Essential Git Commands and Its Examples
1. Git init
Initialize a new Git repository in the current directory
The first command you'll use when starting a new Git repository is git init. This command initializes an empty Git repository in the current directory.
Before you can start tracking changes in your project, you need to initiate a Git repository. The git init command creates a hidden .git directory in your project's root folder, setting up the repository's structure.
2. Git commit
Record staged changes in the repository's history
The git commit command records the changes made to the repository. You can add a message to describe the changes you've made.
Commits are at the heart of version control. They represent a snapshot of your project at a specific point in time. The git commit command allows you to save your changes with a descriptive message, making it easy to track progress.
git commit -m "Added login functionality"
3. Git branch
List, create, or delete branches
The git branch command lists all the branches in your repository. You can create new branches, delete branches, and switch between branches.
Branches in Git enable parallel development, allowing multiple features or bug fixes to be worked on simultaneously. You can create, list, or delete branches using the git branch command.
git branch
git branch new-feature
git branch -d obsolete-branch
4. Git checkout
Switch between branches or commits
The git checkout command allows you to switch between branches or to a specific commit. You can also use it to create a new branch from an existing one.
git checkout branch-name
git checkout commit-hash
5. Git merge
Merge changes from one branch into another
The git merge command allows you to merge changes from one branch into another. It's useful when working on a team, as it allows you to combine your changes with those of your colleagues.
When a feature or bug fix is complete in a branch, you can integrate those changes into another branch, typically the main branch, using the git merge command.
6. Git pull
Fetch changes from a remote repository and merges them into the current branch
The git pull command fetches changes from a remote repository and merges them with your local repository.
Collaborating with others often involves fetching their changes from a remote repository and incorporating them into your local branch. The git pull command simplifies this process.
git pull origin main
7. Git remote
Manage remote repositories
The git remote command allows you to manage the remote repositories associated with your local repository. You can add new remote repositories, remove them, or rename them.
With Git, you can collaborate with developers worldwide by connecting your local repository to remote repositories. The git remote command helps you manage these remote connections.
git remote add origin https://github.com/user/repo.git
8. Git clone
Create a local copy of a remote repository
The git clone command creates a copy of a remote repository on your local machine. You can use it to start working on a project that has already been created.
git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git
9. git status
To see what's changed since the last commit. It shows all the files that have been added and modified and are ready to be committed and files that are untracked. //Check repo status
git status
10. git add Readme.txt
To add a file Readme.txt to the staging area to track its changes.
// Add Readme.txt file to the staging area
git add Readme.txt
11. git commit -m “ ”
To commit our changes(taking a snapshot) and provide a message to remember for future reference.
// Commit staged changes with a descriptive
git commit -m “Created a Readme.txt”
12. git log
To check the history of commits for our reference.
// View commit history with details like author, date, and message
git log
13. git add --all
To add all files of the current directory to the staging area.
// Stage all files (tracked and untracked) in the current directory
git add --all
14. git add *.txt
To add all text files of the current directory to the staging area.
// Stage all .txt files in the current directory
git add *.txt
15. git add docs/*.txt
To add all text files of a particular directory(docs) to the staging area.
// Stage all .txt files inside the 'docs' folder
git add docs/*.txt
16. git add docs/
To add all files in a particular directory(docs) to the staging area. // Stage all files inside the 'docs' directory
git add docs/
17. git add “*.txt”
To add text files of the entire project to the staging area. // Stage all .txt files across the entire project (quotes handle globbing)
git add “*.txt”
18. git diff
To figure out what changes you made since the last commit.
// Show file changes not yet staged for commit
git diff
19. git reset head license
To undo the staging of the file that was added in the staging area.
// Unstage the 'license' file that was previously added
git reset head license
20. git checkout –license
To Blow away all changes since the last commit of the file.
// Discard local changes to 'license' file (revert to last commit)
git checkout –license
21. git commit -a -m “ ”
To add any of our tracked files to the staging area and commit them by providing a message to remember. //Automatically stage tracked files and commit with a message
git commit -a -m “Readme.md”
22 git reset –soft HEAD^
To undo the last commit and bring the file to the staging area.
// Undo last commit, keep changes in staging area
git reset –soft HEAD^
23 git reset –hard HEAD^
To undo the last commit and remove the file from the staging area as well(In case we went horribly wrong).
git reset –hard HEAD^
24. git reset –hard HEAD^^
To undo the last 2 commits and all changes.
git reset –hard HEAD^^
25. git remote add origin
These commands make a bookmark which signifies that this particular remote refers to this URL. This remote will be used to pull any content from the directory and push our local content to the global server.
git remote add origin https://github.com/madaan123/MyAlgorithms
26. git remote add <address>
To add new remotes to our local repository for a particular git address.
git remote add
27. git remove rm
To remove a remote from our local repository.
git remove rm
28. git push -u origin master
To push all the contents of our local repository that belong to the master branch to the server(Global repository).
git push -u origin master
29. git clone https://github.com/madaan123/MyAlgorithms
To clone or make a local copy of the global repository in your system (git clone command downloads the repository and creates a remote named origin which can be checked by the command – git remote -v).
30. git branch Testing
To create a new branch named Testing.
git branch Testing
31.git branch
To see all the branches present and current branches that we are working on.
git branch
32. git checkout Testing
To switch to branch Testing from the master branch.
git checkout Testing
33. ls
To see directories and files in the current directory.
ls
34. ls -la
To see hidden directories and files within the current directory.
ls -la
35. git merge Testing
To merge the Testing branch with the master branch.
git merge Testing
36. git branch -d Testing
To delete the Testing branch.
git branch -d Testing
37. git checkout -b admin
To create a new branch admin and set it as the current branch.
git checkout -b admin
38. git branch -r
To look at all the remote branches.
git branch -r
39. git branch -D Testing
To forcefully delete a branch without making commits.
git branch -D Testing
40. git tag
To see the list of available tags.
git tag
41. git checkout v0.0.1
To set the current tag to v0.0.1.
git checkout v0.0.1
42. git tag -a v0.0.3 -m “version 0.0.3”
To create a new tag.
git tag -a v0.0.3 -m “version 0.0.3”
43. git push –tags
To push the tags to the remote repository.
git push –tags
44. git fetch
To fetch down any changes from the global repository to the current repository.
git fetch
45. git stash
To move staged files to the stash area which is present in the staging area.
git stash
46. git stash pop
To get back the files that are present in the stash area.
git stash pop
47. git stash clear
To clear the stash folder.
git stash clear
48. git rebase
Three tasks are performed by git rebase
- Move all changes to master which are not in origin/master to a temporary area.
- Run all origin master commits.
- Run all commits in the temporary area on top of our master one at a time, so it avoids merge commits.
git rebase
49.git help
Take help from the Git help section for different commands and other errors.
//Get help on Git Commands
git help
50. git –version
used to show the current version of Git
git –version
Conclusion
Git is an important tool for beginners and developers. Learning these 50+ essential Git commands helps you manage code, track changes, and work better with a team. By practicing Git regularly, you can work faster, avoid mistakes, and build projects with confidence.