Git Best Practices

Solutions to increase your team-based development

This video course is not a full tutorial on Git!

... does not cover all commands & features

... illustrates important concepts & processes 

Courses for Git Developers

https://bit.ly/33y8Bkq

Core concepts and techniques for your Ameriprise work.

Git Best Practices

... increases your productivity as a developer!

  • better project sprint results
  • improve your team collaboration
  • use consistent SCM processes
  • reduce technical debt

 

Video Tutorials

Git Best Practices

Workshop + Video Tutorials

Git Squashing

Git Feature Branches

GitFlow Development

Git Forks

Git Concepts

Git Rebasing 

Git Pull Requests

Git Commits

Git Code Reviews

Customizing Git

Git Health Checks

Git Rules for Developers

  • Use GitFlow with Feature Branches
    • Rebase Often
    • Enable Force Push only on Feature Branches
  • Always use Prettier
  • Always Use Commit Conventions
  • Always use Pull Requests (PRs)
    • Squash Commits in PRs
    • Use Pull Request Conventions
    • Always use Code Reviews on PRs
  • Squash your Commits (manual before merge)
  • ​Maintain Linear Commit History

Guidelines

Git Concepts

.... core ideas & foundation

Git Concepts

Quick Overview

  • integrates into any project/directory. Uses
    • .git  (directory / database)
    • .gitignore (file)
  • uses commits to capture project snapshots
  • tracks file changes for entire project
  • is a repository of snapshots & branches.
  • suite of command-line tools
  • IDEs and GUI Apps

What is Git ?

SCM: Source Code Management

VCS: Version Control Software

Git

Repository

Changed Files

Commits

Branches

aka timelines

aka snapshots

  • easy for developers to use multiple branches
  • easy to switch between branches
  • only 1 branch may be active at any time
  • work in each branch is independent of other branches
  • use Git commands to easily merge branches

Git Branches

Recent Commit

Oldest Commit

  • each branch contains 1..n commits 
  • each commit is snapshot of the project
  • each commit acts like a node in a timeline...

Git Branches:

  • each commit is a snapshot of the project
  • each commit tracks a group of 1...n file changes
  • commits stack 'like dinner plates'

 

Recent Commit

Oldest Commit

Git Commits

  • is referenced by a SHA value
  • has a title and author
  • may have a message body
  • commits can be compared... to show the source        changes between those commits

Recent Commit

Oldest Commit

Git Commit History

Git is a distributed SCM

Can be easily cloned and used on multiple machines...

Thomas

Harry

clone

Git in the Cloud

Using a centralized cloud SaaS

Github

Git vs GitHub

Github

Using a centralized cloud SaaS

Easy Collaboration

Open-source VCS

Developer Tooling

Git 

  • Repository Hosting
  • Browse Code
  • Issues
  • Pull Requests
  • Forks

Git as a distributed SCM

Sharing snapshots and code... using centralized cloud SaaS.

clone

clone

Github

push

pull

Git as a distributed SCM

Sharing snapshots and code... using centralized cloud SaaS.

Github

Git Rules for Developers

  • Use GitFlow with Feature Branches
    • Rebase Often
    • Enable Force Push only on Feature Branches
  • Always use Prettier
  • Always Use Commit Conventions
  • Always use Pull Requests (PRs)
    • Squash Commits in PRs
    • Use Pull Request Conventions
    • Always use Code Reviews on PRs
  • Squash your Commits
  • ​Maintain Linear Commit History

Git Forks 

.... enable external contributions

Git Forks

When the cloud repository has strict control and is considered read-only.

When the cloud repository refuses to allow feature branches.

Repo ProjectX

When are Git Forks important?

Consider a typical are Git Topology

`origin`

Harry

Thomas

push

pull

Repo ProjectX

GitHub: Manage Access

GitHub: Branch Protection

GitHub:

Branch Protection

BitBucket:

Branch Protection

Prevent

BitBucket:

Branch Protection

Reject Force Push

Degreed Pathways Team

Team X

Team X

Open Source Community

Repo ProjectX

Enterprise Scaling Considerations

Push to feature branches ONLY!

`upstream`

Git is a distributed VCS

clone

Repo ProjectX

fork

`origin`

Repo ProjectX

`origin`

`upstream`

Using a Fork: Merging Changes to `upstream`

fork

clone

pull

push

pull

merge via Pull Request

https://github.com/degreed/fe-code-challenge

<your own repo>

Local Development Setup

`origin`

`upstream`

Using a Fork: Merging Changes to `upstream`

fork

clone

(1)

pull

(2)

push

https://github.com/degreed/FE-Coding-Challenges-Starter

<your own repo>

Local Development Setup

(3)
create Pull Request

 

push

pull

Harry

`origin`

GitFlow Development 

.... a team process

 GitFlow Development

Git Tracks Changes

  • Tracks changes in a directory + sub-directories
  • Can have 1..n branches
  • Each branch has 1..n commits
  • Each commit tracks 1..n changed files.
  • Developers can merges changes across branches.
  • easy for developers to use multiple branches
  • only 1 branch may be active at any time
  • work in each branch is independent of other branches
  • use Git commands to easily merge branches

Git Branches

  • only 1 branch used by the team
  • micro-changes
  • daily merges
  • merge directly into trunk (`develop`)

Development using Git

Trunk-Based

  • multiple branches
  • supports larger changes
  • longer-lived work ( > 2 hours)
  • strict branching model focused on releases

Feature-Based

  • requires synchronous code reviews
  • not-ideal for teams
  • great for solo developers
  • supports async code reviews
  • leverages pull requests
  • great for teams
  • feature work in parallel
  • scales within the enterprise

Development

Development

Using GitFlow

  • Defines strict branching model
  • Defines branches for production, release, hotfixes
  • Defines shared branch for developers
  • Defines 1..n branches for bug fixes and features.

GitFlow is Feature-based Development

 +

GitFlow Branching Model

GitFlow Branching Model

GitFlow Branching Model

GitFlow Branching Model

GitFlow Branching Model

GitFlow Branching Model

99% of all works starts from the`develop` branch 

All work is merged back into the the`develop` branch

Developer Work

in Feature Branches

Git Feature Branches

.... where you 'do' your work!

Git Feature Branches

What is a Feature Branch?

A feature branch is a branch created from the `develop` branch for a specific change, fix, or enhancement. 

 

Usually this is a branch that is used for 1-2 weeks... but may exist longer.

myFeature1

99% of all works starts from the`develop` branch 

All work is merged back into the the`develop` branch

Feature Branch

for

Developer Work

 

GitFlow: `develop` branch 

  • is considered a read-only
  • is the shared development branch
  • is used to snapshot code to a release branch
  • should reject direct push requests
    • should only accept commits using pull requests
  • should always have automated testings and lint checks

 

The develop branch is special:

<author>/<work-type>/<JIRA-issue | title>

Branch Naming Conventions

Use the following convention:

Sample branch names:

feature/team-hp/update-business-rules

feature/mentoring/mentees

feature/launch-darkly/mentoring/mentors

bugfix/45

hotfix/100

GitFlow

Grouping Branches

feature/1347

bugfix/45

Use  'forward slash'  in the branch name to group branches by type:

GitFlow: Feature branches 

  • start with an new/existing JIRA Issue
  • activate the branch that will be the `base` of the Feature branch
  • use `git checkout -b <work-type>/<issue-num>`
  • HEAD  now points to the last commit on the new branch

 

To create a Feature branch:

Developer Work

in Feature Branches

HEAD

GitFlow: Feature branches 

HEAD

GitFlow: Feature branches 

  • Each branch work is independent of the changes in other branches
  • Developers commit their changes within a desired Git branch
  • Changes in bugfix/1301  are merged into `develop`
  • feature/1305 will need to rebase its commit history with recent changes from `develop`
  • supports multi-teams + mono-repositories
  • is easy with Rebasing,
  • is quality-assured with automated tests
  • is consistent with Pull Requests and Code Reviews

Team Development

Project A

Project B

Project C

mono-repo

GitFlow + Feature Branches

Git Commits 

.... concepts, conventions

Git Commits

A single (1) Git Commit

Series of Git Commits

Recent Commit

Oldest Commit

What is a commit?

A Git commit is snapshot of the project at that time. 

master

finish/jumpstart

finish/rxjs

Each Git branch has its own commit stack....

These branch commits are independent! 

git checkout -b <branch> 

 

Creates a new branch based on snapshot of current branch stack... 

master

finish/jumpstart

finish/rxjs

A branch can be created based upon commits from another branch! 

Recent

Oldest

Current Branch:  finish/rxjs

HEAD

What is a commit?

  • date
  • message
  • author/committer
  • tree reference: snapshot of the project
  • parent commit SHA

Each commit is unique. The SHA1 is a hash value based on ALL the following information:

 

Make a commit?

For all local changed or deleted files, we can capture a project snapshot using:

git commit -am "(jumpstart) lab 4: Sharing services with Context API"

Note: this ^ commit is only saved in the local repository

           ... other Git commands must be used to push to the cloud repository.

Make a commit?

For all local changes, we can capture a project snapshot using:

git add .;
git commit -am "(jumpstart) lab 4: Sharing services with Context API";

`git add .` will add all new files to staging...

Push a commit?

We push a commit to `origin` to:

# 1st time you push your local changes
# connect and track that remote branch with the local 

git push -u origin <current-branch-name>


# If Git history has been changed AND
# you are pushing to your OWN branch

git push -f
  • save local changes to a Git branch... in the cloud.
  • share your changes with other developers
  • prepare to create a Pull Request

push

origin

View the commit history?

Using `git log`:

Using custom alias`log`:

For details on `log`, see the appendix videos for "Customizing Git"

Format Rules for Git Commit

Why do we have conventions and rules for Git commit messages ?

  • consistent, readable messages
  • clear git history 
  • easily generate change logs
  • proven at Google, Facebox, Netflix, etc

 

Benefit of commit conventions:

Format Rules for Git Commit

Format Rules for Git Commit

Git Commit Guidelines

https://bit.ly/3dEU4YA

Squashing Git Commits 

Git Commit Squashing

Why Git Squashing?

  • Easy Rebasing
  • ChangeLog Generation
  • Easy Pull Request Reviews

Series of Git Commits

Recent Commit

Oldest Commit

What is commit squashing?

Reduce a sequence of commits into a SINGLE commit.

What is commit squashing?

Reduce a sequence of commits into a SINGLE commit.

A single (1) Git Commit

Why squash commits?

  • Gathers changes into specific commits
  • Keeps super-clean history
  • Opportunity to fix Commit Formats 
  •  
  • Simplifies:
    • Rebasing
    • Pull Requests
    • Code reviews

Let's squash some commits?

  • ^ not following Commit Convention formats
  • lots of noise with these commits

Let's squash some commits?

## Interactively rebase the 6 most recent commits

git rebase -i HEAD~6


## Or specify the SHA you want to start with...

git rebase --interactive [commit-hash]

Rebase Editor (terminal)

oldest commit

newest commit

Unlike log outputs, rebase ordering is reversed

Rebase Editor (terminal)

(1) reword

(2) squash

Use the rebase Commands to reword and squash:

After squashing:

Or better yet:

Squash Power:

Squashing allows developers to be sloppy with commits WHILE working.

Squashing provides the opportunity to reword the resulting commit with details in message <body>

Git Rebasing 

.... concepts, commands, and secrets

Git Branch Rebasing

Why is Rebasing important ?

Rebasing ensures your feature changes are based upon up-to-date base branch code.

A feature branch is created based upon commits from another branch! 

master

finish/jumpstart

finish/rxjs

git rebase <branch> 

 

Can use the terminal command:

HEAD

HEAD

Add two (2) commits to `master`

 

HEAD

Why did the two (2) new commits in `master` not show in the log for `finish/rxjs`?

Rebase Scenario:

HEAD

Need to update the base commits... REBASE

Answer:

  • git pull --rebase <remote> <branch>, or
  • git rebase <branch>

develop

git pull --rebase origin <branchname>

git pull  origin <branchname>

Never Pull without Rebase!

Rebase places the remote commit history under your local commit changes and the newer history!

How does Rebasing work ?

  1. Git temporarily removes your all changes/commits
  2. Git refreshes your branch with the updated base-branch commits
  3. Git restores your commits on-top, one at a time
  • As each commit is added back onto the stack, conflicts may occur between that commit and the updated base-branch commits.
  •  
  • Conflicts must be resolved BEFORE the rebasing can continue.
  •  
  • Squashing your commits before rebasing make conflict resolution easier.

A Rebasing Scenario:

The `finish/nx` has a new commit `test(nx): lab 4b - Add tests`

The `feature/2020` branch needs to be rebased with the recently updated `finish/nx` branch.

 

Your `feature/2020` branch has 4 new commits on top of the base branch `finish/nx`

A Rebasing Scenario:

## rebase on `finish/nx`

git rebase finish/nx

Your `feature/2020` branch has 4 new commits on top of the base branch `finish/nx`

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 1: Temporarily remove your commits

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 1: Temporarily remove your commits

Step 2: Update with latest `finish/nx` branch commits

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 3: Restore oldest commit first... resolve conflicts if any

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 3: Restore oldest commit first... resolve conflicts if any

Step 4: Restore remain commits (oldest to newest)...resolve conflicts if any.

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 3: Restore oldest commit first... resolve conflicts if any

Step 4: Restore remain commits (oldest to newest)...resolve conflicts if any.

A Rebasing Scenario:

Step 3: Restore oldest commit first... resolve conflicts if any

Step 4: Restore remain commits (oldest to newest)...resolve conflicts if any.

NEVER use `git merge`

Note: 

## Never do this
## this pollutes the target commit history

git merge feat/2020 develop
## Always use rebase and PRs w/ fast-forward merges
## to append feature changes to `develop`

git rebase `develop`

Flat, linear commit histories enable automated change log generation

`git rebase` Golden Rule

NEVER use `git rebase` on public branches:

  • develop
  • release
  • master

ALWAYS use `git rebase` on feature branches

  • feature/2020
  • hotfix/2019
  • bugfix/2018

Extra:    Never force-push to public branches!

`git rebase` Golden Rule

Using `git rebase`  may REQUIRE a force-push to your feature branch:

## Rebase changed the commit history
## Need to force-push changed history

git push -f origin <branch-name>

Never force-push to public branches!

Squash your commits before rebasing

What is secret to Rebasing ?

Developers struggle with rebasing because of commit conflicts! 

The Rebase Onto Git Command 

Git Rebasing-Onto

git rebase --onto

 

Using:

git checkout -b feature/1

git checkout -b feature/2

Consider this scenario:

Each branch should have its own independent changes

Goal:

How do I fix a branch that has the WRONG base branch?

Question:

git checkout feature/2

git rebase --onto <desired-branch> <wrong-branch>

Use `git rebase --onto`

Solution:

git checkout feature/2

git rebase --onto develop feature/1

Git Pull Requests 

.... concepts, commands, and clarity

Git Pull Request

Code Merging in the Cloud

Pull Requests are features available ONLY within cloud services like GitHub, BitBucket, etc.

A Pull Request  is a user-friendly web interface for reviewing & discussing proposed changes before merging those changes into the target branch.

  • Merge code from the a feature branch to another branch
  • Request code reviews from specific developers
  • Dedicated forum for discussing the proposed changes.
  • Inspect change conflicts between branches
  • Validate with cloud CI/CD testing
  • Enable code owners to Sign-Off on changes or enhancements
  • Share incomplete ideas & approach with specific developers

Why are Pull Request needed ?

A process that requests changed code to be merged from one branch into another branch.

A request for someone to pull the changes into the target destination branch.

What is Pull Request ?

....can be used between Forks

  • Source [cloud] Repository
  • Source Branch
  • Target [cloud]  Repository
  • Target Branch

Pull Requests cannot be created for a local-only branch.

The branch must be pushed to the remote `origin` first.

Pull Request Anatomy

  • Create a Pull Request
  • Perform Code Review
  • Update a Pull Request
  • Merge/Reject a Pull Request

Pull Requests: 4 Phases

  • Rebase your local feature branch with latest history from `develop`
  • Update your local branch with squashes and format your commit messages.
  • Push updates to the `origin` remote

Creating a Pull Request

git pull --rebase origin develop
git push -f origin [feature-branch]
git rebase -i HEAD~[n]
  • Go to the BitBucket, select 'Create a pull request' under the Get to work

Creating a Pull Request

Your Pull Request description is very important.

Your description details WHY the PR has been prepared!

  • Provide some text describing the purpose of the changes
  • Include a link to the JIRA Issue 
  • Enumerate the high-level changes
  • Include Before/After Image Snapshots (if UI changed)... 
  • Include Breaking Changes (if any)
  • Assign appropriate Labels
    • eg Priority, BugFix, Ready for Review, WIP, etc.

The PR title will be prefilled with your last commit message

Limit reviewers to 1 or 2.

Avoid always use the same reviewer(s)

Animated GIFs are AWESOME!

Pull Request Rules

  • Rebasing is required
  • Code changes/work must be in a Feature branch
  • Avoid large quantities of changes in a single PR
  • Squash the commits to 1 (preferred) - 3 (maximum)
  • Commits must conform to commit conventions
  • Local Repo should be passing prettier, build, lint, and tests checks.
    • ​Use Prettier to minimize diffs and styling issues
  • If the PR includes non-UI, business logic changes
    • Should have 1…n unit tests
    • May need 1…n integration tests
  • If the PR includes UX changes
    • Should have associated e2e test (if applicable)
    • should include BEFORE / AFTER snapshots in the commit message

Pull Request Rejections

What happens if the Pull Request does NOT conform

to our rules and conventions ?

If PR with a WIP label:

  • Do not worry about a formal code review
  • Do NOT merge; the author is still working on the commits and PR
  • Developers should NOT comment on WIP unless solicited by the author
  • These PRs are considered incomplete and allowed to fail any or all tests

Before code review, if PR does not conform:

  • Add a comment requesting the author to review the feedback... explain the changes needed
  • Update label to show "Invalid PR"
  • Do NOT review until the PR conforms to these Rules.
  • Reject the PR if the developer does not comply within 2-3 days.

 

Tips for Pull Requests

The more you make your reviewers struggle, the greater the risk is that your Pull Request will be rejected.

  • Keep the changes small
  • Squash to 1-2 commits
  • Each commit: Single concern/focus
  • Review your own PR first
  • Add tests for changes
  • Code must build and all tests pass
  • Document your changes
    • Code Comments
    • Commit Message
    • Pull Request Description
    • Pull Request Comments
  • Write clearly
  • Respond to reviews
  • Avoid 'thrashing': one review cycle is the goal
  • Always rebase from target branch

Git Code Reviews

.... etiquette, collaboration, and change management

Git Code Reviews

Git Code Reviews

Great

Code reviews are a great opportunity to share and collaborate.

Code reviews are a based on respect and trust.

Code reviews minimize regression issues.

Code reviews promote consistency and standards.

Git Code Reviews

Great

Based on following all Pull Request conventions and requirements.

Automated Prettier formatting

Up-to-date Rebasing

Automated tests for CI/CD Lint, Build, and Tests

Expectations

Code Review

Key expectations that radically improve the code review process:

Reasonable response time from reviewers

Reviewers should avoid subjective issues

Big issues should 1st be discussed offline; using a video call and pair programming.

Reviewers should avoid accusatory language

Reviewer Tips

Code Review

Communicate clearly and succinctly

Plan for one (1) review cycle

If your required changes are resolved,

avoid adding-on more issues.

Avoid commenting on PRs unless your are an assigned reviewer or the Tech Lead.

architecture, separation of concerns, tests, separation of logic, etc.

Look for big issues: 

Reviewer Tips

Code Review

Communicate clearly and succinctly

Provide feedback if your review will be delayed > 1 day.

Comment on at least 1 item that you like ...explain why.

Avoid subjective issues

Avoid accusatory language

Consider providing code snippets for suggested improvements

Toxic Behavior

Code Review

  1. Presenting opinion as fact
  2. Submitting an avalanche of comments
  3. Increasing the scope of the Pull Request (for convenience)
  4. Asking judgmental/accusatory questions 
  5. Being sarcastic
  6. Emojis for negative feedback
  7. Not replying to comments

 Code Review Culture

Author Tips

Code Review

Communicate clearly and succinctly

Avoid arguing with the Reviewers

Learn to identify feedback that is required vs suggested.

Avoid using the same reviewer(s)

Code reviews give you a chance to show your skills and bragging!

Reviewers can find things you may have missed. This is good...

Git Health Check

Score Card

Git Health Check

How do you assess the health of your organization's software development?  

Need Qualitative metrics on Git usage.  

Answer:

It is often unclear how teams use Git productively.

Health Check

How do you assess the health of your IT organization?  

Need Qualitative metrics on Software Development

Answer:

How organized is your team-based product development?

Impact of Git Health

Lower Delivery Costs

Increased ROI

Development Best Practices

Git: Clarity & Consistency

Lower Regressions,

Improved Sprint Results

Improved Collaboration

Health Check

Score Card

Total:

Code Organization

      Are you using Nx   ...........................................................................(+1)
      Are you using a mono-repository .................................................(+1)
      Are you using isolated repositories ..............................................(-1 )
      Are you using monolithic app development ...............................(-1 )
      Does repo have a clear, articulate README ................................(+1)
      Do the repo libraries have README(s) .........................................(+1)
      Are you using StoryBoard to test/demo UI components ..........(+1)
      Does the organization have a shared UI component library ....(+1)

 

Code Builds

      Are you using Prettier ....................................................................(+1)
      Are you using Lint checks ..............................................................(+1)
      Are you using unit tests + integration tests + e2e tests?............(+1)
      Are you using Typescript or Java ..................................................(+1)
      Are you using only ES5 for their development ...........................(-1 )
      Are you auto-generating ChangeLogs? ........................................(+1)

 

Code Standards

      Do you have a Guidelines for Team-based development ..........(+1)
      Do you have Documented Coding Standards .............................(+1)
      Using separation of business logic outside UI components ......(+1)

Subtotal:

Subtotal:

Subtotal:

Web Development Teams

Health Check

Score Card

Total:

Git Best Practices

GitFlow + Feature-Based Development

 

      Do you use `develop` for the shared development branch ......(+1)
      Are you using feature-branches ....................................................(+1)
      Are you using repo cloud forks .......................................................(+1)
      Are you commit histories flat and linear ......................................(+1)
      Are you using commit message conventions ...............................(+1)
      Do you reject force-push commits .................................................(+1)
      Do you have protected branch access ...........................................(+1)
      Do you have assigned code owners ...............................................(+1)
      Do you require PRs and Code Reviews  .........................................(+1)

 

Pull Requests 

 

      Are you using proper Pull Request conventions ..........................(+1)
      Do the pull requests use status labels ..........................................(+1)
      Using CI/CD checks on Lint, Build, and Tests  ................................(+1)

Subtotal:

Subtotal:

Appendix Extras:

Customizing Git

Using Custom Aliases

Bash Commands for Git

Custom Bash Prompt

 

Shortcut commands to make Git life easier...

Use terminal window `git config` to configure global custom aliases:

# Alias to quick checkout
git config --global alias.co checkout

# Alias to rebase from origin/develop
git config --global alias.prd "!git pull --rebase origin develop"

# Alias to amend current commit with new + modified files
git config --global alias.amend "!git add . && git commit --amend --no-edit"

git config --global alias.[short-cmd] [full-cmd]

Git Alias

1

Shortcut commands to make Git life easier...

Use terminal window `git config` to configure global custom aliases:

# Alias to quick checkout
git config --global alias.co checkout

# Alias to rebase from origin/develop
git config --global alias.prd "!git pull --rebase origin develop"

# Alias to amend current commit with new + modified files
git config --global alias.amend "!git add . && git commit --amend --no-edit"

git co


git prd


git amend

new terminal commands

Git Alias

1

Shortcut command for Commit History

# Prettified Commit History
git config --global alias.plog 'log --color --graph --pretty=format:"%C(red)%h%Creset -%C(yellow)%d%Creset %s %Cgreen(%cr) %C(bold blue)<%an>%Creset" --abbrev-commit'

Git Alias

1

git plog

Git Commit History

Using `git log`:

Custom Git alias`git plog`:

git plog

1

Bash Commands for Git  

For those developers with Unix-based OS, you can use Bash commands to enhance your Git commands.

# Open hidden bash_profile in editor
code ~/.bash_profile
# Force OS to rescan the profile
source ~/.bash_profile

Bash Aliases

# @see https://haacked.com/archive/2014/07/28/github-flow-aliases/

alias irebase='git rebase -i HEAD~$@'
alias abort='git rebase --abort'
alias continue='git add . && git rebase --continue'

alias amend='git add . && git commit --amend --no-edit'
alias commit='git add . && git commit -m $@'

Add these super cool aliases to your bash profile:

2

Bash Commands for Git  

For those developers with Unix-based OS, you can use Bash commands to enhance your Git commands.

# Open hidden bash_profile in editor
code ~/.bash_profile
# Force OS to rescan the profile
source ~/.bash_profile

Bash Functions


function branches() {
  git branch --list --column
}

function rebase() {
  if 
    $1 
  then 
    git pull --rebase origin $1
  else 
    git pull --rebase origin develop
  fi
}

Add these super cool functions to your bash profile:

2

Custom Bash Command Prompt 

Extend your command prompt to show Git information (when available):

# Open hidden bash_profile in editor
code ~/.bash_profile

Bash Functions

# Text color variables
txtReset=$(tput sgr0)             # Reset
c_red=`tput setaf 1`
c_green=`tput setaf 2`



# Update command prompt to show `<cwd> [<git branch name>]`
PS1='\[${c_green}\]\W\[${txtReset}\] [\[$(branch_color)\]$(parse_git_branch)\[${txtReset}\]]: '

# Add functions for branch_color() and parse_git_branch()

Add these super cool functions to your bash profile:

3

Custom Bash Command Prompt 

Bash Functions

# Update command prompt to show `<cwd> [<git branch name>]`
PS1='\[${c_green}\]\W\[${txtReset}\] [\[$(branch_color)\]$(parse_git_branch)\[${txtReset}\]]: '

# Highlight branch name in `red` color if the repo contains uncommitted changes
branch_color ()
{
  if git rev-parse --git-dir >/dev/null 2>&1
  then
    color=""
    if git diff --quiet 2>/dev/null >&2
    then
      color="${c_green}"
    else
      color=${c_red}
    fi
  else
      return 0
  fi
  echo -ne $color
}

# Determine branch name if CWD is part of a git repository
parse_git_branch ()
{
  if git rev-parse --git-dir >/dev/null 2>&1
  then
    gitver=$(git branch 2>/dev/null| sed -n '/^\*/s/^\* //p')
  else
    return 0
  fi
  echo -e $gitver
}

Add these super cool functions to your bash profile:

3

Custom Bash Command Prompt 

Extend your command prompt to show Git information (when available):

# Force OS to rescan the profile
source ~/.bash_profile
# Update command prompt to show `<cwd> [<git branch name>]`
PS1='\[${c_green}\]\W\[${txtReset}\] [\[$(branch_color)\]$(parse_git_branch)\[${txtReset}\]]: '

3

Appendix Extras:

Git Time Machine

Log of all activity within the repository.

The reflog acts as a time machine enabling developers to easily go back in time.

# Show the timeline
git reflog

Git Reflog

1

git reflog HEAD@{n}

Git Reflog

1

git reflog develop@{one.week.ago}

means show the timeline 'n' moves/changes from HEAD

means show the timeline for 'develop' 1 week ago

git checkout 398c05b

Recall that

  • each SHA1 is a snapshot, and
  • `git checkout <SHA1>` enables us to travel to exact project snapshot

Time Travel

1

means checkout to a DETACHED (virtual branch) the project snapshot for "test(nx) Lab 4"