> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.sonarsource.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.sonarsource.com/sonarqube-cloud/managing-your-projects/project-analysis/long-lived-branch-pattern.md).
# Long-lived branch pattern
This page explains how to define a long-lived branch name pattern in SonarQube Cloud, at the project level.
SonarQube Cloud considers a branch to be long-lived if:
* It is the main branch, or
* Its name matches the long-lived branch name pattern.
All other branches are considered short-lived.
{% hint style="warning" %}
The type of a branch (long-lived or short-lived) is set during its first analysis and cannot be changed afterward.
{% endhint %}
If your project belongs to an organization, its long-lived branch name pattern is by default the pattern set at the organization level. You can change it.
The name pattern is based on a regular expression. For example, the regular expression: *`(branch|release)-.*`* matches any name that begins with the string `branch-` or `release-`.
Changing the long-lived branch pattern of your project
1. Retrieve your project. See [Retrieving projects](/sonarqube-cloud/managing-your-projects/retrieving-projects.md) for more details.
2. Go to **Branches**.
3. In the top-right corner, select the edit icon on the right of **Long-lived branches pattern**. The **Detection of long-lived branches** dialog opens as illustrated below.
4. Enter your regular expression.
5. Select **Save**.
Resetting the long-lived branch pattern to default
If your project belongs to an Enterprise plan organization, you may want to reset the long-lived branch to the default set at the organization level. To do so:
1. Retrieve your project. See [Retrieving projects](/sonarqube-cloud/managing-your-projects/retrieving-projects.md) for more details.
2. Go to **Branches**.
3. In the top-right corner, select the edit icon on the right of **Long-lived branches pattern**. The **Detection of long-lived branches** dialog opens.
4. Select **Reset to default**.
---
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