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The Git Workflow

Understanding the Git workflow is crucial for using Git effectively. Let's break down how Git manages your files.

The Three States

Git has three main states for your files:

1. Modified

Files that have been changed but not staged:

bash

1# Check which files are modified
2git status
3
4# Output:
5Changes not staged for commit:
6  modified:   index.html
7  modified:   style.css

2. Staged

Files that are marked to go into the next commit:

bash

1# Stage a file
2git add index.html
3
4# Now it's staged
5Changes to be committed:
6  modified:   index.html

3. Committed

Files that are safely stored in your local database:

bash

1# Commit staged files
2git commit -m "Updated homepage"
3
4# File is now committed
5[main a1b2c3d] Updated homepage
6 1 file changed, 10 insertions(+)

Visual Workflow

┌─────────────────┐     ┌─────────────────┐     ┌─────────────────┐
│    Working      │     │    Staging      │     │     Local       │
│   Directory     │────▶│     Area        │────▶│   Repository    │
│                 │     │    (Index)      │     │                 │
└─────────────────┘     └─────────────────┘     └─────────────────┘
        │                       │                       │
        │     git add          │      git commit       │
        │                       │                       │
        │                       │                       │
        │◀──────────────────────┴───────────────────────│
        │              git checkout                     │

Basic Workflow Commands

Step 1: Check Status

Always start by checking the status:

bash

1git status

Step 2: Stage Changes

Add files to the staging area:

bash

1# Stage a specific file
2git add filename.txt
3
4# Stage all changed files
5git add .
6
7# Stage all files of a type
8git add *.js

Step 3: Commit Changes

Save your staged changes:

bash

1git commit -m "Your descriptive message"

Step 4: Push to Remote

Share your changes with others:

bash

1git push origin main

A Complete Example

Let's walk through a typical workflow:

bash

1# 1. Create a new file
2echo "Hello World" > hello.txt
3
4# 2. Check status
5git status
6# Output: Untracked files: hello.txt
7
8# 3. Stage the file
9git add hello.txt
10
11# 4. Check status again
12git status
13# Output: Changes to be committed: new file: hello.txt
14
15# 5. Commit the file
16git commit -m "Add hello.txt with greeting"
17# Output: [main a1b2c3d] Add hello.txt with greeting
18
19# 6. Push to remote
20git push origin main
21# Output: Successfully pushed to origin/main

The .git Directory

When you initialize a Git repository, a .git folder is created:

project/
├── .git/           ← Git's database (hidden)
│   ├── objects/    ← Your commits and files
│   ├── refs/       ← Branches and tags
│   ├── HEAD        ← Current branch pointer
│   └── config      ← Repository settings
├── index.html
├── style.css
└── app.js

Workflow Best Practices

1. Commit Often

Make small, frequent commits:

bash

1# Good: Small, focused commits
2git commit -m "Add header component"
3git commit -m "Style header with CSS"
4git commit -m "Add navigation links"
5
6# Bad: Large, unfocused commits
7git commit -m "Add header, navigation, footer, and styling"

2. Write Good Commit Messages

bash

1# Good commit messages
2git commit -m "Fix login button not responding on mobile"
3git commit -m "Add password validation to signup form"
4
5# Bad commit messages
6git commit -m "fix"
7git commit -m "updates"

3. Check Status Before Committing

bash

1# Always review what you're about to commit
2git status
3git diff --staged

Summary

The Git workflow consists of:

Working Directory - Where you edit files
Staging Area - Where you prepare commits
Repository - Where commits are stored

Master this workflow, and you'll be comfortable with Git in no time!