NAME
giteveryday - A useful minimum set of commands for Everyday Git
SYNOPSIS
Everyday Git With 20 Commands Or So
DESCRIPTION
Git users can broadly be grouped into four categories for the purposes ofdescribing here a small set of useful command for everyday Git.
Individual Developer (Standalone) commands are essentialfor anybody who makes a commit, even for somebody who works alone.
If you work with other people, you will need commands listed inthe Individual Developer (Participant) section as well.
People who play the Integrator role need to learn somemore commands in addition to the above.
Repository Administration commands are for systemadministrators who are responsible for the care and feedingof Git repositories.
Individual Developer (Standalone)
A standalone individual developer does not exchange patches withother people, and works alone in a single repository, using thefollowing commands.
git-init[1] to create a new repository.
git-log[1] to see what happened.
git-switch[1] and git-branch[1] to switchbranches.
git-add[1] to manage the index file.
git-diff[1] and git-status[1] to see whatyou are in the middle of doing.
git-commit[1] to advance the current branch.
git-restore[1] to undo changes.
git-merge[1] to merge between local branches.
git-rebase[1] to maintain topic branches.
git-tag[1] to mark a known point.
Examples
- $ tar zxf frotz.tar.gz
- $ cd frotz
- $ git init
- $ git add . (1)
- $ git commit -m "import of frotz source tree."
- $ git tag v2.43 (2)
add everything under the current directory.
make a lightweight, unannotated tag.
- $ git switch -c alsa-audio (1)
- $ edit/compile/test
- $ git restore curses/ux_audio_oss.c (2)
- $ git add curses/ux_audio_alsa.c (3)
- $ edit/compile/test
- $ git diff HEAD (4)
- $ git commit -a -s (5)
- $ edit/compile/test
- $ git diff HEAD^ (6)
- $ git commit -a --amend (7)
- $ git switch master (8)
- $ git merge alsa-audio (9)
- $ git log --since='3 days ago' (10)
- $ git log v2.43.. curses/ (11)
create a new topic branch.
revert your botched changes in
curses/ux_audio_oss.c
.you need to tell Git if you added a new file; removal andmodification will be caught if you do
git commit -a
later.to see what changes you are committing.
commit everything, as you have tested, with your sign-off.
look at all your changes including the previous commit.
amend the previous commit, adding all your new changes,using your original message.
switch to the master branch.
merge a topic branch into your master branch.
review commit logs; other forms to limit output can becombined and include
-10
(to show up to 10 commits),—until=2005-12-10
, etc.view only the changes that touch what’s in
curses/
directory, sincev2.43
tag.
Individual Developer (Participant)
A developer working as a participant in a group project needs tolearn how to communicate with others, and uses these commands inaddition to the ones needed by a standalone developer.
git-clone[1] from the upstream to prime your localrepository.
git-pull[1] and git-fetch[1] from "origin"to keep up-to-date with the upstream.
git-push[1] to shared repository, if you adopt CVSstyle shared repository workflow.
git-format-patch[1] to prepare e-mail submission, ifyou adopt Linux kernel-style public forum workflow.
git-send-email[1] to send your e-mail submission withoutcorruption by your MUA.
git-request-pull[1] to create a summary of changesfor your upstream to pull.
Examples
- $ git clone git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/.../torvalds/linux-2.6 my2.6
- $ cd my2.6
- $ git switch -c mine master (1)
- $ edit/compile/test; git commit -a -s (2)
- $ git format-patch master (3)
- $ git send-email --to="person <email@example.com>" 00*.patch (4)
- $ git switch master (5)
- $ git pull (6)
- $ git log -p ORIG_HEAD.. arch/i386 include/asm-i386 (7)
- $ git ls-remote --heads http://git.kernel.org/.../jgarzik/libata-dev.git (8)
- $ git pull git://git.kernel.org/pub/.../jgarzik/libata-dev.git ALL (9)
- $ git reset --hard ORIG_HEAD (10)
- $ git gc (11)
checkout a new branch
mine
from master.repeat as needed.
extract patches from your branch, relative to master,
and email them.
return to
master
, ready to see what’s newgit pull
fetches fromorigin
by default and merges into thecurrent branch.immediately after pulling, look at the changes done upstreamsince last time we checked, only in thearea we are interested in.
check the branch names in an external repository (if not known).
fetch from a specific branch
ALL
from a specific repositoryand merge it.revert the pull.
garbage collect leftover objects from reverted pull.
- satellite$ git clone mothership:frotz frotz (1)
- satellite$ cd frotz
- satellite$ git config --get-regexp '^(remote|branch)\.' (2)
- remote.origin.url mothership:frotz
- remote.origin.fetch refs/heads/*:refs/remotes/origin/*
- branch.master.remote origin
- branch.master.merge refs/heads/master
- satellite$ git config remote.origin.push \
- +refs/heads/*:refs/remotes/satellite/* (3)
- satellite$ edit/compile/test/commit
- satellite$ git push origin (4)
- mothership$ cd frotz
- mothership$ git switch master
- mothership$ git merge satellite/master (5)
mothership machine has a frotz repository under your homedirectory; clone from it to start a repository on the satellitemachine.
clone sets these configuration variables by default.It arranges
git pull
to fetch and store the branches of mothershipmachine to localremotes/origin/*
remote-tracking branches.arrange
git push
to push all local branches totheir corresponding branch of the mothership machine.push will stash all our work away on
remotes/satellite/*
remote-tracking branches on the mothership machine. You could use thisas a back-up method. Likewise, you can pretend that mothership"fetched" from you (useful when access is one sided).on mothership machine, merge the work done on the satellitemachine into the master branch.
- $ git switch -c private2.6.14 v2.6.14 (1)
- $ edit/compile/test; git commit -a
- $ git checkout master
- $ git cherry-pick v2.6.14..private2.6.14 (2)
create a private branch based on a well known (but somewhat behind)tag.
forward port all changes in
private2.6.14
branch tomaster
branchwithout a formal "merging". Or longhandgit format-patch -k -m —stdout v2.6.14..private2.6.14 |git am -3 -k
An alternate participant submission mechanism is using thegit request-pull
or pull-request mechanisms (e.g as used onGitHub (www.github.com) to notify your upstream of yourcontribution.
Integrator
A fairly central person acting as the integrator in a groupproject receives changes made by others, reviews and integratesthem and publishes the result for others to use, using thesecommands in addition to the ones needed by participants.
This section can also be used by those who respond to gitrequest-pull
or pull-request on GitHub (www.github.com) tointegrate the work of others into their history. A sub-arealieutenant for a repository will act both as a participant andas an integrator.
git-am[1] to apply patches e-mailed in from yourcontributors.
git-pull[1] to merge from your trusted lieutenants.
git-format-patch[1] to prepare and send suggestedalternative to contributors.
git-revert[1] to undo botched commits.
git-push[1] to publish the bleeding edge.
Examples
- $ git status (1)
- $ git branch --no-merged master (2)
- $ mailx (3)
- & s 2 3 4 5 ./+to-apply
- & s 7 8 ./+hold-linus
- & q
- $ git switch -c topic/one master
- $ git am -3 -i -s ./+to-apply (4)
- $ compile/test
- $ git switch -c hold/linus && git am -3 -i -s ./+hold-linus (5)
- $ git switch topic/one && git rebase master (6)
- $ git switch -C pu next (7)
- $ git merge topic/one topic/two && git merge hold/linus (8)
- $ git switch maint
- $ git cherry-pick master~4 (9)
- $ compile/test
- $ git tag -s -m "GIT 0.99.9x" v0.99.9x (10)
- $ git fetch ko && for branch in master maint next pu (11)
- do
- git show-branch ko/$branch $branch (12)
- done
- $ git push --follow-tags ko (13)
see what you were in the middle of doing, if anything.
see which branches haven’t been merged into
master
yet.Likewise for any other integration branches e.g.maint
,next
andpu
(potential updates).read mails, save ones that are applicable, and save othersthat are not quite ready (other mail readers are available).
apply them, interactively, with your sign-offs.
create topic branch as needed and apply, again with sign-offs.
rebase internal topic branch that has not been merged to themaster or exposed as a part of a stable branch.
restart
pu
every time from the next.and bundle topic branches still cooking.
backport a critical fix.
create a signed tag.
make sure master was not accidentally rewound beyond thatalready pushed out.
In the output from
git show-branch
,master
should haveeverythingko/master
has, andnext
should haveeverythingko/next
has, etc.push out the bleeding edge, together with new tags that pointinto the pushed history.
In this example, the ko
shorthand points at the Git maintainer’srepository at kernel.org, and looks like this:
- (in .git/config)
- [remote "ko"]
- url = kernel.org:/pub/scm/git/git.git
- fetch = refs/heads/*:refs/remotes/ko/*
- push = refs/heads/master
- push = refs/heads/next
- push = +refs/heads/pu
- push = refs/heads/maint
Repository Administration
A repository administrator uses the following tools to set upand maintain access to the repository by developers.
git-daemon[1] to allow anonymous download fromrepository.
git-shell[1] can be used as a _restricted login shell_for shared central repository users.
git-http-backend[1] provides a server side implementationof Git-over-HTTP ("Smart http") allowing both fetch and push services.
gitweb[1] provides a web front-end to Git repositories,which can be set-up using the git-instaweb[1] script.
update hook howto has a goodexample of managing a shared central repository.
In addition there are a number of other widely deployed hosting, browsingand reviewing solutions such as:
- gitolite, gerrit code review, cgit and others.
Examples
- $ grep 9418 /etc/services
- git 9418/tcp # Git Version Control System
- $ grep git /etc/inetd.conf
- git stream tcp nowait nobody \
- /usr/bin/git-daemon git-daemon --inetd --export-all /pub/scm
The actual configuration line should be on one line.
- $ cat /etc/xinetd.d/git-daemon
- # default: off
- # description: The Git server offers access to Git repositories
- service git
- {
- disable = no
- type = UNLISTED
- port = 9418
- socket_type = stream
- wait = no
- user = nobody
- server = /usr/bin/git-daemon
- server_args = --inetd --export-all --base-path=/pub/scm
- log_on_failure += USERID
- }
Check your xinetd(8) documentation and setup, this is from a Fedora system.Others might be different.
- Give push/pull only access to developers using git-over-ssh.
- e.g. those using:
$ git push/pull ssh://host.xz/pub/scm/project
- $ grep git /etc/passwd (1)
- alice:x:1000:1000::/home/alice:/usr/bin/git-shell
- bob:x:1001:1001::/home/bob:/usr/bin/git-shell
- cindy:x:1002:1002::/home/cindy:/usr/bin/git-shell
- david:x:1003:1003::/home/david:/usr/bin/git-shell
- $ grep git /etc/shells (2)
- /usr/bin/git-shell
log-in shell is set to /usr/bin/git-shell, which does notallow anything but
git push
andgit pull
. The users requiressh access to the machine.in many distributions /etc/shells needs to list what is usedas the login shell.
- $ grep git /etc/group (1)
- git:x:9418:alice,bob,cindy,david
- $ cd /home/devo.git
- $ ls -l (2)
- lrwxrwxrwx 1 david git 17 Dec 4 22:40 HEAD -> refs/heads/master
- drwxrwsr-x 2 david git 4096 Dec 4 22:40 branches
- -rw-rw-r-- 1 david git 84 Dec 4 22:40 config
- -rw-rw-r-- 1 david git 58 Dec 4 22:40 description
- drwxrwsr-x 2 david git 4096 Dec 4 22:40 hooks
- -rw-rw-r-- 1 david git 37504 Dec 4 22:40 index
- drwxrwsr-x 2 david git 4096 Dec 4 22:40 info
- drwxrwsr-x 4 david git 4096 Dec 4 22:40 objects
- drwxrwsr-x 4 david git 4096 Nov 7 14:58 refs
- drwxrwsr-x 2 david git 4096 Dec 4 22:40 remotes
- $ ls -l hooks/update (3)
- -r-xr-xr-x 1 david git 3536 Dec 4 22:40 update
- $ cat info/allowed-users (4)
- refs/heads/master alice\|cindy
- refs/heads/doc-update bob
- refs/tags/v[0-9]* david
place the developers into the same git group.
and make the shared repository writable by the group.
use update-hook example by Carl from Documentation/howto/for branch policy control.
alice and cindy can push into master, only bob can push into doc-update.david is the release manager and is the only person who cancreate and push version tags.
GIT
Part of the git[1] suite