Clean vs dirty working directory in Git - Interactive Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the command to check the status of your working directory.

Git

git [1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Astatus

Bpush

Cclone

Dcommit

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'git commit' instead of 'git status' to check changes.

Trying 'git push' which sends commits to remote but doesn't show local changes.

The git status command shows if your working directory is clean or dirty by listing changes.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the command to discard changes in a single file and restore it to the last committed state.

Git

git checkout -- [1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Abranch

Bfilename

Cremote

Dcommit

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'branch' or 'commit' instead of the actual file name.

Omitting the file name, which causes an error.

Using git checkout -- filename discards changes in that file, making the working directory clean for it.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the command to stage all changed files for commit.

Git

git [1] .

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Aadd

Bcommit

Cpush

Dstatus

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'git commit .' which tries to commit without staging.

Using 'git push .' which sends commits to remote but doesn't stage files.

The git add . command stages all changes in the current directory, preparing them for commit.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill the blank to create a command that shows only the names of files that have changed but are not staged.

Git

git diff [1]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

A--all

B--cached

C--staged

D--name-only

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using '--cached' or '--staged' which shows staged changes instead.

Using '--all' which is not a valid option here.

The git diff --name-only command shows only the names of files that have unstaged changes (changed but not staged).

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a command that resets the index and working directory to the last commit, discarding all changes.

Git

git reset --[1] && git checkout [2] -- [3]

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

Ahard

BHEAD

C.

Dsoft

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using 'soft' reset which does not discard working directory changes.

Forgetting to specify 'HEAD' or the path '.' in checkout.

git reset --hard resets the index and working directory. git checkout HEAD -- . restores all files to last commit state, cleaning the working directory.

Practice

1. What does it mean when your Git working directory is described as clean?

easy

A. There are conflicts from a merge.

B. There are untracked files present.

C. There are changes staged but not committed.

D. There are no changes to commit; all files are saved in Git.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the meaning of a clean working directory

   A clean working directory means no changes are pending to be committed or staged.

2. Step 2: Compare with other states

   Untracked files, staged changes, or conflicts mean the directory is dirty, not clean.

3. Final Answer:

   There are no changes to commit; all files are saved in Git. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Clean working directory = no uncommitted changes [OK]

Hint: Clean means no changes to commit or stage [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing staged changes with clean state
• Thinking untracked files mean clean
• Assuming conflicts mean clean

2. Which Git command correctly shows the current state of your working directory?

easy

A. git push origin main

B. git commit -m "status"

C. git status

D. git checkout

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the command to check working directory state

   The command git status shows staged, unstaged, and untracked changes.

2. Step 2: Eliminate other commands

   git commit saves changes, git push uploads commits, git checkout switches branches or files.

3. Final Answer:

   git status -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Check working directory state = git status [OK]

Hint: Use 'git status' to see working directory changes [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using git commit to check status
• Confusing git push with status check
• Using git checkout incorrectly

3. You run git status and see:

Changes not staged for commit:
  modified:   app.js

What is the state of your working directory?

medium

A. Dirty working directory with unstaged changes

B. Dirty working directory with staged changes

C. Clean working directory

D. Detached HEAD state

Solution

1. Step 1: Interpret the git status output

   The message "Changes not staged for commit" means files are modified but not added to staging.

2. Step 2: Determine working directory state

   Unstaged changes mean the directory is dirty, not clean, and changes are not staged.

3. Final Answer:

   Dirty working directory with unstaged changes -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Unstaged changes = dirty directory [OK]

Hint: Unstaged changes mean dirty directory [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing unstaged with staged changes
• Assuming clean when files are modified
• Mixing detached HEAD with working directory state

4. You see this output after running git status:

On branch main
Changes to be committed:
  modified:   index.html

But you want to check if your working directory is clean. What should you do?

medium

A. Run git reset HEAD index.html to unstage changes

B. Run git commit to save changes

C. Run git add index.html again

D. Run git checkout index.html to stage changes

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the meaning of staged changes

   "Changes to be committed" means files are staged but not committed, so directory is dirty.

2. Step 2: Unstage changes to check clean state

   Running git reset HEAD index.html unstages the file, showing if working directory has unstaged changes.

3. Final Answer:

   Run git reset HEAD index.html to unstage changes -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Unstage changes to check clean state [OK]

Hint: Unstage files with git reset HEAD to check clean state [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Adding files again instead of unstaging
• Committing without checking unstaged changes
• Using git checkout to stage files (wrong)

5. You modified two files: app.py and README.md. You staged app.py but not README.md. What will git status show?

hard

A. No changes to commit, working directory clean

B. Changes to be committed: app.py; Changes not staged for commit: README.md

C. Changes not staged for commit: app.py and README.md

D. Untracked files: app.py and README.md

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify staged and unstaged files

   app.py is staged, so it appears under "Changes to be committed".

2. Step 2: Identify unstaged files

   README.md is modified but not staged, so it appears under "Changes not staged for commit".

3. Final Answer:

   Changes to be committed: app.py; Changes not staged for commit: README.md -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Staged vs unstaged files shown separately [OK]

Hint: Staged files show as 'to be committed', unstaged as 'not staged' [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming all modified files are staged
• Confusing untracked with modified files
• Thinking working directory is clean with staged changes