cheatsheet/git-cheatsheet.md

Git Cheat Sheet

Setup (do once)

Command	What it does	Example
git config --global user.name "Your Name"	Set your name on commits	git config --global user.name "Alice"
git config --global user.email "a@b.com"	Set your email on commits	git config --global user.email "alice@example.com"

Starting a Project

Command	What it does	Example
git init	Turn the current folder into a Git repo	cd my_project && git init
git clone	Download an existing repo from GitHub etc.	git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git

Everyday Workflow

  ┌────────┐    git add    ┌────────┐   git commit   ┌──────────┐   git push   ┌────────┐
  │ Working │ ──────────→  │ Staging │ ────────────→  │  Local   │ ──────────→ │ Remote │
  │  Tree   │              │  Area   │                │  Branch  │             │ (GitHub)│
  └────────┘              └────────┘                 └──────────┘             └────────┘

Command	What it does	Example
git status	See what files changed and what's staged	git status
git add	Stage a file for commit	git add main.cpp
git add .	Stage all changed files	git add .
git commit -m "message"	Save staged changes with a message	git commit -m "Add login feature"
git log	Show commit history	git log --oneline (compact view)
git diff	Show unstaged changes (line by line)	git diff

Undoing Things

Command	What it does	Example
git restore	Discard unstaged changes in a file	git restore main.cpp
git restore --staged	Unstage a file (keep your edits)	git restore --staged main.cpp
git commit --amend -m "new msg"	Fix the last commit message	git commit --amend -m "Fixed message"
git reset --hard HEAD	Throw away all uncommitted changes ⚠️	Use with care!

Branches

Command	What it does	Example
git branch	List branches (* = current one)	git branch
git branch	Create a new branch	git branch feature-x
git checkout	Switch to a branch	git checkout feature-x
git switch	Switch to a branch (newer syntax)	git switch main
git checkout -b	Create and switch to a new branch	git checkout -b feature-x
git merge	Merge another branch into the current one	git switch main && git merge feature-x
git branch -d	Delete a branch (safe)	git branch -d feature-x

Working with GitHub (Remote)

Command	What it does	Example
git remote add origin	Link your local repo to GitHub	git remote add origin https://github.com/alice/my-project.git
git push -u origin main	Push commits to GitHub (first time)	git push -u origin main
git push	Push commits (after first time)	git push
git pull	Fetch and merge the latest from GitHub	git pull
git fetch	Download updates from GitHub (don't merge)	git fetch

Common Scenarios

Scenario 1: Save your work

git add .
git commit -m "Describe what you changed"

Scenario 2: Put it on GitHub

git push

Scenario 3: Get latest from GitHub

git pull

Scenario 4: Start a new feature (branch)

git checkout -b my-new-feature
# ... make changes ...
git add .
git commit -m "Add my new feature"
git push -u origin my-new-feature

Scenario 5: Undo changes in a file before committing

git restore broken_file.cpp

Cheat Sheet — Most Used Commands

git status          # What's going on?
git add .           # Stage everything
git commit -m "msg" # Save snapshot
git push            # Upload to GitHub
git pull            # Download from GitHub
git log --oneline   # See history