git merge command - Mini Project: Build & Apply

Using the git merge Command

📖 Scenario: You are working on a project with two branches: main and feature. You want to combine the changes from the feature branch into the main branch to update the main project with new features.

🎯 Goal: Learn how to use the git merge command to combine changes from one branch into another safely and correctly.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a new branch called feature from main

Make a commit on the feature branch

Switch back to the main branch

Merge the feature branch into main using git merge

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Merging branches is a daily task in software development to combine new features or fixes into the main project code.

💼 Career

Understanding how to merge branches correctly is essential for collaboration in teams and managing code changes safely.

1

Create the feature branch and make a commit

Create a new branch called feature from main using git branch feature. Then switch to the feature branch using git checkout feature. Finally, create a new file called feature.txt with the content New feature added and commit it with the message Added feature.txt.

Git

# Create the feature branch and switch to it
# Create feature.txt with content 'New feature added'
# Commit the new file with message 'Added feature.txt'

Need a hint?

Use git branch to create the branch, git checkout to switch, then create and commit the file.

2

Switch back to the main branch

Switch back to the main branch using git checkout main.

Git

git branch feature
git checkout feature
echo "New feature added" > feature.txt
git add feature.txt
git commit -m "Added feature.txt"
# Switch back to main branch below

Need a hint?

Use git checkout main to switch back to the main branch.

3

Merge the feature branch into main

Use the git merge feature command to merge the changes from the feature branch into the main branch.

Git

git branch feature
git checkout feature
echo "New feature added" > feature.txt
git add feature.txt
git commit -m "Added feature.txt"
git checkout main
# Merge feature branch into main below

Need a hint?

Run git merge feature while on the main branch to combine changes.

4

Verify the merge result

Run git log --oneline and cat feature.txt to verify that the feature.txt file from the feature branch is now in the main branch.

Git

git branch feature
git checkout feature
echo "New feature added" > feature.txt
git add feature.txt
git commit -m "Added feature.txt"
git checkout main
git merge feature
# Verify the merge by showing git log and content of feature.txt

Need a hint?

Use git log --oneline to see commits and cat feature.txt to see the file content.