git stash to save changes - Commands & Configuration

Introduction

Sometimes you start working on changes but need to switch tasks quickly without committing unfinished work. Git stash lets you save your current changes safely and come back to them later.

When you want to switch branches but have uncommitted changes that you don't want to commit yet

When you need to pull updates from a remote repository but your local changes would cause conflicts

When you want to try a quick fix or experiment without losing your current work

When you want to clean your working directory temporarily without losing your progress

When you want to save multiple sets of changes separately and apply them later

Commands

This command saves your current changes (both staged and unstaged) to a new stash and cleans your working directory so you can work on something else.

Terminal

git stash

Expected Output

Saved working directory and index state WIP on main: abc1234 Initial commit

Shows all the stashes you have saved so far, so you can see what changes are stored.

Terminal

git stash list

Expected Output

stash@{0}: WIP on main: abc1234 Initial commit

Restores the most recent stash changes back into your working directory without removing the stash from the list.

Terminal

git stash apply

Expected Output

No output (command runs silently)

Deletes the most recent stash from the stash list after you no longer need it.

Terminal

git stash drop

Expected Output

Dropped stash@{0} (WIP on main: abc1234 Initial commit)

Key Concept

If you remember nothing else, remember: git stash saves your unfinished work safely so you can switch tasks without losing progress.

Common Mistakes

Running git stash but forgetting to apply or pop the stash later

Your saved changes stay hidden and you might lose track of them or think they are gone.

Always run git stash apply or git stash pop to restore your changes when ready.

Using git stash without committing important changes first

If you accidentally drop or clear stashes, you lose work that was never committed.

Commit important changes before stashing to avoid accidental data loss.

Assuming git stash saves untracked files by default

Untracked files are not saved unless you use special flags, so they remain in your working directory.

Use git stash -u to include untracked files if needed.

Summary

git stash saves your current changes and cleans your working directory.

git stash list shows all saved stashes.

git stash apply restores changes without deleting the stash.

git stash drop deletes a stash when you no longer need it.

Practice

1. What does the git stash command do?

easy

A. Commits your changes permanently to the repository

B. Deletes all your untracked files

C. Temporarily saves your uncommitted changes to switch tasks

D. Creates a new branch from the current state

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of git stash

   The command saves your current uncommitted changes temporarily without committing them.

2. Step 2: Compare with other git commands

   Unlike commit, stash does not save changes permanently; it allows switching tasks without losing work.

3. Final Answer:

   Temporarily saves your uncommitted changes to switch tasks -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   git stash = temporary save [OK]

Hint: Stash saves changes temporarily without committing [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking stash commits changes permanently
• Confusing stash with branch creation
• Assuming stash deletes files

2. Which of the following is the correct command to save your current changes using git stash?

easy

A. git stash add

B. git stash save

C. git stash commit

D. git stash push

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the modern git stash command

   The recommended command to save changes is git stash push, which explicitly pushes changes to the stash.

2. Step 2: Eliminate incorrect options

   git stash save is deprecated, git stash commit and git stash add are invalid commands.

3. Final Answer:

   git stash push -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Use git stash push to save changes [OK]

Hint: Use 'git stash push' to save changes safely [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using deprecated 'git stash save'
• Trying 'git stash commit' which doesn't exist
• Confusing stash with add or commit commands

3. Given the following commands run in sequence:

git stash push -m "work in progress"
git stash list
git stash apply

What will be the output of git stash list?

medium

A. No stash entries found.

B. stash@{0}: On main: work in progress

C. Error: stash not found

D. stash@{1}: On main: work in progress

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the effect of git stash push -m "work in progress"

   This command saves current changes with the message "work in progress" as the latest stash entry.

2. Step 2: Check git stash list output

   Since this is the first stash, it appears as stash@{0}: On main: work in progress.

3. Final Answer:

   stash@{0}: On main: work in progress -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   First stash is stash@{0} with message [OK]

Hint: First stash is always stash@{0} in the list [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Expecting no stash entries after push
• Confusing stash@{0} with stash@{1}
• Assuming apply removes stash entry

4. You ran git stash push but accidentally included untracked files. Which command fixes this by stashing only tracked files?

medium

A. git stash push --keep-index

B. git stash push --only-tracked

C. git stash push --no-untracked

D. git stash push --include-untracked

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the problem with untracked files

   By default, git stash push does not stash untracked files unless specified.

2. Step 2: Identify the correct option to stash only tracked files

   --keep-index stashes changes but keeps the index intact, effectively ignoring untracked files.

3. Final Answer:

   git stash push --keep-index -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Use --keep-index to stash only tracked files [OK]

Hint: Use --keep-index to exclude untracked files from stash [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using --include-untracked adds untracked files instead of excluding
• Assuming --no-untracked or --only-tracked are valid options
• Confusing stash options with git add options

5. You have two stashes saved:

stash@{0}: On main: fix bug
stash@{1}: On main: add feature

You want to apply the older stash (add feature) but keep both stashes after applying. Which command should you use?

hard

A. git stash apply stash@{1}

B. git stash pop stash@{1}

C. git stash drop stash@{1}

D. git stash branch stash@{1}

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand difference between apply and pop

   git stash apply applies the stash but keeps it saved; git stash pop applies and removes it.

2. Step 2: Choose command to apply older stash without removing it

   Use git stash apply stash@{1} to apply the older stash and keep both stashes intact.

3. Final Answer:

   git stash apply stash@{1} -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Apply keeps stash, pop removes stash [OK]

Hint: Use 'git stash apply' to keep stash after applying [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using pop removes stash entry
• Dropping stash deletes it without applying
• Confusing branch command with apply