Why cherry-pick is useful in Git - Test Your Understanding

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the command to copy a specific commit from another branch.

Git

git cherry-pick [1]

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

Arebase

Bcommit-hash

Cmerge

Dbranch-name

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using a branch name instead of a commit hash.

Trying to cherry-pick without specifying a commit.

The git cherry-pick command copies a specific commit identified by its commit hash from another branch into your current branch.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the sentence: Cherry-pick is useful when you want to {{BLANK_1}} a commit without merging the whole branch.

Git

Cherry-pick is useful when you want to [1] a commit without merging the whole branch.

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

Acopy

Bdelete

Cignore

Drevert

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Confusing cherry-pick with deleting or reverting commits.

Cherry-pick lets you copy a specific commit from another branch without merging all changes from that branch.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the command to cherry-pick commit abc123.

Git

git cherry-pick [1]

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

AHEAD

Bbranch-name

Cmerge

Dabc123

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using branch names or HEAD instead of commit hash.

The correct way to cherry-pick is by specifying the commit hash, like abc123.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a new branch and cherry-pick a commit.

Git

git checkout -b [1] && git cherry-pick [2]

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

Afeature-fix

Babc123

Cmaster

Ddevelop

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using existing branch names instead of new branch name.

Using branch names instead of commit hash for cherry-pick.

This command creates a new branch called feature-fix and then cherry-picks the commit abc123 onto it.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to cherry-pick multiple commits in sequence.

Git

git cherry-pick [1] [2] [3]

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

Aabc123

Bdef456

C789ghi

Dmaster

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Including branch names instead of commit hashes.

Using fewer or more commits than blanks.

This command cherry-picks three commits abc123, def456, and 789ghi in order onto the current branch.

Practice

1. What is the main purpose of the git cherry-pick command?

easy

A. To merge two branches completely

B. To create a new branch from a commit

C. To delete a branch safely

D. To copy specific commits from one branch to another

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand cherry-pick function

   git cherry-pick copies individual commits, not whole branches.

2. Step 2: Compare with other commands

   Merging combines all changes; cherry-pick selects specific commits only.

3. Final Answer:

   To copy specific commits from one branch to another -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Cherry-pick = copy commits [OK]

Hint: Cherry-pick copies commits, merge combines branches [OK]

Common Mistakes:

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

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

easy

A. git pick abc123

B. git cherry-pick abc123

C. git cherry abc123

D. git commit cherry abc123

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall cherry-pick syntax

   The correct command is git cherry-pick <commit-hash>.

2. Step 2: Check options for syntax errors

   The incorrect options use invalid git commands or wrong order such as 'git pick', 'git cherry', or 'git commit cherry'.

3. Final Answer:

   git cherry-pick abc123 -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Correct syntax = git cherry-pick [OK]

Hint: Use full command: git cherry-pick commit_hash [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using 'git cherry' instead of 'git cherry-pick'
• Omitting 'pick' keyword
• Mixing cherry-pick with commit command

3. Given the following scenario:
git log --oneline on branch feature shows:
1a2b3c Fix typo in README
4d5e6f Add new login feature

You run git checkout main and then git cherry-pick 4d5e6f.
What will happen on the main branch?

medium

A. No commits are copied, cherry-pick fails

B. Both commits are copied to main

C. Only the 'Add new login feature' commit is copied to main

D. The entire feature branch is merged into main

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the commit cherry-picked

   The command cherry-picks commit 4d5e6f which is 'Add new login feature'.

2. Step 2: Understand cherry-pick effect on main

   Only the specified commit is copied; other commits remain unchanged.

3. Final Answer:

   Only the 'Add new login feature' commit is copied to main -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Cherry-pick copies single commit [OK]

Hint: Cherry-pick copies one commit by hash [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming all commits from feature branch copy
• Thinking cherry-pick merges branches
• Believing cherry-pick fails without conflicts

4. You tried to cherry-pick a commit but got a conflict error. What is the best way to fix this?

medium

A. Manually resolve the conflict, then run git cherry-pick --continue

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

C. Delete the branch and recreate it

D. Run git merge --abort to fix cherry-pick conflicts

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand cherry-pick conflict handling

   When conflicts occur, you must manually fix them in files.

2. Step 2: Continue cherry-pick after resolving conflicts

   After fixing, run git cherry-pick --continue to finish the process.

3. Final Answer:

   Manually resolve the conflict, then run git cherry-pick --continue -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Fix conflicts + cherry-pick continue [OK]

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

Common Mistakes:

• Using git merge commands to fix cherry-pick conflicts
• Aborting without trying to resolve conflicts
• Deleting branches unnecessarily

5. You have a bug fix commit on branch hotfix that you want to apply to both main and develop branches without merging all changes from hotfix. What is the best approach?

hard

A. Use git cherry-pick to copy the bug fix commit to both branches

B. Merge hotfix into main and develop

C. Rebase hotfix onto main and develop

D. Create a patch file and apply it manually

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the need to apply a single commit selectively

   You want only the bug fix commit, not all changes from hotfix.

2. Step 2: Choose cherry-pick for selective commit copying

   git cherry-pick copies specific commits to multiple branches without merging entire branches.

3. Final Answer:

   Use git cherry-pick to copy the bug fix commit to both branches -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Cherry-pick = selective commit copy [OK]

Hint: Cherry-pick copies single commits to multiple branches easily [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Merging whole branches causing unwanted changes
• Using rebase which rewrites history
• Manually patching which is error-prone