workflows

Local Development with Git

Introduction

This guide is designed to help you practice and understand the various commands and practices involved in version control using Git.

Git Basics

Initializing a New Repository

To start using Git in your project, initialize a new Git repository with the following command:

git init

Staging Changes

Use the Git CLI to stage changes before committing them:

git add <path>

Checking Staged Changes

See what changes are staged using:

git status

Committing Changes

Commit your changes with a descriptive message:

git commit -m "<message>"

Viewing Repository History

Explore your repository’s history with:

git log

Branching

Create and manage branches with Git:

• Create a new branch: git branch <branch-name>
• Check out a branch: git checkout <branch-name>
• Create and check out a new branch: git checkout -b <branch-name>

Merging Changes

Merge changes from one branch to another:

git merge <branch-name>

Updating Your Branch

Keep your branch up-to-date with the main branch:

# Switch to the main branch
git checkout main

# Pull changes from the remote repository
git pull

# Switch back to your branch
git checkout <branch-name>

# Merge changes from main to your branch
git merge main

Returning to a Previous Version

Go back to a previous version of your project using:

# View commit history
git log

# Checkout a specific commit
git checkout <commit-hash>

Stashing Changes

Temporarily save and retrieve uncommitted changes with:

# Stash changes
git stash

# Retrieve stashed changes
git stash pop

Remote Repositories

Manage remote repositories with Git:

# Display existing remote URLs
git remote -v

# Add a new remote repository URL
git remote add <shortname> <remote-url>

# Update a remote repository URL
git remote set-url <existing-shortname> <new-remote-url>

# Rename a remote repository URL
git remote rename <old-shortname> <new-shortname>

# Remove a remote repository URL
git remote rm <existing-shortname>

.gitignore

Use a .gitignore file to specify files you don’t want included in your Git history.

Visual Studio Code Integration

Enhance your Git experience in VSCode:

• Utilize the Git Graph extension to visualize your repo’s commit history.
• Leverage the Git Lens extension to investigate your repository’s commit history.
• Understand how the file tree in VSCode highlights files with uncommitted changes.

Best Practices

Atomic Commits

Save your development progress using small commits with clear and helpful messages.

Feature Branches

Organize your development process by creating feature branches. Each branch can correspond to a specific part of your project, and changes can be merged into the main branch when completed.

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