git_cheatsheet.md

git cheatsheet

Check whether you have git: git version

If not, download git from https://git-scm.com/downloads

Creating local repo

Instruction	Command
create a directory	mkdir test
go into directory	cd test
initialize git	git init
create readme.md	touch readme.md
edit readme.md	nano readme.md - then make some edits
stage changes	git add *
check which files are staged, unstaged, and untracked	git status
show unstaged changes between your index and working directory	git diff
commit changes	git commit -m "create readme"

Working with branches and reverting changes

First, make some changes and create several commits. Then:

Instruction	Command
check all local branches	git branch
if your main branch is named “master”, do this	git branch -m main
see commit history (including hashes)	git log --oneline --all
go to some commit	git checkout <commit hash>
create and go to new branch	git checkout -b <branch-name> or git switch -c <branch-name>
OR: go to specific commit & make new branch in one step	git checkout -b <branch name> <commit hash>
go back to main branch	git checkout main or git switch main
merge changes from named commit with current branch	git merge <branch_name>
create new commit that undoes all of the changes made in & apply it to the current branch	git revert <commit>
remove from the staging area but leave working directory unchanged	git reset <file>

Connecting local to remote repo

Go to GitHub.com and create new repo. Then follow the instructions under "…or push an existing repository from the command line":

Instruction	Command
add origin	git remote add origin https://github.com/<your_username>/<your_repo_name>.git
push changes	git push -u origin main

Working with branches on GitHub

Go to GitHub.com and create a new branch. Then:

Instruction	Command
fetch the repo (doesn't merge)	git fetch remote
check status	git status
pull the repo (merge)	git pull
see both remote and local branches	git branch -a
create and go to new branch	git checkout <branch-name>
push and create new remote branch	git push --set-upstream origin <branch-name>

Forking, branching, and pull requests (using our repo as an example)

Go to our class repo and create a fork. This creates your own server-side copy. Then:

Instruction	Command
clone the repo	git clone <URL>
create new branch	git checkout -b <branch-name> or git switch -c <branch-name>
stage changes	git add *
create commit	git commit -m “<some message>”
push commit	git push --set-upstream origin <branch-name>

On GitHub.com, you can now create a pull request from your new branch to the 'official' repository. This needs to be approved by a repository maintainer.