Git Basics Lab

Learning Goals

• Understand how to complete labs on Learn
• Apply what you've learned about Git version control
• Initialize a new Git repository
• Stage and commit new content
• Create a remote repository on GitHub
• Connect the newly create local repository with the remote on GitHub

Introduction

So far lessons have only contained written content on specific topics. All you needed to do was read through each lesson and continue on. This lesson, however, is considered a lab. Labs are exercises that have some written content to guide you, but also contain tests that must be passed in order to complete the lesson.

Now that you've learned about Git version control, in this lab, we're going to go through the entire process of creating a local Git repository, creating an initial commit and pushing that work to a remote repo stored on GitHub.

Note: If you are new to using Learn.co and this is your first lab, welcome! This lesson will include all the steps necessary to submit your lab work to Learn.co.

Getting Started

To start work on this lab, while on Learn.co, click the "Open IDE" button.

If you are using the in-browser Learn IDE, the IDE will open on the page

If you are using the Learn IDE on your computer, the IDE should open automatically

If you are using your own local environment set up, you will need to manually fork and clone this lesson. Click on the GitHub button next to "Open IDE" to visit this lab's repository. Once there, create a personal fork of the repo and clone it down

Once you've got the lesson open, run learn in the command line. Six failed tests should print out, starting with this:

this lab
  1) has a folder named my-repository
  2) has a valid git repository initialized for the my-repository folder
  3) has a README.md file in the my-repository folder

the local repository
  4) has README.md as a tracked file
  5) has at least one commit
  6) has been pushed up to the remote repository


0 passing (42ms)
6 failing

1) this lab
     has a folder named my-repository:
   AssertionError: no folder name "my-repository" was found: value: expected './my-repository' to exist
    at Function.<anonymous> (node_modules/chai-fs/lib/assertions/directory.js:21:53)
    at Function.ctx.(anonymous function) [as directory] (node_modules/chai/lib/chai/utils/addMethod.js:41:25)
    at Function.assert.isDirectory (node_modules/chai-fs/lib/assertions/directory.js:34:35)
    at Context.it (test/index-test.js:11:19)
    ...

Each failed test includes an explanation. In the first test seen above, for instance, it says this lab has a folder name my-repository, followed by AssertionError: no folder name "my-repository" was found. This test is looking specifically for a folder, my-repository, to exist inside this lab. To pass this test, create a folder by that name and run learn again. If successful, you should only see five failed tests. One down, five more to go.

Instructions

To get all tests passing in this lab, follow the steps below, applying commands you've learned in the previous lessons. You can track your progress in the lab at any time by running learn to see what tests are passing and failing.

Note: You must be in the main repository folder of this lesson to run the tests. If you navigate into a new folder, make sure to use cd .. until you're back in the git-basics-lab folder before running learn.

Steps

1. Create a new folder locally named my-repository. This folder should be side by side with the test folder of this lab.

2. Navigate into the new folder using cd on the command line.

3. While inside my-repository, using the command line, initialize a new git repository. You'll know you've done it if you see 'Initialized empty Git repository in <...your local directory>/my-repository/.git/'

4. Create a README.md file inside my-repository.

5. If you run git status in your command line, you should see that README.md is now listed as an untracked file. Add README.md so that it is tracked by Git.

6. Once the file is tracked, running git status again will show that README.md is staged and ready to be committed. Go ahead and create a commit in the command line (don't forget to add -m when committing to include a message!)

   Note: If you forget to include -m on when committing, you'll find you've opened vi, the built in terminal text editor. To escape out of this editor, press the 'esc' key once, then type :x! to close the editor and return to the normal terminal.

7. Create a remote repository on GitHub using your personal GitHub account. When creating a blank repository, you will be given instructions for pushing an existing repository from the command line. Copy the first line (git remote add origin...) and run in your command line to connect your local repository with the new remote one.

8. Push up your local work to the remote.

After you've completed all the steps, run learn to confirm all tests are passing. If some of the tests fail, follow the messages provided by each failing test to fix them. If all tests are passing, when you run learn, Learn.co will be notified and register that you've passed the tests.

Once you've passed all tests, run learn submit to register completion of this lab on Learn.co.

Conclusion

As you become more comfortable with the terminal and Git, you'll find yourself using the workflow of initializing, adding, committing and pushing your work on a regular basis. These commands are at the core of Git version control. By knowing them, you now have the ability to create your own repositories and contribute to repositories that already exist.

Fun Fact: All Learn.co lessons, including this lab, are themselves public repositories on GitHub. Although some of the steps are not obvious, when opening this lesson in the Learn IDE, you are actually forking the repository and cloning it down. When you've passed all tests and run learn submit, you're pushing your work up to your own remote (and submitting something called a pull request to the original lab repo). If you ever want to look back on how you solved a previous lab, they're all available on your personal GitHub account.

View Git Remotes + GitHub Code-Along on Learn.co and start learning to code for free.