Master Essential Git Commands: Branching, Stashing, Merging, Tagging & More

Branch Operations:

git branch create a new branch

git branch -b create and switch to a new branch

git checkout switch branches

git branch list branches

git branch -v view the last commit of each branch

git branch -vv view the current branch

git branch -b <branch> origin/<branch> create a local tracking branch from a remote branch

git branch --merged list branches merged into the current branch

git branch --no-merged list branches not merged into the current branch

git branch -d <branch> delete a local branch

git branch -D <branch> force‑delete a branch

git push origin :<branch> delete a remote branch

git merge <branch> merge a branch into the current branch

Stash Operations:

git stash stash current changes

git stash apply apply the most recent stash

git stash pop apply and drop the most recent stash

git stash list list all stashes

git stash drop stash@{0} remove a specific stash

git stash clear clear all stashes

Revert Operations:

git reset --hard HEAD^ revert to the previous commit

git reset --hard <commit_id> revert to a specific commit

git checkout -- <file> discard changes in a file (from index or working tree)

git reset HEAD <file> unstage a file, moving it back to the working directory

Tag Operations:

git tag <tagname> create a tag on the current commit

git tag <tagname> <commit_id> tag a specific commit

git tag -a <tagname> -m "description" create an annotated tag with a message

git tag list all tags

git show <tagname> display tag details

git tag -d <tagname> delete a local tag

git push origin <tagname> push a tag to the remote repository

git push origin --tags push all tags to the remote repository

git push origin :refs/tags/<tagname> delete a remote tag

General Operations:

git push origin <branch> push a local branch to the remote

git rm -r --cached <path> stop tracking a file or directory

git reflog view the reference log of commands

git log --graph visualize branch merges

git merge --no-ff -m "merge message" <branch> merge without fast‑forward to retain a merge commit

git check-ignore -v <file> see which ignore rule applies

git add -f <file> force‑add a file

Initialize a Project Repository:

git init initialize a new repository

git remote add origin <url> add a remote origin

git pull fetch and merge from the remote

git fetch retrieve all remote branches locally

Ignore Files Already in the Repository:

git update-index --assume-unchanged <file> ignore a single file

git rm -r --cached <path> stop tracking a file or directory (ignore all files in that path)

Cancel Ignored Files:

git update-index --no-assume-unchanged <file> stop ignoring a file

Password‑less Pull/Push:

git config --global credential.helper store enable credential caching for password‑less operations