git

Overview

Git records project history as commits and lets teams develop in parallel with branches. Start with the Git basics guide for the working tree, staging area, HEAD, branches, and remotes, then use the references below for a specific error or workflow.

33 pages

• git amend last commit message — rewrite without a new commit

  Fix the last git commit message with git commit --amend -m "New message". Works only if you have not pushed the commit yet.

• git bisect — find the commit that introduced a bug

  Use git bisect to perform a binary search through your commit history and find the exact commit that introduced a bug.

• git cherry-pick — apply a commit from another branch

  Use git cherry-pick to copy a specific commit from one branch to another without merging the whole branch.

• git clone a specific branch

  Clone and check out one branch with git clone --branch. Add --single-branch when you do not need the other remote branches.

• git delete remote branch — push delete

  Delete a remote branch in git using git push origin --delete branch-name. Also covers deleting local branches and pruning stale remote refs.

• git detached HEAD — what it means and how to fix

  Fix a git detached HEAD state by creating a new branch to save your work, or switch back to an existing branch. Recover commits made while detached.

• git diff between two branches

  Compare two git branches with git diff. See all changed files, or diff a specific file between branches.

• git discard all unstaged changes

  Discard all unstaged changes in your working directory with git restore . or git checkout -- . Covers discarding a single file and staged changes.

• git force pull / overwrite local changes — how to do it safely

  Overwrite local changes with the remote branch safely using git fetch and git reset --hard origin/main. Includes a stash step if you might need your work later.

• Git basics — commits, branches, remotes, and safe recovery

  Understand the Git working tree, staging area, commits, branches, HEAD, and remotes. Includes a practical daily workflow and safe recovery commands.

• git push rejected — file too large

  Fix git push rejected because a file exceeds the size limit. Remove the large file from history with git rm --cached or migrate it to Git LFS.

• git line ending warning (CRLF / LF) — how to fix

  Fix git line ending warnings about CRLF and LF by configuring core.autocrlf correctly for your OS, or using a .gitattributes file.

• git merge conflict — how to resolve

  Resolve a git merge conflict by editing the conflicted files, removing conflict markers, then running git add and git merge --continue.

• GitHub / git permission denied (publickey) — how to fix

  Fix GitHub or git permission denied (publickey) by adding your SSH key to ssh-agent and registering the public key on GitHub or GitLab. Includes macOS Keychain setup.

• git pull --rebase vs --merge — which to use

  Understand the difference between git pull --rebase and git pull --merge. Use rebase for a linear history, merge for explicit merge commits.

• failed to push some refs / git push rejected (non-fast-forward) — how to fix

  Fix "failed to push some refs" and git push rejected non-fast-forward by running git pull --rebase before pushing. The remote branch has commits your local branch does not have.

• git rebase --abort — cancel a rebase in progress

  Cancel an in-progress git rebase and restore your branch to its pre-rebase state with git rebase --abort.

• git recover deleted branch — using reflog

  Recover a deleted git branch by finding its last commit in git reflog and recreating the branch with git checkout -b.

• git remote change URL — switch origin or add new remote

  Change a git remote URL with git remote set-url. Switch between HTTPS and SSH, or update after a repository was renamed or moved.

• git remove all untracked files and directories

  Remove untracked files from your working directory using git clean. Use -n for a dry run first to see what would be deleted.

• git rename a branch (local and remote)

  Rename a git branch locally with git branch -m, then update the remote by pushing the new name and deleting the old one.

• git reset --soft vs --mixed vs --hard — the difference

  Compare git reset --soft, --mixed, and --hard to see how each mode affects HEAD, the staging area, and working-tree changes.

• git revert merge commit — how to undo a merge safely

  Undo a merge commit without rewriting history using git revert -m 1 <merge-commit>. Includes how to find the merge hash and choose the correct parent.

• git fetch --unshallow — convert shallow clone to full history

  Use git fetch --unshallow to convert a shallow clone (--depth 1) into a full-history repository. Includes checks for shallow repos and common alternatives.

• git show a file at a specific commit

  View or restore a file from any past git commit using git show or git checkout. No need to switch branches.

• git squash commits — combine commits before merging

  Squash multiple git commits into one using interactive rebase (git rebase -i). Clean up your commit history before opening a pull request.

• git SSL certificate problem — how to fix

  Fix git SSL certificate errors by installing the required certificate authority and configuring Git to use the correct CA bundle.

• git stash drop — remove a specific stash

  Drop a specific git stash entry with git stash drop stash@{n}, or clear all stashes at once with git stash clear.

• git submodule update — initialize and update all submodules

  Initialize and update all git submodules recursively with git submodule update --init --recursive. Fix missing submodule directories after cloning.

• git tag a specific commit — create and push tags

  Tag a specific git commit with git tag and push it to the remote. Covers annotated tags, listing tags, and deleting tags.

• git undo last commit — keep or discard changes

  Undo the last git commit without losing your work using git reset --soft HEAD~1. Covers all three modes: soft, mixed, and hard reset.

• git stop tracking a file — remove from git without deleting

  Stop tracking a file that is already committed in git using git rm --cached, then add it to .gitignore so it stays ignored going forward.

• git worktree — work on multiple branches simultaneously

  Use git worktree to check out multiple branches at once in separate directories. No stashing or switching required.