Lesson 3: Basic Git Commands

What You'll Learn

In this lesson, you'll learn the three fundamental Git commands: git add, git commit, and how to check your repository's status. These are the commands you'll use most often.

The Three-Step Workflow

When working with Git, you typically follow this pattern:

1. Edit your files (work on your project)
2. Stage changes you want to save (git add)
3. Commit those changes (git commit)

Part 1: Staging Files with git add

The git add command moves files from your working directory to the staging area. Think of it as selecting which changes you want to include in your next snapshot.

Add a Single File

git add index.html

Add Multiple Files

git add index.html style.css

Add All Changed Files

git add .

The dot (.) means "everything in the current directory".

Check What You've Staged

git status

Files in the staging area will show as "Changes to be committed" in green.

Part 2: Committing Changes

Once you've staged your changes, you save them with git commit. Every commit needs a message describing what you changed.

Make a Commit

git commit -m "Add initial HTML structure"

The -m flag lets you add a message inline. Without it, Git opens a text editor.

Good Commit Messages

Part 3: Checking Status

The git status command is your best friend. Use it frequently to see:

• Which files have been modified
• Which files are staged
• Which files are untracked
• Which branch you're on

git status

Practice Exercise

Let's practice the complete workflow:

1. Make sure you're in your my-first-repo folder
2. Edit index.html - add a paragraph
3. Check status: git status
4. Stage the file: git add index.html
5. Check status again: git status
6. Commit: git commit -m "Add welcome paragraph"
7. Check status one more time: git status

Summary

What's Next?

In the next lesson, you'll learn more about commits - how to view your commit history, write better commit messages, and understand what makes a good commit.