HowToGit

This git cheatsheet assumes you have at least some familiarity with git, but want to look up the commands to quickly perform actions on a repository. A square bracket within a command means that the brackets as well as the name in it needs to be replaced with the actual value.

Basics

Setup a new repository (project) and work on it

git init: Start a new repository
git add .: Stage all changes (prepare for a commit)
git commit -m [MESSAGE]: Commit the staged changes with a message
git push: Upload local commits to origin
git pull: Download local commits from origin

Get a remote repository

git clone [URL]: Copy a project onto your local computer
git clone [URL] -b [BRANCH]: Clone from (and switch to) specified branch

Show information about the repository

git status: Check your current repository state
git log --pretty=oneline: Show a graph of commit history

Changes, Search & Gitignore

Exclude files by negative wildcard from diff (example: exclude pdfs)

git diff ':!*.pdf'

Show diff of staged files

git diff --staged

Show diff against changes since last commit

git diff HEAD^ [FILENAME]

Show diff for one file

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/5586383/how-to-diff-one-file-to-an-arbitrary-version-in-git

Search for commit in all branches where a search term was added or removed in its files

https://stackoverflow.com/a/5816177

Oldest commits first (that introduced the term): --reverse

git log --all --source -S "[SEARCHTERM]"

Search for commit containing any change to the search term in its files

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2928584/how-to-grep-search-through-committed-code-in-the-git-history

Show with diff: -p

git log -G"[SEARCHTERM]" -- [PATH]

Search for lines in commits containing the search term in its files under a specified path

git grep "[SEARCHTERM]" $(git rev-list --all -- [PATH]) -- [PATH]

See the last changes to the Head pointer (helps to recover a deleted branch or commit)

git reflog

Forget commited files now matched by .gitignore

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1274057/how-can-i-make-git-forget-about-a-file-that-was-tracked-but-is-now-in-gitign/19095988#19095988

Global or repo-specific .gitignore just for the current user

https://stackoverflow.com/a/5724484

Global: git config --global core.excludesfile $HOME/.gitignore
Repo-specific: Edit .git/info/exclude

Get all modified files in branch

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10641361/get-all-files-that-have-been-modified-in-git-branch

Reset changes to a file since last commit

git restore [FILE]

Remove the changes to a file in the last commit

https://stackoverflow.com/a/44074005

git reset HEAD^ [FILE]
git commit --amend

Reset all local changes since last commit

https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/topics/git/numerous_undo_possibilities_in_git/

git reset -–hard

Stage a file for removal without removing it from the working directory

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/38001223/what-is-the-difference-between-git-rm-cached-and-git-reset-file

git rm --cached [FILE]

Patches

Create a patch with changes of tracked files

https://www.specbee.com/blogs/how-create-and-apply-patch-git-diff-and-git-apply-commands-your-drupal-website

git diff > changes.patch

Create a patch with all staged changes

git diff --staged > changes.patch

Apply patch with changes

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/14509950/my-diff-contains-trailing-whitespace-how-to-get-rid-of-it

git apply --reject --whitespace=fix changes.patch

Undo apply patch

git apply changes.patch --reverse

Stashes

Stash only one file

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3040833/stash-only-one-file-out-of-multiple-files-that-have-changed-with-git

git stash push -p

Unstash only some files

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/15264553/how-to-unstash-only-certain-files

Show changes in stash by index number

https://opensource.com/article/21/4/git-stash

git stash show stash@{[INDEX]} -p

Stash multiple files

git stash -- [FILE1] [FILE2]

Undo stash pop with conflict

git reset HEAD .
git checkout -f

Stash only unstaged changes

git stash --keep-index

Stash only unstaged changes (including untracked files)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/20028507/git-stash-uncached-how-to-put-away-all-unstaged-changes

git stash --keep-index -u

Stash only staged changes

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/14759748/how-can-i-stash-only-staged-changes-in-git

For git version >= 2.35: git stash push --staged
For git version < 2.35: git stash -- $(git diff --staged --name-only)

Remove last stash

git stash drop

Apply and remove last created stash

git stash pop

Apply single stash by index number

git stash apply [INDEX]
git stash drop stash@{[INDEX]}

Stash single file with message

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/12420924/stash-just-a-single-file

git stash push -m "[MESSAGE]" [FILE]

Save stash by index number as a patch

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3973034/export-a-stash-to-another-computer

git stash show stash@{[INDEX]} -p > changes.patch

Commits

Remove last commit locally and remotely

Remove commit locally: git reset HEAD^
Force-push the new HEAD commit: git push origin +HEAD

git commit --amend

Change message of older commit

https://docs.github.com/de/pull-requests/committing-changes-to-your-project/creating-and-editing-commits/changing-a-commit-message

Show last n commits (replace n with number): git rebase -i HEAD~n
Replace “pick” with “reword” before respective commit.
Save files and edit the commit file that opens and save it as well.

Undo commit and keep changes

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/15772134/can-i-delete-a-git-commit-but-keep-the-changes

git reset HEAD^

Undo last commit without keeping changes

git reset --soft HEAD~1

Undo changes of an older commit (by creating a new commit that has the opposite effect)

git revert [OLDCOMMITID]

Add changes to older commit

https://stackoverflow.com/a/27721031

git add FIXEDFILES
git commit --fixup=[OLDCOMMITID]
git rebase -i --autosquash [OLDCOMMITID]^

Remove changes to file from older commit

https://stackoverflow.com/a/32528151

git rebase -i [OLDCOMMITID]^1
Mark the problem commit for edit in the editor by changing pick to e.
git show -- [BADFILE] | git apply -R
git add [BADFILE]
git commit --amend
git rebase --continue

Remove older commit

git rebase -i HEAD~[N] to list last N commits
Remove the line of the commit that shall be deleted

Remove initial commit if there are no other commits, but keep changes staged

git update-ref -d HEAD

Add single commit from other branch (cherry-pick)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/9339429/what-does-cherry-picking-a-commit-with-git-mean

git cherry-pick [COMMITID]

Move last N commits to new (other) branch

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1628563/move-the-most-recent-commits-to-a-new-branch-with-git

git branch [NEWBRANCH]
git checkout [OLDBRANCH]
git reset --hard HEAD~[N]
git checkout [NEWBRANCH]

Sign commits with ssh key

https://git.openlogisticsfoundation.org/help/user/project/repository/signed_commits/ssh.md

git config --global gpg.format ssh
git config --global commit.gpgsign true
git config --global user.signingkey ~/.ssh/[KEYFILE].pub

Branches (Creating, Merging & Co.)

Create branch and switch to it

git checkout -b [BRANCH]

Create branch from a previous commit

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2816715/branch-from-a-previous-commit-using-git

git checkout -b [BRANCH] [COMMITID]

Switch to an existing branch

git checkout [BRANCH]

Switch to last active branch (from detached head)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/11801071/git-how-to-return-from-detached-head-state

git checkout -

Switch to remote branch

https://www.git-tower.com/learn/git/faq/checkout-remote-branch

git checkout --track [REMOTENAME]/[BRANCHNAME]

List all local branches

git branch

List all remote branches

git branch -a

Merge branch into current branch (add commits from other branch)

git merge [BRANCH]

Merge multiple commits as one onto another branch

git checkout master
git merge --squash [BRANCH]
git commit

Add new commits from current branch to other remote branch

https://stackoverflow.com/a/51909592

git push origin head:[BRANCH]

Remove branch locally

https://www.git-tower.com/learn/git/faq/delete-local-branch

Safe removal (checks if merged etc.): git branch -d [BRANCH]
Force removal: git branch -D [BRANCH]

Remove branch remotely

https://www.git-tower.com/learn/git/faq/delete-remote-branch

git push -d origin [BRANCH]

Remove all commits from branch on repository

Create empty folder
git init
git commit --allow-empty -m "Initial commit"
git remote add origin [URL]
git branch --set-upstream [BRANCH] origin/[BRANCH]
git push -f

Fix origin of current branch (after rename)

https://stackoverflow.com/a/48100062

Squash all commits on branch

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/25356810/git-how-to-squash-all-commits-on-branch

Squash and rebase

https://www.jenweber.dev/how-to-squash-and-rebase/

Put last commit on new branch

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1628563/move-the-most-recent-commits-to-a-new-branch-with-git

Rename branch (that you are currently working on)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/6591213/how-do-i-rename-a-local-git-branch

git branch -m [NEWNAME]

Change remote for one branch (e.g. for branches on forks)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4878249/how-to-change-the-remote-a-branch-is-tracking

git fetch [REMOTENAME]
git branch [BRANCHNAME] --set-upstream-to [REMOTENAME]/[BRANCHNAME]

Merge and favor changes of own or other branch

https://stackoverflow.com/a/33569970

Rename master to main in new repo

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/64787301/git-init-b-branch-name-command-in-terminal-is-throwing-an-unknown-switch/65415870#65415870

Rebasing

Rebase branch onto other branch

git rebase [OTHERBRANCH]
git push --force-with-lease

Rebase branch onto (previous) commit of other branch

git rebase --onto [COMMITID] [OTHERBRANCH]
git push --force-with-lease

Interactive rebasing

git rebase -i

Interactive rebasing from first commit on (with all commits)

git rebase -i --root

Change base of branch

https://stackoverflow.com/a/10853956

Abort rebase:

git rebase --abort

Rebase with merge conflict handling

https://demisx.github.io/git/rebase/2015/07/02/git-rebase-keep-my-branch-changes.html

Rebase without changing commit dates when there are merge conflicts

https://stackoverflow.com/a/2976598

Remote (Origin / Upstream)

Pull and use incoming changes in case of conflicts

git pull -X theirs

Use incoming changes in case of conflicts in a file

git checkout --theirs [FILE]

Fetch remote branch

git fetch origin [BRANCH]

Fetch all branches

git fetch --all

Change remote for all branches and push everything

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/18801147/changing-the-git-remote-push-to-default

git push -u [REMOTENAME] --all

Change remote url

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2432764/how-do-i-change-the-uri-url-for-a-remote-git-repository

Force pull (hard reset to origin, get clean state) when origin commits were overwritten/rebased

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1125968/how-do-i-force-git-pull-to-overwrite-local-files

git reset --hard origin/[BRANCH]

Pull changes of another branch (without checkout)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/18857570/git-pull-without-checkout

git fetch origin [BRANCH]:[BRANCH]

Forks

Working on forks

https://docs.github.com/en/pull-requests/collaborating-with-pull-requests/working-with-forks/configuring-a-remote-for-a-fork

https://docs.github.com/en/get-started/quickstart/fork-a-repo

https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/comparing-workflows/forking-workflow

Change remote to fork

https://gist.github.com/jagregory/710671

git remote -v
git remote rename origin upstream
git remote add origin [FORKURL]
git fetch origin

Checkout a branch from a fork

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1783405/how-do-i-check-out-a-remote-git-branch

git remote add [REMOTENAME] [REMOTEURL]
git fetch [REMOTENAME]
git checkout [BRANCHNAME]

Submodules

Add another repository as a submodule

https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/git-submodule

git submodule add [URL]

Initialize submodules (also when new ones were added to the repo)

https://openmetric.org/til/programming/git-pull-with-submodule/

git submodule update --init --recursive

Specify branch for a submodule

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1777854/how-can-i-specify-a-branch-tag-when-adding-a-git-submodule

Update submodules (and top repository)

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/75104243/git-submodule-update-remote-vs-git-pull-recurse-submodule-vs-git-submod

git pull --recurse-submodules

See checked out commit id for each submodule

git submodule status

Revert changes to all submodules

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10906554/how-do-i-revert-my-changes-to-a-git-submodule

git submodule foreach --recursive git reset --hard

Config

Initial config

git config --global init.defaultBranch main
git config --global user.email "[EMAIL]"
git config --global user.name "[USERNAME]"

Show full config

git config --list

Change author in previous commits

https://www.git-tower.com/learn/git/faq/change-author-name-email

git rebase -i (Interactive rebasing)
Mark commits to change with edit
For each commit:
1. git commit --amend --author="[USERNAME] <[EMAIL]>" --no-edit
2. git rebase --continue

Multiple author identities (different identity per repo)

https://garrit.xyz/posts/2023-10-13-organizing-multiple-git-identities

Useful defaults

https://spin.atomicobject.com/2020/05/05/git-configurations-default/ https://jvns.ca/blog/2024/02/16/popular-git-config-options/

git config --global pull.rebase true
git config --global diff.colorMoved zebra
git config --global rebase.autosquash true

Git LFS

Install:
1. Install PackageCloud: https://git-lfs.github.com/
2. sudo apt install git-lfs
3. git lfs install
Download LFS files in repo: git lfs pull

autoSetupRemote

https://twitter.com/SantoshYadavDev/status/1558086948484530177

https://www.cheatsheet.wtf/Git/

https://ohshitgit.com

https://developers.redhat.com/articles/2023/08/02/beginners-guide-git-version-control

GitFlow Workflow: https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/comparing-workflows/gitflow-workflow

Git Tools / Helpers

https://github.com/jesseduffield/lazygit

VS Code Compare Changes to main

https://stackoverflow.com/questions/44009551/is-there-a-way-to-see-git-diff-from-origin-master-using-visual-studio-code

Exit default git editor in the terminal

[esc], :x!, [enter]

License note

Any content coming from Stack Exchange (recognizable by a link leading to a Stack Exchange site like Stack Overflow between the current heading and the content) is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.