🧠 The Ultimate Git & GitHub Cheat Sheet (2025 Edition)

Everything You Need to Master Version Control in One Place

If you’re a developer, DevOps engineer, data scientist, or just someone managing code — Git and GitHub are tools you must know.

This cheat sheet is your one-stop guide to commands, workflows, concepts, and best practices — perfect for beginners or anyone who wants to refresh and level up.

Git & GitHub Cheat Sheet PDF

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📌 What Are Git and GitHub?

Term	Purpose
Git	A distributed version control system that tracks code changes, supports collaboration, and manages history.
GitHub	A cloud-based platform to host Git repositories with added features like issue tracking, pull requests, and CI/CD via GitHub Actions.

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⚙️ Setting Up Git

✅ Install Git

• https://git-scm.com/downloads

✅ Configure Git

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "you@example.com"

Check configuration:

git config --list

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🔁 Git Workflow Summary

1. git add       → Stage changes
2. git commit    → Commit snapshot
3. git push      → Upload to GitHub
4. git pull      → Sync with remote

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🧱 Essential Git Commands

Command	Description
git init	Create a new Git repo
git clone URL	Copy repo from GitHub
git status	See current changes
git add .	Stage all files
git commit -m "msg"	Save changes
git push origin main	Upload to GitHub
git pull	Download + merge
git log	View commit history
git diff	Show file differences
git reset	Undo commits
git rm	Delete a file from Git

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🌿 Working with Branches

Command	Action
git branch	List branches
git checkout -b new-feature	Create and switch to a branch
git checkout main	Switch to main
git merge feature	Merge a branch
git branch -d branch	Delete a branch

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🌐 GitHub Collaboration Essentials

✅ Create a Repository

1. Go to https://github.com
2. Click New
3. Choose project name and visibility

✅ Connect Local Repo to GitHub

git remote add origin https://github.com/yourname/repo.git
git push -u origin main

✅ Fork + Pull Request Workflow

1. Fork a repo
2. Clone your fork
3. Create a branch → Commit → Push
4. Open a pull request (PR)

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🔒 .gitignore & README

• .gitignore – Exclude files like: node_modules/ .env *.log
• README.md – Always document your repo purpose, usage, and license

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🚨 Undoing Changes (Safety Tools)

Command	Usage
git checkout -- file	Discard unstaged changes
git reset HEAD file	Unstage file
git revert <commit>	Revert a commit with history
git reset --hard HEAD~1	Danger! Reset to 1 commit ago
git stash	Save current uncommitted changes

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🛠️ Advanced Git Features

Feature	Command
Tagging versions	git tag v1.0.0
Cherry-pick commit	git cherry-pick <commit-id>
Rebase branch	git rebase main
Stash apply	git stash apply
Remove remote	git remote remove origin

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🧩 Key Git Concepts

Concept	Explanation
Staging Area	Temporary space to prepare commits
HEAD	Current branch reference
Fast-Forward	Git just moves pointer if no divergence
Detached HEAD	Not on any branch – be cautious
Origin	Default name for remote GitHub repo

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🚀 GitHub Features You Should Know

Feature	Use
Actions	CI/CD pipelines
Issues	Bug & feature tracking
Projects	Kanban/task boards
Discussions	Community Q&A
Wikis	Collaborative documentation
Pages	Host static sites

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📘 Best Practices

• ✅ Commit small, meaningful changes
• ✅ Pull before pushing
• ✅ Always work in a feature branch
• ✅ Use .gitignore and README.md
• ✅ Write clear commit messages
• ✅ Enable 2FA on GitHub

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🧠 Common Git Errors and Fixes

Error	Fix
fatal: not a git repo	Run in repo or git init
Merge conflict	Manually edit, then git add + git commit
Permission denied (publickey)	Add your SSH key to GitHub
non-fast-forward	Do git pull --rebase before pushing

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🧪 GitHub Tips for Teams

• Use Protected Branches
• Require Pull Requests before merge
• Use CODEOWNERS to assign reviewers
• Use Actions for automatic testing/deployments
• Add badges in README (build passing, license, etc.)

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📚 Cheat Sheet Resources

Resource	Link
Git CLI Cheat Sheet (PDF)	https://education.github.com/git-cheat-sheet-education.pdf
GitHub Docs	https://docs.github.com
Git SCM Docs	https://git-scm.com/doc
GitHub Learning Lab	https://lab.github.com
DevOpsSchool Git Blog	https://www.devopsschool.com/blog/category/git

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🏁 Final Words

Whether you’re writing solo projects or managing an enterprise CI/CD pipeline, Git + GitHub are tools you’ll use every day.

Master the basics. Learn to collaborate. Push fearlessly. Revert confidently.
That’s the power of version control.

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