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Git Basics

A quick reference to configure Git, clone repositories, and manage branches efficiently.

1. Initial configurations

Ensure that your Git version is 1.8 or newer:

git --version

Global configurations

Before using Git for the first time, set your global username and email (these will be attached to all your commits):

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"

Check your configuration at any time:

git config --list

Local configurations

If you contribute to multiple repositories or use different accounts, you can override the global configuration for a specific repository:

git config user.name "Your Name"
git config user.email "your.email@example.com"

View your local configuration:

git config --local --list

2. Cloning a repository

There are two main protocols for cloning GitHub repositories: HTTPS and SSH.

  • HTTPS: simpler initial setup, but requires credential storage (token or keychain).
  • SSH: recommended, uses key-based authentication and simplifies multi-account management.
git clone <url>

You can define SSH aliases in ~/.ssh/config for different account or organizations.

See: Generate and Configure a Git SSH key.

3. Working with branches

List branches

List all local and remote branches.

git branch -a

Create a branch

Create and switch to a new branch:

git switch -c <branch-name>

Switch branches

Move to another branch:

git switch <branch-name>

Change a branch name

Change the active branch name:

git branch -m <new-branch-name>

Delete a branch

Delete a branch that has already been merged:

git branch -d <branch-name>

Force delition (use with caution):

git branch -D <branch-name>

Delete a branch from remote:

git push origin --delete <branch-name>

4. Basic Workflow (Add -> Commit -> Push -> Pull)

Check the repository status

See which files have been added, modified, or deleted:

git status

Stage changes

Add specific files or all modifications to the staging area:

git add <file>
git add .

Commit your changes

Create a new commit with a descriptive message:

git commit -m "feat: implement hit counter in monitor"

Follow the Conventinal Commits format for consistency.

Amend the last commit (for example, typo fix a typo):

git commit --amend

View commit history

List recent commits:

git log --oneline --decorate --graph --all

Show detailed information about a specific commit:

git show <commit-hash>

Push changes to the remote repository

Send your commits to GitHub:

git push origin <branch-name>

Pull and update your local branch

Update your branch with the latest remote commits:

git pull --ff-only origin <branch-name>

Use --ff-only to ensure your history stays linear and clean. If Git wans about conflicts, resolve them, then commit the merge.

5. Git Tags

Tags are used to mark specific points in your project’s history, typically to identify releases (e.g., v1.0, v2.1.3).

They act like bookmarks to easily reference important commits.

Semantic Versioning Guide

Part When to increment Example after change
MAJOR Breaking changes: old code won't work 1.0.0 → 2.0.0
MINOR New features, but backward-compatible 1.0.0 → 1.1.0
PATCH Bug fixes, small changes only 1.0.0 → 1.0.1

List tags

Display all tags in the repository:

git tag

Create a lighweight tag

Lightweight tags simply label a commit:

git tag v1.0.0

Lightweight tags are quick bookmarks but annotated tags are preferred for releases

Create an annotated tag

Annotated tags include a message, the author's name, and a timestap. They are recommended for official or shared releases.

git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "Version 1.0.0"
# or open your editor with:
git tag -a v1.0.0

View details about a tag

Show detailed information about a specific tag (annotation, author, date, and commit):

git show v1.0.0

Push tags to the remote repository

Tags are not pushed automatically.

Push a specific tag:

git push origin v1.0.0

Push all local tags:

git push origin --tags

Delete tags

Delete a tag locally:

git tag -d v1.0.0

Delete a tag on the remote repository:

git push origin -d v1.0.0

6. Igniring files with .gitignore

The .gitignore file tells Git which files or directories to exclude from version control. This helps keep your repository clean and prevents unnecessary or sensitive files from being committed.

Create a .gitignore file

At the root of your repository, create a file named .gitignore:

touch .gitignore

Then open it and list the files or patterns to ignore, for example:

# Directories
build/
logs/

# Files
*.logs
*.bak

# Environments
.venv

Reference Material

Git

GitHub