				fi
 			done
+			
+			if [ -z $default_suggestion ]; then
+				should_check_existence=NO
+				default_suggestion=$(git config --get gitflow.branch.develop || echo develop)
+			fi
+			
 		fi
 
 		printf "Branch name for \"next release\" development: [$default_suggestion] "
@@ -179,7 +185,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 		fi
 
 		# store the name of the develop branch
-		git config gitflow.branch.develop "$develop_branch"
+		git_do config gitflow.branch.develop "$develop_branch"
 	fi
 
 	# Creation of HEAD
@@ -188,8 +194,8 @@ cmd_default() {
 	# it to be able to create new branches.
 	local created_gitflow_branch=0
 	if ! git rev-parse --quiet --verify HEAD >/dev/null 2>&1; then
-		git symbolic-ref HEAD "refs/heads/$master_branch"
-		git commit --allow-empty --quiet -m "Initial commit"
+		git_do symbolic-ref HEAD "refs/heads/$master_branch"
+		git_do commit --allow-empty --quiet -m "Initial commit"
 		created_gitflow_branch=1
 	fi
 
@@ -207,9 +213,9 @@ cmd_default() {
 	# the develop branch now in that case (we base it on master, of course)
 	if ! git_local_branch_exists "$develop_branch"; then
 		if git_remote_branch_exists "origin/$develop_branch"; then
-			git branch "$develop_branch" "origin/$develop_branch" >/dev/null 2>&1
+			git_do branch "$develop_branch" "origin/$develop_branch" >/dev/null 2>&1
 		else
-			git branch --no-track "$develop_branch" "$master_branch"
+			git_do branch --no-track "$develop_branch" "$master_branch"
 		fi
 		created_gitflow_branch=1
 	fi
@@ -219,7 +225,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 
 	# switch to develop branch if its newly created
 	if [ $created_gitflow_branch -eq 1 ]; then
-		git checkout -q "$develop_branch"
+		git_do checkout -q "$develop_branch"
 	fi
 
 	# finally, ask the user for naming conventions (branch and tag prefixes)
@@ -245,7 +251,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 			printf "\n"
 		fi
 		[ "$answer" = "-" ] && prefix= || prefix=${answer:-$default_suggestion}
-		git config gitflow.prefix.feature "$prefix"
+		git_do config gitflow.prefix.feature "$prefix"
 	fi
 
 	# Release branches
@@ -258,7 +264,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 			printf "\n"
 		fi
 		[ "$answer" = "-" ] && prefix= || prefix=${answer:-$default_suggestion}
-		git config gitflow.prefix.release "$prefix"
+		git_do config gitflow.prefix.release "$prefix"
 	fi
 
 
@@ -272,7 +278,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 			printf "\n"
 		fi
 		[ "$answer" = "-" ] && prefix= || prefix=${answer:-$default_suggestion}
-		git config gitflow.prefix.hotfix "$prefix"
+		git_do config gitflow.prefix.hotfix "$prefix"
 	fi
 
 
@@ -286,7 +292,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 			printf "\n"
 		fi
 		[ "$answer" = "-" ] && prefix= || prefix=${answer:-$default_suggestion}
-		git config gitflow.prefix.support "$prefix"
+		git_do config gitflow.prefix.support "$prefix"
 	fi
 
 
@@ -300,7 +306,7 @@ cmd_default() {
 			printf "\n"
 		fi
 		[ "$answer" = "-" ] && prefix= || prefix=${answer:-$default_suggestion}
-		git config gitflow.prefix.versiontag "$prefix"
+		git_do config gitflow.prefix.versiontag "$prefix"
 	fi
 
 
diff --git a/git-flow-release b/git-flow-release
index bb39d5276..cb95bd486 100644
--- a/git-flow-release
+++ b/git-flow-release
@@ -36,16 +36,18 @@
 # policies, either expressed or implied, of Vincent Driessen.
 #
 
-require_git_repo
-require_gitflow_initialized
-gitflow_load_settings
-VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
-PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.release)
+init() {
+  require_git_repo
+  require_gitflow_initialized
+  gitflow_load_settings
+  VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
+  PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.release)
+}
 
 usage() {
 	echo "usage: git flow release [list] [-v]"
 	echo "       git flow release start [-F] <version> [<base>]"
-	echo "       git flow release finish [-Fsumpk] <version>"
+	echo "       git flow release finish [-FsumpkS] <version>"
 	echo "       git flow release publish <name>"
 	echo "       git flow release track <name>"
 }
@@ -134,7 +136,7 @@ require_version_arg() {
 }
 
 require_base_is_on_develop() {
-	if ! git branch --no-color --contains "$BASE" 2>/dev/null \
+	if ! git_do branch --no-color --contains "$BASE" 2>/dev/null \
 			| sed 's/[* ] //g' \
 	  		| grep -q "^$DEVELOP_BRANCH\$"; then
 		die "fatal: Given base '$BASE' is not a valid commit on '$DEVELOP_BRANCH'."
@@ -162,14 +164,14 @@ cmd_start() {
 	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
 	require_tag_absent "$VERSION_PREFIX$VERSION"
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 	fi
 	if has "$ORIGIN/$DEVELOP_BRANCH" $(git_remote_branches); then
 		require_branches_equal "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$DEVELOP_BRANCH"
 	fi
 
 	# create branch
-	git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -190,9 +192,11 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	DEFINE_boolean sign false "sign the release tag cryptographically" s
 	DEFINE_string signingkey "" "use the given GPG-key for the digital signature (implies -s)" u
 	DEFINE_string message "" "use the given tag message" m
+	DEFINE_string messagefile "" "use the contents of the given file as a tag message" f
 	DEFINE_boolean push false "push to $ORIGIN after performing finish" p
 	DEFINE_boolean keep false "keep branch after performing finish" k
 	DEFINE_boolean notag false "don't tag this release" n
+	DEFINE_boolean squash false "squash release during merge" S
 
 	parse_args "$@"
 	require_version_arg
@@ -206,9 +210,9 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not fetch $MASTER_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not fetch $DEVELOP_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
 	fi
 	if has "$ORIGIN/$MASTER_BRANCH" $(git_remote_branches); then
@@ -222,11 +226,17 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	# in case a previous attempt to finish this release branch has failed,
 	# but the merge into master was successful, we skip it now
 	if ! git_is_branch_merged_into "$BRANCH" "$MASTER_BRANCH"; then
-		git checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not check out $MASTER_BRANCH."
-		git merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
-		  die "There were merge conflicts."
-		  # TODO: What do we do now?
+		if noflag squash; then
+			git_do merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
+				die "There were merge conflicts."
+				# TODO: What do we do now?
+		else
+			git_do merge --squash "$BRANCH" || \
+				die "There were merge conflicts."
+			git_do commit
+		fi
 	fi
 
 	if noflag notag; then
@@ -239,7 +249,8 @@ cmd_finish() {
 			flag sign && opts="$opts -s"
 			[ "$FLAGS_signingkey" != "" ] && opts="$opts -u '$FLAGS_signingkey'"
 			[ "$FLAGS_message" != "" ] && opts="$opts -m '$FLAGS_message'"
-			eval git tag $opts "$tagname" || \
+			[ "$FLAGS_messagefile" != "" ] && opts="$opts -F '$FLAGS_messagefile'"
+			eval git_do tag $opts "$tagname" "$BRANCH" || \
 			die "Tagging failed. Please run finish again to retry."
 		fi
 	fi
@@ -248,34 +259,41 @@ cmd_finish() {
 	# in case a previous attempt to finish this release branch has failed,
 	# but the merge into develop was successful, we skip it now
 	if ! git_is_branch_merged_into "$BRANCH" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH"; then
-		git checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do checkout "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 		  die "Could not check out $DEVELOP_BRANCH."
 
 		# TODO: Actually, accounting for 'git describe' pays, so we should
 		# ideally git merge --no-ff $tagname here, instead!
-		git merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
-		  die "There were merge conflicts."
-		  # TODO: What do we do now?
+		if noflag squash; then
+			git_do merge --no-ff "$BRANCH" || \
+				die "There were merge conflicts."
+				# TODO: What do we do now?
+		else
+			git_do merge --squash "$BRANCH" || \
+				die "There were merge conflicts."
+				# TODO: What do we do now?
+			git_do commit
+		fi
 	fi
 
 	# delete branch
 	if noflag keep; then
 		if [ "$BRANCH" = "$(git_current_branch)" ]; then
-			git checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH"
+			git_do checkout "$MASTER_BRANCH"
 		fi
-		git branch -d "$BRANCH"
+		git_do branch -d "$BRANCH"
 	fi
 
 	if flag push; then
-		git push "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$DEVELOP_BRANCH" || \
 			die "Could not push to $DEVELOP_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
-		git push "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$MASTER_BRANCH" || \
 			die "Could not push to $MASTER_BRANCH from $ORIGIN."
 		if noflag notag; then
-			git push --tags "$ORIGIN" || \
+			git_do push --tags "$ORIGIN" || \
 			  die "Could not push tags to $ORIGIN."
 		fi
-		git push "$ORIGIN" :"$BRANCH" || \
+		git_do push "$ORIGIN" :"$BRANCH" || \
 			die "Could not delete the remote $BRANCH in $ORIGIN."
 	fi
 
@@ -306,17 +324,17 @@ cmd_publish() {
 	# sanity checks
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch "$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 	require_branch_absent "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	# create remote branch
-	git push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do push "$ORIGIN" "$BRANCH:refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 
 	# configure remote tracking
-	git config "branch.$BRANCH.remote" "$ORIGIN"
-	git config "branch.$BRANCH.merge" "refs/heads/$BRANCH"
-	git checkout "$BRANCH"
+	git_do config "branch.$BRANCH.remote" "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do config "branch.$BRANCH.merge" "refs/heads/$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout "$BRANCH"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
@@ -333,11 +351,11 @@ cmd_track() {
 	# sanity checks
 	require_clean_working_tree
 	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
-	git fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
+	git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN"
 	require_branch "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	# create tracking branch
-	git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$ORIGIN/$BRANCH"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
diff --git a/git-flow-support b/git-flow-support
index 605694dc9..cdbfc717c 100644
--- a/git-flow-support
+++ b/git-flow-support
@@ -36,11 +36,13 @@
 # policies, either expressed or implied, of Vincent Driessen.
 #
 
-require_git_repo
-require_gitflow_initialized
-gitflow_load_settings
-VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
-PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.support)
+init() {
+  require_git_repo
+  require_gitflow_initialized
+  gitflow_load_settings
+  VERSION_PREFIX=$(eval "echo `git config --get gitflow.prefix.versiontag`")
+  PREFIX=$(git config --get gitflow.prefix.support)
+}
 
 warn "note: The support subcommand is still very EXPERIMENTAL!"
 warn "note: DO NOT use it in a production situation."
@@ -167,12 +169,12 @@ cmd_start() {
 
 	# fetch remote changes
 	if flag fetch; then
-		git fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$BASE"
+		git_do fetch -q "$ORIGIN" "$BASE"
 	fi
 	require_branch_absent "$BRANCH"
 
 	# create branch
-	git checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
+	git_do checkout -b "$BRANCH" "$BASE"
 
 	echo
 	echo "Summary of actions:"
diff --git a/gitflow-common b/gitflow-common
index 4834cf102..332740533 100644
--- a/gitflow-common
+++ b/gitflow-common
@@ -70,6 +70,14 @@ noflag() { local FLAG; eval FLAG='$FLAGS_'$1; [ $FLAG -ne $FLAGS_TRUE ]; }
 # Git specific common functionality
 #
 
+git_do() {
+  # equivalent to git, used to indicate actions that make modifications
+  if flag show_commands; then
+    echo "git $@" >&2
+  fi
+  git "$@"
+}
+
 git_local_branches() { git branch --no-color | sed 's/^[* ] //'; }
 git_remote_branches() { git branch -r --no-color | sed 's/^[* ] //'; }
 git_all_branches() { ( git branch --no-color; git branch -r --no-color) | sed 's/^[* ] //'; }