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33. Git and GitHub Project - Task 2

Project Task 2: Working with Remotes

Continue building your portfolio project by mastering remote management.

Objective

Configure multiple remotes and understand different URL formats.

Prerequisites

You should have completed Task 1 with your portfolio project.

Instructions

Step 1: Verify Current Remote

bash
1cd portfolio-project
2
3# Check current remote
4git remote -v
5
6# Should show:
7# origin  https://github.com/username/portfolio-project.git (fetch)
8# origin  https://github.com/username/portfolio-project.git (push)

Step 2: View Remote Details

bash
1git remote show origin
2
3# Note the information displayed:
4# - Fetch/Push URLs
5# - HEAD branch
6# - Remote branches

Step 3: Add SSH Remote (Alternative Access)

bash
1# Add same repo with SSH URL as alternate
2git remote add github-ssh git@github.com:username/portfolio-project.git
3
4# Verify both
5git remote -v
6
7# Output:
8# github-ssh  git@github.com:username/portfolio-project.git (fetch)
9# github-ssh  git@github.com:username/portfolio-project.git (push)
10# origin      https://github.com/username/portfolio-project.git (fetch)
11# origin      https://github.com/username/portfolio-project.git (push)

Step 4: Understand When to Use Each

HTTPS (origin):

  • Works through firewalls
  • Requires credentials/token
  • Good for beginners

SSH (github-ssh):

  • No password prompts
  • Requires SSH key setup
  • Preferred for regular use

Step 5: Switch Primary Remote to SSH

If you've set up SSH keys:

bash
1# Change origin to SSH
2git remote set-url origin git@github.com:username/portfolio-project.git
3
4# Remove the extra remote
5git remote remove github-ssh
6
7# Verify
8git remote -v

Step 6: Make and Push Changes

bash
1# Add new section to index.html
2cat >> index.html << 'EOF'
3        <section id="projects">
4            <h2>My Projects</h2>
5            <ul>
6                <li>Portfolio Website</li>
7                <li>More coming soon...</li>
8            </ul>
9        </section>
10EOF
11
12# Stage and commit
13git add index.html
14git commit -m "Add projects section"
15
16# Push to remote
17git push origin main

Step 7: Verify on GitHub

  1. Visit your repository on GitHub
  2. Check that the new commit appears
  3. View the updated index.html file

Bonus: Add a Mirror Remote

For backup purposes, you can push to multiple remotes:

bash
1# Add a GitLab mirror (optional)
2# First create repo on GitLab, then:
3git remote add gitlab https://gitlab.com/username/portfolio-project.git
4
5# Push to both
6git push origin main
7git push gitlab main

Verification Checklist

  • Remote shows correct URL
  • Can view remote details with git remote show
  • Changes pushed successfully
  • Commits visible on GitHub

Common Issues

Authentication Failed

bash
1# For HTTPS, use a Personal Access Token
2# GitHub → Settings → Developer Settings → Personal Access Tokens
3
4# Or switch to SSH
5git remote set-url origin git@github.com:username/repo.git

Remote Already Exists

bash
1# Remove and re-add
2git remote remove origin
3git remote add origin <correct-url>
4
5# Or just update URL
6git remote set-url origin <correct-url>

Summary

In Task 2, you learned:

  • ✅ How to view remote details
  • ✅ HTTPS vs SSH remotes
  • ✅ How to change remote URLs
  • ✅ Pushing changes to remotes

Next: Learn about push and pull commands in detail!