In this module, you will get hands-on experience working with Git and its advanced concepts.

DevOps for Developers

Git is one of the most widely used version control tools, and is something that every developer should become comfortable with. In this module, you will get hands-on experience working with Git so that when it comes time to use it, you’ll be ready.

You’ll start by learning some of the more fundamental concepts such as initializing a Git repository, adding files to a repository, and how to commit changes. You’ll also learn how to clone a repository, and how to create branching.

You’ll then make your way to some more advanced concepts like Git stash, cherry-picking, working with multiple repositories, pushing code, and a lot more.

By the end of this module, you will have a proficient and working knowledge of Git which will serve you well throughout your career.

Git and GitHub

If you’re already familiar with other VCSes, Git has some key differences you should bear in mind as you learn about it.

# History is more malleable

You can change the history in your own copy of the repository and others' assuming you have the appropriate permission to push to them.

# Branching is cheap

In most traditional VCS's (i.e., #key# CVS: Meaning #key# and Subversion), it’s very slow to branch a repository ($O(n)$ (order n) to a number of files).

In Git, it’s an $O(1)$ (an "order 1" step).

> **Order notation (e.g., $O(1)$)**
<br> Here, _O(1)_ notation means that branching takes the same amount of time, regardless of the size of the repository that you’re doing the branching in.

This makes experimentation with branching much easier. Branch deletion is also a common and cheap operation. This changes the typical workflow in many cases.

# Commits are made _across the whole project_

In contrast to other source control tools, changes are made across the whole project but not per file.

One consequence of this is that moving/renaming files does not involve loss of history for that file. For example, this is a massive win over CVS, which is file-oriented.

# No version numbers

Git does not automatically number versions of files/changes. Instead, it assigns
a hash (effectively random) to the change to the repository (commits), which is then used to refer to those changes.

Understand how Git is different from other Version Control Systems (VCS’s).


How Git Differs from Other Version Control Systems (VCS's)

Understand how Git is different from other Version Control Systems (VCS’s).