Viewing and Creating Branches

Viewing and Creating Branches

Goals

By the end of this lesson you should be able to

  • Use the git branch command to view, create, and delete branches in a repository
  • Use the git log command to see which commits branches are pointing to

The Branch Command

Listing and Creating Branches

The git branch command can be used to list or create branches.

$ git branch                     # list all branches in the repository
$ git branch <name> [<commit_id>]  # create a branch with the given name

When you create a new branch it will point to the commit specified by <commit_id>. If no <commit_id> is specified it will point to the same commit as HEAD.

List the branches in your repository:

$ git branch
* master

You have only one branch named master. The * indicates the current active branch.

Now create two new branches, one named mybranch pointing at HEAD and one named temp pointing at a previous commit of your choice, then list them:

$ git branch mybranch
$ git branch temp b2764  # You will need to use a different commit ID
$ git branch
* master
  mybranch
  temp

You now have three branches. The master branch is still the active branch.

Examining Branches using the Log

Recall that the git log command indicates any objects that are pointing to each commit.

Confirm that your new branches are pointing at the expected commits:

$ git log --oneline
08f4897 (HEAD -> master, tag: anothertag, mybranch) Renamed git.txt
714c41e Removed unnecessary files
39fa5fc Revert "Revert "Added note about the 'git add' command""
b2763fe (temp) Revert "Added note about the 'git add' command"
87af010 Added note about the 'git add' command
...

Note the following:

  • HEAD is pointing to master (this is what makes master the active branch)
  • mybranch and master point to the same commit
  • temp points to a previous commit

As you can see, the log output indicates which commit each branch is

Deleting Branches

The --delete or -d option can be used to remove a branch, as in

# Format for deleting a branch
$ git branch -d <name>

Delete the temp branch you just created

$ git branch -d temp
Deleted branch temp (was b2763fe).