Understanding the differences between `git commit` and `git push`

In Git, managing source code changes involves several key steps—staging, committing, and pushing changes to a remote repository. Each step serves a specific purpose in the lifecycle of code changes, ensuring detailed tracking and efficient collaboration.

git commit vs. git push

git commit is a local operation; it affects only your local repository and does not interact with the remote repository. Until they're pushed, commits exist only on your local machine. Whereas git push is a network operation that transfers commits from your local repository to a remote repository. This makes these commits accessible from the remote repository. Let's dig into this a bit deeper:

git stage (or git add)

• Purpose: Prepares changes for a commit. It adds modifications from your working directory to the staging area (also known as the index). This area acts as an intermediary snapshot of your work, allowing you to review and finalize changes before they are committed to your project history.
• Usage:
  Terminal

  git add <file>         # Adds a specific file
  git add .              # Adds all changed files in the directory
  
  

git commit

• Purpose: Takes everything from the staging area and records it in the repository's history as a snapshot. This step is important as it captures the state of a project at a point in time.
• Usage:
  Terminal

  git commit -m "Descriptive message about the change"
  
  

git push

• Purpose: Uploads committed changes from your local repository to a remote repository. This is essential for sharing changes with others and effectively collaborating on projects.
• Usage:
  Terminal

  git push origin main  # Pushes changes from the local main branch to the remote main branch
  
  

Advanced version control with Graphite

The Graphite CLI builds on Git's functionality by facilitating the management of stacks of changes, making it simpler to handle multiple dependent changes across different branches.

gt submit

• Purpose: Submits a stack of changes as a series of pull requests to GitHub. This command is particularly useful for managing complex workflows that involve multiple dependent branches.
• Usage:
  Terminal

  gt submit --stack  # Submits all branches in your current stack
  
  

Practical examples

Committing changes

1. Staging changes:
   Terminal

   git add modified_file.txt
   
   

2. Committing the staged changes:
   Terminal

   git commit -m "feat: add new feature to modified_file"
   
   

   This records your changes locally on the main branch, showing the commit hash and changes summary.

Pushing changes

• After committing, to share your changes:
  Terminal

  git push origin main
  
  

  This transfers your commits to the remote repository, updating it with your latest changes.

When to use each command

• Commit often: Each commit should encapsulate a coherent piece of work. This makes it easier to track changes and roll back if necessary.
• Push selectively: Push changes to the remote repository when they are ready to be shared or when collaboration is required.

Summary

The git commit command is pivotal for recording changes locally, allowing for detailed tracking and control over the project's evolution. The git push command plays a crucial role in sharing these changes remotely. Integrating Graphite with commands like gt submit further enhances this workflow, offering advanced management capabilities for complex project structures.

For further reading on Git's best practices and advanced features, consider visiting Git's official documentation. And to learn more about the Graphite CLI, check out our quick start guide.