Most developers are currently using GIT as their main repository, but even though we use it every day in our jobs, like myself, I still haven’t fully mastered the basic commands. I often need to revisit certain links to find the commands I need. Most of the blog posts and tutorials I come across are not very concise and tend to have lengthy explanations. In this post, I will collect and list all the basic GIT commands, which will serve as your code companion.
Basic GIT Command:
- Initialize a Repository: Initializes a new Git repository in the current directory.
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git init- Clone a Repository: Clones an existing repository from a URL to your local machine.
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git clone [repository URL]- Check Repository Status: Shows the current state of the working directory and staging area.
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git status- Track/Stage Files: Stages changes for the next commit (replace [file] with the filename or use . to add all files).
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git add [file]- Commit Changes: Commits staged changes with a message describing the change.
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git commit -m "Commit message"- View Commit History: Shows a list of previous commits.
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git log- View a Single Line Summary of Commit History: Condensed commit log with one line per commit.
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git log --oneline- Create a New Branch: Creates a new branch with the specified name.
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git branch [branch name]- Switch Branches: Switches to the specified branch.
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git checkout [branch name]- Merge Branches: Merges the specified branch into the current branch.
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git merge [branch name]- Pull Updates from Remote: Fetches and merges changes from the remote repository into the current branch.
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git pull- Push Changes to Remote: Pushes committed changes to the remote repository.
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git push- Delete a Branch: Deletes the specified branch locally.
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git branch -d [Branch Name]- Discard Changes in a File: Reverts the file to the last committed state.
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git checkout -- [file]- Stash Changes: Temporarily saves uncommitted changes and cleans the working directory.
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git stash- Apply Stashed Changes: Restores stashed changes and removes them from the stash list.
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git stash pop- Show Differences Between Commits/Branches: Shows changes between commits, branches, or files.
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git diff [source branch] [target branch]- Set Remote Repository: Adds a remote repository to push to or pull from.
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git remote add origin [repository URL]- Rename Branch: Renames the current branch.
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git branch -m [new branch name]- Remove a Remote Repository: Removes a reference to a remote repository.
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git remote remove [remote name]These commands cover the essentials for everyday GIT usage. They should help you with most of your version control needs.
