1. Basic Workflow

• Initialize Repository: Create an empty Git repository.
  • Command: git init
• Check Status: View the status of files in the working directory.
  • git status: Detailed status.
  • git status -s: Short status with two characters:
    • 1st: Staging area status (A: staged, M: staged and modified, ??: untracked, UU: conflicted).
    • 2nd: Working directory status (M: modified, blank: unchanged).
• Stage Files: Add files to the staging area for commit.
  • git add <file name>: Stage a specific file.
  • git add .: Stage all modified/new files.
• Commit Changes: Create a version of staged files in the repository.
  • git commit -m <message>: Commit with a descriptive message.
• View History:
  • git log: List all commits.
  • git log --oneline --graph --color: Show commits in one line with a graph and color.
• Compare Changes:
  • git diff: Show differences between the latest and previous versions.
• Restore Files: Revert to the last version of a file from the repository.
  • git checkout <file name>: Restore a file (even if deleted locally).
• Reset Changes:
  • Soft Reset: Move staged changes back to the working directory (no data loss).
    • git reset
  • Hard Reset: Discard all changes in staging and working directory, revert to last committed version (use cautiously).
    • git reset --hard
• Remove Repository: Delete all Git metadata and history.
  • rm -rf .git (irreversible, use with caution).

2. Branches

• Definition: A branch is a reference to a commit in the repository’s history.
• List Branches:
  • git branch: Show all branches (current branch marked with ).
  • git status: First line shows the current branch.
• HEAD: Reference to the current branch.
• Create Branch:
  • git branch <branch name>: Create a new branch (does not switch to it).
• Switch Branch:
  • git checkout <branch name>: Switch to an existing branch.
• Create and Switch:
  • git checkout -b <branch name>: Create a new branch and switch to it.
• Merge Branches:
  • Example: Merge prime-number branch into main.
    1. git checkout main: Switch to the target branch.
    2. git merge prime-number: Merge changes from prime-number into main.
• Delete Branch:
  • git branch -d <branch name>: Delete a branch (cannot delete the current branch).

3. Conflict Scenarios