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Core Git Workflow Commands

Table of contents​

  1. The basic Git workflow
  2. git init - Initialize a repository
  3. git status - Check the state
  4. git add - Add to staging
  5. git commit - Record changes
  6. git log - View the history
  7. git clone - Clone a repository
  8. git push - Send to the server
  9. git pull - Retrieve changes
  10. Command summary

1 - The basic Git workflow​


The three Git areas​

┌─────────────────┐    git add    ┌─────────────────┐   git commit   ┌─────────────────┐
│                 │ ───────────▶  │                 │ ───────────▶   │                 │
│  Working        │               │    Staging      │                │   Repository    │
│  Directory      │               │    Area         │                │   (.git)        │
│                 │ ◀───────────  │    (Index)      │                │                 │
│                 │  git restore  │                 │                │                 │
└─────────────────┘               └─────────────────┘                └─────────────────┘
     Fichiers                         Prêts à                           Historique
     modifiés                         commiter                          des versions

File lifecycle​

StateDescription
UntrackedNew file, not yet tracked by Git
StagedAdded to staging, ready for commit
CommittedRecorded in the history
ModifiedModified since the last commit

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2 - git init - Initialize a repository​


2.1 Create a new repository​

mkdir mon-projet
cd mon-projet
git init

Result:

Initialized empty Git repository in /chemin/vers/mon-projet/.git/

2.2 What happens​

Git creates a hidden .git folder that contains:

.git/
├── HEAD           # Pointe vers la branche actuelle
├── config         # Configuration du dépôt
├── description    # Description du dépôt
├── hooks/         # Scripts automatiques
├── objects/       # Stockage des données
└── refs/          # Références (branches, tags)

⚠️ Never manually delete or modify the .git folder! You would lose all your history.

2.3 Verify the initialization​

ls -la
git status

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3 - git status - Check the state​


3.1 Basic usage​

git status

3.2 The different possible states​

Empty repository:

On branch main

No commits yet

nothing to commit (create/copy files and use "git add" to track)

Untracked files:

On branch main

Untracked files:
  (use "git add <file>..." to include in what will be committed)
        index.html
        style.css

Files in staging:

On branch main

Changes to be committed:
  (use "git restore --staged <file>..." to unstage)
        new file:   index.html

Modified files:

On branch main

Changes not staged for commit:
  (use "git add <file>..." to update what will be committed)
        modified:   index.html

3.3 Short format​

git status -s
# ou
git status --short

Result:

 M index.html      # M = Modified
A  style.css       # A = Added (staged)
?? nouveau.txt     # ?? = Untracked

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4 - git add - Add to staging​


4.1 Add a specific file​

git add fichier.txt

4.2 Add multiple files​

git add fichier1.txt fichier2.txt fichier3.txt

4.3 Add by extension​

git add *.html
git add *.css

4.4 Add a folder​

git add src/

4.5 Add all files​

git add .
# ou
git add --all
# ou
git add -A

4.6 Add interactively​

git add -p
# ou
git add --patch

This command lets you choose which changes to add within each file.

4.7 Remove from staging​

# Retirer un fichier du staging (garder les modifications)
git restore --staged fichier.txt

# Ancienne syntaxe (encore valide)
git reset HEAD fichier.txt

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5 - git commit - Record changes​


5.1 Commit with a message​

git commit -m "Message descriptif du commit"

5.2 Commit with the editor​

git commit

Opens the configured editor to write a detailed message.

5.3 Commit in a single command (add + commit)​

git commit -am "Message"

⚠️ This option only works for already tracked files (not new files).

5.4 Modify the last commit​

# Modifier le message
git commit --amend -m "Nouveau message"

# Ajouter des fichiers oubliés
git add fichier-oublie.txt
git commit --amend --no-edit

5.5 Best practices for messages​

Recommended structure:

<type>: <description courte> (max 50 caractères)

<corps du message optionnel>
- Explication détaillée
- Pourquoi ce changement

<footer optionnel>
Fixes #123

Common types:

TypeDescription
featNew feature
fixBug fix
docsDocumentation
styleFormatting (no code change)
refactorCode refactoring
testAdding tests
choreMaintenance, dependencies

Examples:

git commit -m "feat: ajouter la page de connexion"
git commit -m "fix: corriger le bug d'affichage du menu"
git commit -m "docs: mettre à jour le README"

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6 - git log - View the history​


6.1 Basic log​

git log

6.2 Condensed log (one line per commit)​

git log --oneline

Result:

a1b2c3d feat: ajouter la page de connexion
e4f5g6h fix: corriger le bug du menu
i7j8k9l docs: mettre à jour README

6.3 Graph log​

git log --oneline --graph --all

6.4 Log with statistics​

git log --stat

6.5 Limited log​

# Les 5 derniers commits
git log -5

# Commits d'un auteur
git log --author="Jean"

# Commits depuis une date
git log --since="2024-01-01"

# Commits contenant un mot
git log --grep="bug"

6.6 Handy alias​

git config --global alias.lg "log --oneline --graph --all --decorate"

Usage:

git lg

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7 - git clone - Clone a repository​


7.1 Clone via HTTPS​

git clone https://github.com/utilisateur/repo.git
git clone [email protected]:utilisateur/repo.git

7.3 Clone into a specific folder​

git clone [email protected]:utilisateur/repo.git mon-dossier

7.4 Clone a specific branch​

git clone -b develop [email protected]:utilisateur/repo.git

7.5 Shallow clone (without history)​

git clone --depth 1 [email protected]:utilisateur/repo.git

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8 - git push - Send to the server​


8.1 Basic push​

git push origin main

8.2 Push with tracking​

git push -u origin main

After -u, you can simply run:

git push

8.3 Push all branches​

git push --all origin

8.4 Push tags​

git push --tags

8.5 Force push (use with caution)​

git push --force
# ou plus sécurisé
git push --force-with-lease

⚠️ Warning: --force overwrites the remote history. Only use it on your own branches!

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9 - git pull - Retrieve changes​


9.1 Basic pull​

git pull origin main

9.2 Simple pull (if tracking is configured)​

git pull

9.3 Pull with rebase​

git pull --rebase origin main

9.4 Fetch + Merge manually​

git fetch origin
git merge origin/main

💡 Tip: git fetch is safer because it retrieves without merging automatically.

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10 - Command summary​


Essential commands​

CommandDescription
git initInitialize a repository
git statusSee the state of files
git add <fichier>Add to staging
git add .Add all files
git commit -m "msg"Create a commit
git logView the history
git clone <url>Clone a repository
git pushSend to the server
git pullRetrieve from the server

Typical workflow​

# 1. Créer/modifier des fichiers
echo "Hello World" > index.html

# 2. Vérifier les modifications
git status

# 3. Ajouter au staging
git add index.html

# 4. Créer un commit
git commit -m "feat: ajouter la page d'accueil"

# 5. Envoyer vers GitHub
git push origin main

Next step​

Time for practice with a complete Git workflow exercise!

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