What Is Git and Why You Should Use It

What is Git

Git is a distributed version control system that tracks file changes and enables teams to efficiently collaborate on the same project. It was created by Linus Torvalds in 2005 for Linux kernel development and has since become the de facto industry standard. Whether you're working alone on a small project or in a team of a hundred developers, Git enables you to track every change, revert to previous versions, and work on multiple features in parallel without conflicts.

Unlike older systems like SVN, Git is distributed, meaning every developer has a complete copy of the entire project history on their computer. This enables work without internet connection, faster operations because most things are done locally, and greater resilience to data loss because every clone is a complete backup. Understanding Git is now a basic skill for every programmer and web developer.

Why use Git

Change tracking

Without a version control system, programmers rely on manual file copying. For storing projects, consider backup space with names like site-v2-final-copy-2.zip. This approach is unsustainable because it quickly becomes impossible to know which version contains which changes. Git automatically records every change with information about who made it, when, and why. You can see the complete project history, compare any two versions, and know exactly which line of code was changed at any moment.

Every commit in Git is a snapshot of the project state at a specific moment with a message describing what changed and why. This is invaluable when months later you need to understand why a change was made or find the commit that introduced a bug. The git blame command shows who last modified each line of code, speeding up finding responsible persons for a specific part of the code.

Branching and parallel work

Git branches are one of the most powerful features. A branch is an independent line of development that allows you to work on a new feature without affecting the main code. You can create a branch for every bug fix or new feature, work on it as long as needed, and merge it with the main branch only when everything is tested and ready. If the feature turns out to be a bad idea, you simply delete the branch without any consequences for the rest of the project.

In a team, each programmer can work on their branch without worrying about overwriting someone else's work. Git automatically merges changes from different branches and in most cases does so without intervention. When a conflict occurs, Git clearly marks problematic parts and asks the programmer to manually resolve the conflict. This is far better than the alternative scenario where two programmers modify the same file and one overwrites the other's work without warning.

Backup and recovery

Every Git repository on a remote server like GitHub serves as a backup of the entire project with complete history. Even if your hard drive fails, you can clone the repository on a new computer in seconds and continue work exactly where you left off. Git keeps every version of every file ever committed, meaning you can revert any file to any previous state. This is life insurance for every project.

Basic Git commands

Initialization and configuration

Starting with Git requires installation and basic configuration. On most Linux distributions, Git is already installed or installed with apt install git or dnf install git. On macOS it comes with Xcode Command Line Tools. After installation, configure the name and email used in commits with git config global user.name "Your Name" and git config global user.email you@email.com. This information is recorded with every commit.

You create a new repository with git init in the project directory. This creates a hidden .git folder containing the complete history and configuration of the repository. Alternatively, you can clone an existing repository with git clone URL, which downloads the project with all history to your computer. The .gitignore file defines which files Git should ignore, like node_modules directory, .env files with secrets, and compiled binary files.

Everyday commands

The git status command displays the current state of the repository — which files are modified, which are added to the staging area, and which aren't tracked. Use it often to have an overview of what's happening. Git add adds files to the staging area, which is preparation for commit. You can add individual files with git add filename.js or all modified files with git add ., but be careful not to add unwanted files.

The git commit command creates a snapshot of the current staging area state with a descriptive message. A good commit message is short but informative, for example "Add email field validation in contact form." The convention is to write messages in the imperative as if telling what the commit does. Git log displays commit history with hash identifiers, authors, dates, and messages. Use git log oneline for a compact overview or git log graph for visual branch display.

Working with branches

Creating a new branch: git branch branch-name creates a branch but doesn't switch to it. Git checkout branch-name switches to an existing branch. The combination git checkout -b branch-name creates a new branch and immediately switches to it, which is the most common workflow. Modern Git also offers the git switch command, which is a more intuitive alternative to checkout when working with branches. Name branches descriptively like feature/online-ordering or fix/login-bug.

Branch merging is done with git merge branch-name while on the branch you want to merge changes into. Typical workflow is: switch to the main branch, then run merge of your feature branch. If there are no conflicts, Git automatically merges the code. If there are conflicts, Git marks problematic parts in files with special markers and you manually choose which changes to keep. After resolving conflicts, you commit the result.

GitHub and remote repositories

GitHub is the most popular platform for Git repository hosting with over 100 million users. In addition to code storage, GitHub offers issue tracking, pull request workflow, CI/CD with GitHub Actions, wiki pages, and much more. Alternative platforms include GitLab, which offers self-hosting, and Bitbucket, which integrates well with Atlassian tools like Jira.

The git remote add origin URL command connects the local repository with the remote on GitHub. Git push sends your commits to the remote server where other team members can see and download them. Git pull downloads the latest changes from the remote and merges them with your local code. Git fetch downloads changes but doesn't automatically merge them, giving you the chance to review them before merging.

Pull Request workflow

A pull request or PR is a mechanism for code review before merging with the main branch. The programmer creates a branch, commits changes, pushes to GitHub, and opens a PR with a description of changes. Other team members review the code, leave comments and suggestions. Only after approval by one or more reviewers is the PR merged with the main branch. This workflow ensures code quality and knowledge sharing in the team because every programmer sees what others are doing.

A good PR has a clear message describing what changed and why, reasonable size because reviewing a PR with thousands of lines of code is impossible, and automatic checks like tests and linting running through CI/CD. GitHub Actions can automatically run tests on every push and display the result on the PR, preventing merging of code that breaks tests.

Git in deployment workflow

Git is the foundation of modern deployment, especially on VPS servers. The simplest approach is manual deployment where git pull is run on the server to download the latest changes. This is sufficient for small sites but doesn't scale well and is prone to human errors. A better approach is automated deployment where a push to a specific branch like main automatically triggers deployment through a CI/CD pipeline.

A typical automated workflow looks like this: the programmer pushes code to GitHub, GitHub Actions runs tests and build, if everything passes the code is automatically deployed to staging server for testing, and after approval it's deployed to production. This approach eliminates the possibility of forgetting to run tests or deploying the wrong version. At BeoHosting, we support Git deployment for all hosting packages with automation via webhooks.

Git strategies for teams

Git Flow is a popular branching strategy that defines roles for different branches: main for production code, develop for development, feature branches for new features, release branches for version preparation, and hotfix branches for urgent production fixes. This strategy is thorough but can be overly complex for small teams. Trunk-based development is a simpler alternative where all programmers commit directly to the main branch with short feature branches lasting a day or two.

Regardless of strategy, several rules are universal: never commit directly to the main branch, always use PR for review, write descriptive commit messages, keep commits small and focused on one change, and never commit secrets like passwords or API keys. If you accidentally commit a secret, change it immediately because even after deleting from history, it's possible someone has already downloaded it.

Conclusion

Git is an indispensable tool for anyone working with code, whether you're a solo developer or part of a large team. Investing in learning Git pays off many times through better organization, code security, and more efficient teamwork. Start with basic commands, use GitHub for repository hosting, and gradually introduce more advanced workflows. At BeoHosting, we support Git deployment for all hosting packages, enabling you to deploy quickly and reliably directly from your repository.