Collaborating with Remote Repositories
Once you have committed changes locally, you often need to share your work or get updates from a remote repository such as GitHub.
1. Add a Remote Repository
git remote add origin <repository-url>
Description: Links your local repository to a remote repository.
This only needs to be done once per repository.
Example:
git remote add origin 'https://github.com/user/repo.git'
- You can verify the remote using:
git remote -v
2. Push Changes to Remote
git push -u origin <branch>
Description: Sends your local commits to the remote repository.
-usets the upstream branch for future pushes.- Replace
<branch>with your branch name, e.g.,mainormaster.
Example:
git push -u origin main
- For subsequent pushes, you can simply run:
git push
3. Pull Changes from Remote
git pull origin <branch>
Description: Fetches and merges changes from the remote repository into your local branch.
- Always pull before pushing to avoid conflicts.
Example:
git pull origin main
- This ensures your local repository is up-to-date.
4. Fetch Changes Without Merging
git fetch origin
Description: Downloads updates from the remote without merging them.
-
Useful if you want to inspect changes before merging.
-
After fetching, you can merge manually if needed.
Summary of Remote Collaboration Commands
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
git remote add origin <url> | Link local repository to a remote |
git remote -v | Verify remote repositories |
git push -u origin <branch> | Push commits to remote and set upstream branch |
git push | Push commits to remote (after initial setup) |
git pull origin <branch> | Fetch and merge remote changes |
git fetch origin | Fetch remote changes without merging |
Next, you’ll learn how to work with branches in the repository.