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Git Interview-Questions-Answers
1. What is Git?
Git is a distributed version control system used for tracking changes in source code during
software development.
[Link] makes Git a Distributed Version Control System?
Git allows developers to work locally with full version history, then push changes to a remote
repository like GitHub.
[Link] Git and SVN.
Git is distributed and allows offline work; SVN is centralized and requires internet
connectivity.
[Link] is a Git repository?
It’s a storage space where Git tracks and saves all changes made to project files.
[Link] to initialize a Git repository?
git init initializes a new Git repository.
[Link] is a bare repository?
A Git repo without a working directory, typically used as a central shared repository.
git init --bare [Link]
• This way, the bare repository acts like a GitHub or GitLab repository, but hosted in-
house.
• Since the repo is not meant for editing or working in, having a working directory is
unnecessary.
• It avoids confusion or merge conflicts caused by someone accidentally editing files in
a shared repo.
[Link] do you configure Git user details globally?
git config --global [Link] "Your Name"
git config --global [Link] "your@[Link]"
[Link] to create aliases for Git commands?
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git config --global [Link] checkout makes git co work as git checkout.
[Link] does git clone do?
Downloads an entire remote repository to your local machine.
[Link] is the purpose of git add?
Moves changes from the working directory to the staging area.
[Link] is the staging area in Git?
An intermediate area to review and format commits before finalizing them.
[Link] to commit with both add and message in one step?
git commit -a -m "message"
[Link] to edit a commit message?
git commit --amend -m "New message"
[Link] to undo a commit but keep the changes staged?
git reset --soft HEAD~1
[Link] to remove a file from staging area?
git reset HEAD <filename>
[Link] between --soft, --mixed, and --hard reset?
• Soft: resets to commit, keeps changes staged
• Mixed: resets and unstages changes
• Hard: resets and discards changes
[Link] is HEAD in Git?
A pointer to the current branch reference.
[Link] is the purpose of .gitignore?
To exclude files from being tracked by Git.
[Link] to view the commit history?
git log
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git log --oneline
git log --author="user"
[Link] to compare two commits?
git diff commit1 commit2
[Link] to recover a deleted file?
git checkout -- <filename>
• Note : It discards local changes in a file
[Link] to create and switch to a new branch?
git checkout -b new_branch
[Link] to rename a branch?
git branch -m old_name new_name
[Link] to delete local and remote branches?
• Local: git branch -d branch_name
• Remote: git push origin --delete branch_name
[Link] to see all local and remote branches?
git branch -a
[Link] between git fetch and git pull?
git fetch
• Downloads commits, files, and references from the remote repository into your local
repository, but does not merge them into your working directory.
• Safe to use because it doesn't change your working files.
• Ideal when you want to see what others have changed before integrating it into your
code.
git pull
• It is essentially: git fetch + git merge
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• It fetches changes from the remote and then automatically merges them into your
current branch.
• Can cause merge conflicts if your local changes conflict with remote ones.
[Link] to fetch a remote branch without merging?
git fetch origin branch_name
[Link] to merge a branch?
Be in the target branch, then: git merge source_branch
[Link] causes a Git merge conflict?
When changes in the same line/file differ across merged branches.
[Link] to resolve merge conflicts?
Edit the file manually, then git add and git commit.
[Link] to abort a merge conflict?
git merge --abort
[Link] does git rm do?
Deletes files from working directory and stages the deletion.
33. How to check which branches have been merged into master?
git branch --merged
[Link] Git branching strategy you've used.
Feature, Task, and Release branching (explain with real project use).
[Link] is Git stash and when do you use it?
Temporarily stores changes not ready to commit. Useful when switching branches mid-work.
[Link] related to Git stash:
• Save: git stash save "msg"
• Apply: git stash apply stash@{0}
• Pop: git stash pop
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• List: git stash list
[Link] is git rebase different from git merge?
• Merge:
- Preserves full history with a merge commit
- Combine two branches, keeping both histories
- Collaborative work, preserves all contributions
• Rebase:
- Move (replay /rebase ) your changes onto another branch
- re-applies commits in a linear fashion; cleaner history
- Rewrites history – dangerous if used on public/shared branches
38. How to revert a commit?
git revert <commit_id>
[Link] to change the remote URL?
git remote set-url origin <new_url>
[Link] is a pull request (PR)?
A request to merge changes from one branch to another, usually with a code review.
[Link] is a fast-forward merge?
A merge where the target branch pointer is simply moved forward to the latest commit.
[Link] to force push changes?
git push origin branch_name --force
[Link] to tag a specific commit?
git tag v1.0 <commit_id>
Push tags: git push origin v1.0
[Link] between annotated and lightweight tags?
Annotated has metadata and is stored in Git history. Lightweight is just a pointer.
[Link] to list and delete tags?
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• List: git tag
• Delete: git tag -d tagname
[Link] is a detached HEAD state?
When HEAD points to a specific commit instead of a branch.
[Link] to cherry-pick a commit from another branch?
git cherry-pick <commit_id>
[Link] to rebase interactively?
git rebase -i HEAD~n to squash/reword commits.
[Link] do you lock a branch in GitHub?
In repository settings → Branches → Add branch protection rules.
[Link] to grant access to a GitHub repository?
Go to Settings → Collaborators → Invite user by GitHub username.
[Link] is the difference between git revert and git reset?
git revert
• Creates a new commit that undoes the changes made by a previous commit.
• Does NOT remove any commit from history.
• Safe to use in shared/public branches (like main or develop), because it preserves
history.
git reset
• Moves the HEAD and optionally updates the working directory and staging area.
• Can be destructive (especially with --hard), because it removes commits from history.
• Typically used in private branches or local development.
Common options:
git reset --soft : Keeps changes staged
git reset --mixed (default): Keeps changes in working directory
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git reset --hard : Discards all changes
[Link] are the steps to push your code to a central repo (e.g., GitHub)?
Answer: git init #### Initialize local repo
git add . #### Stage changes
git commit -m "message" #### Commit changes
git remote add origin #### Link to central repo
git push -u origin main #### Push code
53. git push vs git pull ?
git push
• You use it to share your code with others.
• Only works if your local branch is ahead of the remote.
Example:
git push origin main – pushes your local main to the remote origin.
git pull
• Combines git fetch + git merge.
• It brings in changes from the remote repository into your current branch.
Example:
git pull origin main – fetches and merges changes from origin/main.
54. GitHub vs Bitbucket ?
GitHub
• A popular platform for hosting Git repositories, especially used for open-source
projects.
• Owned by Microsoft and widely adopted by individual developers and the open-source
community.
• Strong features like GitHub Actions, Copilot, and seamless integration with VS Code.
Bitbucket
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• A Git repository hosting service designed for teams and enterprises.
• Owned by Atlassian, and integrates deeply with Jira, Trello, and Confluence.
• Offers Bitbucket Pipelines for built-in CI/CD, great for managing private team projects.
55. You have code on your local machine and have pushed it to a remote repository. Now
you want to push the same code to a different (new) remote repository. How can you
change the remote URL?
To change the remote repository URL
Check current remote URL:
git remote -v
Change the remote URL to the new repository:
git remote set-url origin <new-repo-url>
Replace with the URL of the new Git repository (e.g., from GitHub or Bitbucket).
git push origin main
(Use main or whatever your branch name is.)
git remote set-url origin [Link]
git push origin main
For More information:
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