When working with Git, it’s essential to review the changes you’re about to push to a remote repository. This helps ensure that you’re pushing the correct commits and avoids potential errors or conflicts. In this tutorial, we’ll explore various methods for previewing Git push changes, including command-line tools and graphical user interfaces (GUIs).
Using Command-Line Tools
Git provides several command-line tools to help you preview push changes. Here are a few examples:
git diff --stat --cached [remote/branch]: This command displays a list of files that will be pushed, along with the number of lines added or removed.git diff [remote repo/branch]: This command shows the code diff of the files to be pushed.git diff --numstat [remote repo/branch]: This command displays the full file paths of the files that will change.
For instance, if you want to push changes to the origin/master branch, you can use the following commands:
git diff --stat --cached origin/master
git diff origin/master
git diff --numstat origin/master
Using Git Cherry
Another useful command for previewing push changes is git cherry -v. This command lists the commits waiting to be pushed, showing the commit subjects next to the SHA1s.
git cherry -v
Using Git Push with Dry-Run
If you want to see what would happen if you pushed your changes without actually sending the data, you can use git push --dry-run. This command performs a dry run of the push operation, allowing you to review the changes before committing them.
git push --dry-run
Using Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs)
If you prefer a graphical interface for previewing push changes, there are several options available:
- Tig: A text-based GUI for Git that displays the current branch of your local copy and the branch of the remote or origin.
- Gitk: A GUI that comes with Git, which displays the commit history and allows you to select commits to compare.
To use Gitk, open a terminal in the branch you want to push and type:
gitk&
Then, to see the difference between what’s on the remote and what you’re about to push, select your local unpushed commit and right-click on the remote and choose "Diff this -> selected".
Using Difftool
If you want to display the unified diff of what’s on your current branch that is not on the origin/master branch yet in a graphical diff tool, you can use git difftool origin/master.... To be most up-to-date, run git fetch first.
git fetch
git difftool origin/master...
By using these command-line tools and GUIs, you can effectively preview your Git push changes and ensure that you’re pushing the correct commits to your remote repository.