git cherry-pick a single commit - Mini Project: Build & Apply

git cherry-pick a single commit

📖 Scenario: You are working on a project with two branches: main and feature. A useful commit was made on the feature branch, and you want to copy that exact commit into the main branch without merging all changes.

🎯 Goal: Learn how to use git cherry-pick to copy a single commit from one branch to another.

📋 What You'll Learn

Create a feature branch from main

Make a commit on feature branch with exact message and content

Switch back to main branch

Use git cherry-pick with the commit hash from feature branch

Verify the commit is applied on main branch

💡 Why This Matters

🌍 Real World

Cherry-picking is useful when you want to copy specific fixes or features from one branch to another without merging all changes. For example, applying a bug fix from a feature branch to the main production branch.

💼 Career

Understanding cherry-pick helps in managing code changes efficiently in team projects and production environments, a common task for developers and DevOps engineers.

1

Create a feature branch and make a commit

Create a new branch called feature from main using git checkout -b feature. Then create a file named feature.txt with the content Feature work. Stage and commit this file with the exact commit message Add feature.txt file.

Git

# Create and switch to feature branch
# Create feature.txt with content 'Feature work'
# Stage and commit with message 'Add feature.txt file'
# Your code here

Hint

Use git checkout -b feature to create and switch to the new branch. Use echo to create the file, then git add and git commit to save changes.

2

Switch back to main branch

Switch back to the main branch using git checkout main.

Git

git checkout -b feature

echo 'Feature work' > feature.txt

git add feature.txt

git commit -m "Add feature.txt file"

# Switch back to main branch
# Your code here

Hint

Use git checkout main to switch branches.

3

Find the commit hash on feature branch

Use git log feature --oneline -1 to find the latest commit hash on the feature branch. Assign this hash to a variable named commit_hash in your shell.

Git

git checkout -b feature

echo 'Feature work' > feature.txt

git add feature.txt

git commit -m "Add feature.txt file"

git checkout main

# Get the latest commit hash from feature branch and assign to commit_hash
# Your code here

Hint

Use git log feature --oneline -1 to get the latest commit on feature. Use shell command substitution to assign the hash.

4

Cherry-pick the commit onto main

Use git cherry-pick $commit_hash to apply the commit from feature branch onto main. Then use git log -1 --oneline to print the latest commit message on main branch.

Git

git checkout -b feature

echo 'Feature work' > feature.txt

git add feature.txt

git commit -m "Add feature.txt file"

git checkout main

commit_hash=$(git log feature --oneline -1 | cut -d' ' -f1)

# Cherry-pick the commit and print the latest commit message
# Your code here

Hint

Use git cherry-pick $commit_hash to copy the commit. Then git log -1 --oneline shows the latest commit message.

Practice

1. What does the git cherry-pick command do?

easy

A. Creates a new branch from the current commit

B. Deletes a commit from the current branch

C. Merges two branches completely

D. Copies a specific commit from another branch to the current branch

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of git cherry-pick

   The command is used to copy a single commit from one branch to another without merging all changes.

2. Step 2: Compare with other git commands

   Unlike merge, cherry-pick applies only one commit, not the entire branch history.

3. Final Answer:

   Copies a specific commit from another branch to the current branch -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   git cherry-pick = copy single commit [OK]

Hint: Cherry-pick copies one commit, not whole branch [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing cherry-pick with merge
• Thinking it deletes commits
• Assuming it creates branches

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to cherry-pick a commit with hash abc123?

easy

A. git cherry-pick abc123

B. git cherry-pick -m abc123

C. git cherry-pick --commit abc123

D. git cherry-pick commit abc123

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall the basic cherry-pick syntax

   The command is git cherry-pick <commit-hash> to apply a single commit.

2. Step 2: Check the options given

   Only git cherry-pick abc123 matches the correct syntax without extra or incorrect flags.

3. Final Answer:

   git cherry-pick abc123 -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Correct syntax = git cherry-pick commit_hash [OK]

Hint: Use git cherry-pick followed by commit hash [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Adding unnecessary flags
• Using incorrect keywords like 'commit'
• Confusing with merge options

3. Given the following commands run on branch main:

git checkout main
git cherry-pick 1a2b3c4

What will happen after these commands?

medium

A. The commit with hash 1a2b3c4 is applied to main branch

B. A new branch named 1a2b3c4 is created

C. The main branch is reset to commit 1a2b3c4

D. The commit 1a2b3c4 is deleted from the repository

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the effect of git cherry-pick

   Running git cherry-pick 1a2b3c4 applies that commit's changes onto the current branch, here main.

2. Step 2: Analyze other options

   No new branch is created, no reset happens, and commits are not deleted by cherry-pick.

3. Final Answer:

   The commit with hash 1a2b3c4 is applied to main branch -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Cherry-pick applies commit to current branch [OK]

Hint: Cherry-pick applies commit changes to current branch [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking it creates branches
• Confusing cherry-pick with reset
• Assuming it deletes commits

4. You run git cherry-pick abcdef but get a conflict error. What should you do next?

medium

A. Abort the cherry-pick with git cherry-pick --abort and try again

B. Manually resolve the conflicts, then run git cherry-pick --continue

C. Delete the conflicting files and commit

D. Run git reset --hard to fix the conflict

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand conflict during cherry-pick

   Conflicts mean git cannot automatically apply changes; manual resolution is needed.

2. Step 2: Resolve conflicts and continue

   After fixing conflicts in files, run git cherry-pick --continue to finish applying the commit.

3. Final Answer:

   Manually resolve the conflicts, then run git cherry-pick --continue -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Resolve conflicts + git cherry-pick --continue [OK]

Hint: Fix conflicts, then run git cherry-pick --continue [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Aborting without trying to fix
• Deleting files instead of resolving
• Using reset which discards changes

5. You want to apply a commit from branch feature to main without merging all changes. The commit hash is f1e2d3c. Which sequence of commands correctly does this?

hard

A. git checkout main
git merge f1e2d3c

B. git checkout feature
git cherry-pick f1e2d3c
git checkout main

C. git checkout main
git cherry-pick f1e2d3c

D. git checkout main
git rebase feature

Solution

1. Step 1: Switch to the target branch

   You must be on main to apply the commit there.

2. Step 2: Cherry-pick the specific commit

   Run git cherry-pick f1e2d3c to copy that commit from feature branch.

3. Step 3: Analyze other options

   Switching to feature, cherry-picking there, then switching back to main does not apply the commit to main, as cherry-pick affects the current branch. Merge and rebase apply entire branches, not a single commit.

4. Final Answer:

   git checkout main git cherry-pick f1e2d3c -> Option C

5. Quick Check:

   Checkout target branch + cherry-pick commit [OK]

Hint: Checkout target branch first, then cherry-pick commit [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Cherry-picking on wrong branch
• Using merge or rebase instead of cherry-pick
• Not switching branches before cherry-pick