Essential Git Commands and Their Usage

This article presents a comprehensive guide to essential Git commands, detailing their syntax, purpose, and typical usage scenarios for developers learning version control.

git config

git config --global user.name "[name]"

git config --global user.email "[email address]"

Sets the global username and email for commits.

git init git init [repository name] Creates a new repository.

git clone git clone [url] Clones a repository from the given URL.

git add git add [file] or git add * Stages a file or all files for commit.

git commit git commit -m "[commit message]" Records staged changes in the repository history. git commit -a Commits all tracked changes.

git diff git diff – shows changes not staged. git diff --staged – shows staged vs. latest. git diff [first branch] [second branch] – compares two branches.

git reset git reset [file] – unstage a file. git reset [commit] – undo commits while keeping changes. git reset --hard [commit] – discard all changes and reset to a commit.

git status git status Displays the state of the working directory and staging area.

git rm git rm [file] Removes a file from the working directory and stages the deletion.

git log git log Shows commit history of the current branch. git log --follow [file] – shows history of a specific file, including renames.

git show git show [commit] Displays metadata and changes of a specific commit.

git tag git tag [commitID] Creates a tag on a specific commit.

git branch git branch – lists local branches. git branch [branch name] – creates a new branch. git branch -d [branch name] – deletes a branch.

git checkout git checkout [branch name] – switches to an existing branch. git checkout -b [branch name] – creates and switches to a new branch.

git merge git merge [branch name] Merges the specified branch into the current branch.

git remote git remote add [name] [remote URL] Adds a remote repository.

git push git push [name] master – pushes the master branch. git push [name] [branch] – pushes a specific branch. git push --all [name] – pushes all branches. git push [name] :[branch] – deletes a remote branch.

git pull git pull [repository URL] Fetches and merges changes from a remote repository.

git stash git stash save – saves local modifications. git stash pop – restores the most recent stash. git stash list – lists all stashes. git stash drop – discards the most recent stash.

Images illustrating each command are included throughout the original article.