Basic Git Commands For Gitlab Developers

An open-source distributed version management system is called Git. On top of Git, GitLab was developed. In GitLab, you may easily do various Git activities and the git command line is necessary for more difficult activities, such as fixing tricky merge conflicts or rolling back commits. This article is for beginners and new to Git, you will learn some basic git commands that you may use to boost your work efficiency, tracking codes, team collaboration and extending this feature using Gitlab.

Git Configuration

You might need to input your credentials when starting git from your computer to prove that you are the author of the work. You should use the same username and email address as you use in GitLab.

Add your user name and email address

git config --global user.name "your_username"
git config --global user.email "your_email_address@example.com"

Check your current configuration:

git config --global –-local

Getting Clone URL Repository

You may select any project you have and must have permission to access on GitLab.com
1. Go to the GitLab Repository and click on Clone
2. Copy the HTTPS/SSH Clone URL by clicking on the copy button on the right of the URL

Example Repository Clone URL:

Clone with SSH

https://gitlab.com/rockitpinnoy/webcodes

Clone with HTTPS

git@gitlab.com:rockitpinoy/webcodes.git

Cloning Repository

git clone <repo> <directory>

When you clone a repository, your computer downloads the files from the remote repository and establishes a connection.
This connection requires you to add credentials. You can either use SSH or HTTPS. SSH is recommended.

Lets assume that we have already configured Gitlab SSH Authentication, if you haven’t done this before you may follow the official guides on Gitlab SSH Documentation

Clone with SSH

git clone git@gitlab.com:rockitpinoy/webcodes.git

Or this way around

Clone with HTTPS

git clone https://gitlab.com/rockitpinoy/webcodes.git

Go to the newly created directory webcodes:

cd webcodes

Note: A separate window will appear on screen requesting for your Gitlab Credentials, just provide them to authenticate then your are good to go.

Initialize Project

You can initialize a local folder so Git tracks it as a repository.

git init

A .git folder is created in your directory, this folder contains Git records and configuration files. You should not edit these files directly.

Add Remote

You add a “remote” to tell Git which remote repository in GitLab is tied to the specific local folder on your computer. The remote tells Git where to push or pull from.

git remote add origin git@gitlab.com:rockitpinoy/webcodes.git

View Remote
To view your remote repositories, type:

git remote -v

The -v flag stands for verbose.

Download Updated Data

git pull

When you clone a repository, REMOTE is typically origin. The repository on the remote server provides the location from which it was cloned, indicating either an SSH or HTTPS URL.

Create Branch

git checkout -b <branch>

Branch names cannot contain empty spaces and special characters. Use only lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens (-), and underscores (_).

Switch Branch

To switch to an existing branch:

git checkout

For example, to change to the main branch:

git checkout main

View Differences

To view the differences between your local unstaged changes and the latest version that you cloned or pulled:

git diff

View Updated Works

To check which files have been changed (added, changed, or deleted files or folders)

git status

Add And Commit Local Changes

git add
git status
git commit -m "YOUR COMMIT DESCRIPTION HERE"

Stage And Commit All Changes

As a shortcut, you can add all local changes to staging and commit them with one command:

git commit -a -m " YOUR COMMIT DESCRIPTION HERE"

Send Changes To Repository

To push all local changes to the remote repository:

git push

Example: push local commits to the main branch of the origin remote:

git push origin main

Delete All Branch Changes

git checkout .

Unstage the changes that you have added to the staging area.

git reset

Undo Recent Commit
To rewind history without changing the contents of your local files

git reset HEAD~1

Merge Branch

When you are ready to add your changes to the default branch, you merge the feature branch into it:

git checkout
git merge

Fetch Repository

git fetch <remote name>

Updates your remote-tracking branches under refs/remotes//.

Example: This operation is safe to run at any time since it never changes any of your local branches under refs/heads.

git fetch origin

Pull Repository

git pull <remote> <branch>

Brings a local branch up-to-date with its remote version, while also updating your other remote-tracking branches.

Example: Fetch changes from the branch main in the remote called origin.