Git: Branching, Merge, Rebase

DevOps, CI/CD & ToolingTopic 1 of 156 questions

Q1`git merge` vs `git rebase`, and what `stash` and `cherry-pick` do

Merge joins histories with a merge commit; rebase replays commits for a linear history; stash shelves uncommitted work; cherry-pick copies one specific commit.

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Q2`git reset` vs `git revert`, and what `git reflog` is

reset rewrites history by moving the branch pointer (local only), revert safely cancels a commit with a new inverse commit (shared-safe), and reflog is your safety net to recover lost commits.

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Q3Git branching across a development team: feature branches, PR flow, hotfix branches

Branch short-lived features off main, merge them back through reviewed pull requests, and cut hotfix branches from production for urgent fixes that flow back into main.

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Q4Git's four locations for code and the commands that move changes between them

Working directory, staging area, local repo, remote repo -- add stages, commit saves locally, push shares upward, and fetch or pull brings changes down.

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Q5Git branching strategy (GitFlow, trunk-based, feature branches) and why maintain separate production and development branches instead of a single branch with tags

Pick GitFlow for scheduled releases, trunk-based for continuous delivery, and keep production and development as separate branches so you can hotfix live code independently of unreleased work.

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Q6The difference between git merge, git rebase, and git cherry-pick, and when to use each

Merge joins branches with a merge commit preserving true history, rebase replays commits for a linear history but rewrites them, and cherry-pick copies specific individual commits – use merge on shared branches, rebase on private ones, cherry-pick to transplant a single fix.

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