TIPS: Drupal and Git repository management and versioning

Submitted by webel on Sat, 2014-06-21 22:42
Keywords
There was a world of version control suffering before Git, and then a nicer world after Git. Thanks Linus yet again !

From Wikipedia:

Git (/ɡɪt/ is a distributed revision control system with an emphasis on speed, data integrity, and support for distributed, non-linear workflows. Git was initially designed and developed by Linus Torvalds for Linux kernel development in 2005, and has since become the most widely adopted version control system for software development.

As with most other distributed revision control systems, and unlike most client–server systems, every Git working directory is a full-fledged repository with complete history and full version-tracking capabilities, independent of network access or a central server.

By far and away the best thing about Git compared to previous repository control systems is the ability to very easily create branches (such as small branches dedicated to fixing a specific problem or developing a feature) and then merge them back onto a main branch.

There are now more Git clients than you can poke a stick at, but my current favourite is Atlasssian SourceTree used in parallel with NetBeans IDE as my PHP coding environment for Drupal and the Git command line client, which work together completely seamlessly.

QUICK TIP: renaming a local Git branch: 
git branch -m <oldname> <newname>

If you want to rename the current branch, you can simply do:

git branch -m <newname>
QUICK TIP: Delete a branch both locally and remotely.

Locally:

git branch -D [branchname]

Remotely, old style (note the ':' colon):

git push origin :[branchname]

Since Git 1.7 clearer syntax option:

git push origin --delete [branchname]
Visit also

Backlinks:

Links (external)
Docs: Building a Drupal site with Git
Docs: Creating a branch or tag in Git
Docs: Creating a project release
Docs: Release naming conventions
Docs: What are alpha, beta releases and release candidates?
Docs: Git: Moving from a master to a major version branch
Docs: Making a Drupal patch with Git
Docs: Creating and testing full projects and releases [incl. full projects vs, sandbox[
Git ignore file for site builders
Handling the new .gitignore file in D7 and D8
GitHub: Generating SSH keys (and the 'pbcopy' trick)
How To Set Up SSH Keys
Git Book: 3.2 Git Branching - Basic Branching and Merging
Renaming a local branch
Git: Delete a branch (local or remote)
Delete a Git branch both locally and remotely
git-revert - Revert some existing commits
How to undo the last commit?
Atlassian SourceTree
Ignoring “Your local changes to the following files would be overwritten by merge” on pull
How do I resolve git saying “Commit your changes or stash them before you can merge”?
Force Git to overwrite local files on pull
Git pull error: Your local changes to the following files would be overwritten by merge:
How do I force Git to overwrite local files on pull?
Delete a Git branch both locally and remotely
Slideshow: git concepts simplified (by Sitaram Chamarty)
detached HEAD explained
Fix a Git detached head?
HOT TIP: Why did my Git repo enter a detached HEAD state ? [see answer images]
You are in detached HEAD state and how to fix in git
Git Tip of the Week: Detached Heads (2011)