Git & GitHub Archives - Page 7 Of 7

Essential Linux Commands for Git Terminal

📁 1. File & Directory Navigation

1. `pwd`

Description: Shows the current working directory path.

pwd

2. `ls`

Description: Lists files and directories.

ls
ls -la   # detailed list including hidden files

3. `cd`

Description: Changes directory.

cd project-folder
cd ..        # move up one directory
cd ~         # go to home directory

📂 2. File & Directory Management

4. `mkdir`

Description: Creates a new directory.

mkdir my-repo

5. `rmdir`

Description: Removes an empty directory.

rmdir my-repo

6. `rm`

Description: Deletes files or directories.

rm file.txt
rm -r folder/    # remove directory recursively

7. `cp`

Description: Copies files or directories.

cp file.txt backup.txt
cp -r folder/ new-folder/

8. `mv`

Description: Moves or renames files.

mv file.txt newname.txt
mv file.txt folder/

📝 3. File Viewing & Editing

9. `cat`

Description: Displays file content.

cat README.md

10. `less`

Description: Views large files page by page.

less README.md

11. `nano`

Description: Simple terminal text editor.

nano file.txt

12. `vim`

Description: Advanced text editor.

vim file.txt

🔍 4. Search & Filtering

13. `grep`

Description: Searches text in files.

grep "function" file.js

14. `find`

Description: Finds files/directories.

find . -name "index.js"

⚙️ 5. Permissions & Ownership

15. `chmod`

Description: Changes file permissions.

chmod 755 script.sh

16. `chown`

Description: Changes file ownership.

chown user:user file.txt

🌐 6. Networking (Useful for Git)

17. `ssh`

Description: Connects securely to remote servers (used for GitHub SSH).

ssh -T git@github.com

18. `curl`

Description: Transfers data from URLs.

curl https://api.github.com

🧰 7. Archive & Compression

19. `tar`

Description: Creates/extracts archives.

tar -cvf project.tar folder/
tar -xvf project.tar

20. `zip` / `unzip`

Description: Compresses and extracts zip files.

zip -r project.zip folder/
unzip project.zip

🧪 8. System & Process Commands

21. `clear`

Description: Clears the terminal screen.

clear

22. `history`

Description: Shows previously used commands.

history

23. `top`

Description: Displays running processes.

top

🔄 How These Help in Git Workflow

When working with Git, these Linux commands help you:

Navigate to repositories (cd, ls)
Create/manage project files (mkdir, rm, cp)
Edit code before committing (nano, vim)
Inspect changes (cat, less)
Search code (grep, find)
Handle SSH authentication (ssh)

🚀 Example Git Workflow with Linux Commands

mkdir my-project
cd my-project
git inittouch README.md
nano README.mdgit add .
git commit -m "Initial commit"

Github Interview Questions And Answers

1. What is GitHub? How is it different from Git?

👉 Answer:

Git is a distributed version control system used to track code changes.
GitHub is a cloud-based platform that hosts Git repositories and adds collaboration features.

👉 Use Case:
In a team project, developers use Git locally and push code to GitHub for collaboration, reviews, and CI/CD.

2. What is a Repository?

👉 Answer:
A repository (repo) is a storage space for your project that contains code, files, and version history.

👉 Use Case:
You create a repo for a Playwright automation project where all test scripts, configs, and reports are stored.

3. What is the difference between Fork and Clone?

👉 Answer:

Fork: Copy of someone else’s repo into your GitHub account.
Clone: Copy of a repo to your local machine.

👉 Use Case:

Fork: Contributing to open-source.
Clone: Working on your team project locally.

4. What is a Branch?

👉 Answer:
A branch is a separate line of development.

👉 Use Case:
You create:

main → production code
feature/login-test → new feature work

5. What is a Pull Request (PR)?

👉 Answer:
A PR is a request to merge changes from one branch to another.

👉 Use Case:
QA automation engineer raises a PR after adding test cases → Developer reviews → merges into main.

6. What is Merge Conflict?

👉 Answer:
Occurs when Git cannot automatically merge changes.

👉 Use Case:
Two developers modify the same file → conflict → manually resolved before merge.

7. What is GitHub Actions?

👉 Answer:
A CI/CD tool in GitHub used to automate workflows.

👉 Use Case:

Run Playwright tests automatically on every PR
Deploy app after merge

8. What is .gitignore?

👉 Answer:
A file that specifies which files Git should ignore.

👉 Use Case:
Ignore:

node_modules/
test-results/
.env

9. What is Git Workflow (Branching Strategy)?

👉 Answer:
A process defining how teams use branches.

👉 Common strategies:

Git Flow
Feature Branch Workflow

👉 Use Case:

Create feature branch
Push code
Raise PR
Review → Merge

10. What is Staging in Git?

👉 Answer:
Intermediate area before committing changes.

👉 Commands:

git add .
git commit -m "message"

👉 Use Case:
You selectively add only required files before committing.

11. Difference between Commit and Push?

👉 Answer:

Commit: Save changes locally
Push: Upload changes to GitHub

👉 Use Case:
You commit multiple times locally → push once after testing.

12. What is Rebase vs Merge?

👉 Answer:

Merge: Keeps history (creates merge commit)
Rebase: Rewrites history (linear)

👉 Use Case:
Rebase keeps clean commit history before merging feature branch.

13. What is Tag in Git?

👉 Answer:
A tag marks a specific version of code.

👉 Use Case:
Mark releases like:

v1.0
v2.0

14. What is Git Stash?

👉 Answer:
Temporarily saves uncommitted changes.

👉 Use Case:
You are working on a feature but need to switch branches quickly.

15. What is Code Review in GitHub?

👉 Answer:
Process of reviewing code before merging.

👉 Use Case:

Developer checks logic
QA verifies test coverage
Ensures code quality

🔹 Scenario-Based GitHub Interview Questions

16. You pushed wrong code to main branch. What will you do?

👉 Answer:

Revert commit:

git revert <commit-id>

Reset (if safe):

git reset --hard HEAD~1

👉 Best Practice:
Avoid direct commits to main → use PR workflow.

17. Multiple developers working on same feature. How to manage?

👉 Answer:

Use feature branches
Regularly pull latest changes
Resolve conflicts early

👉 Use Case:
Each dev works on sub-features → merged via PR.

18. How do you handle large files in GitHub?

👉 Answer:
Use Git LFS (Large File Storage).

👉 Use Case:
Store large test data or binaries.

19. How do you secure sensitive data in GitHub?

👉 Answer:

Never commit secrets
Use GitHub Secrets
Use .gitignore

👉 Use Case:
Store API keys in environment variables.

20. Explain CI/CD pipeline using GitHub Actions

👉 Answer:

Code pushed to GitHub
Workflow triggers
Build runs
Tests execute
Deploy

👉 Use Case:
Playwright tests run automatically on every commit.

🔹 Advanced Practical Questions

21. How do you revert a specific file to previous version?

git checkout <commit-id> -- file.js

22. How do you squash commits?

git rebase -i HEAD~3

👉 Combine multiple commits into one.

23. What is Detached HEAD?

👉 Answer:
When you’re not on any branch.

👉 Use Case:
Checking old commit without affecting current branch.

24. How do you delete a branch?

git branch -d branch-name
git push origin --delete branch-name

25. What is Upstream in Git?

👉 Answer:
Reference to original repository (especially in forks).

👉 Use Case:
Keep your fork updated with original repo.

Mock Interview: GitHub (Real Company Style)

🔹 Round 1: Basics + Practical Understanding

❓ Q1: Explain your GitHub workflow in your current project.

👉 Strong Answer:

“We follow a feature branch workflow. Each task starts with a new branch from main. After development, we push code and raise a pull request. CI runs automatically using GitHub Actions. After code review and approvals, we merge into main. Direct commits to main are restricted.”

👉 What interviewer checks:

Real experience
Collaboration understanding
CI/CD awareness

❓ Q2: What happens when you run `git push`?

👉 Strong Answer:

“It uploads local commits from my machine (using Git) to the remote repository on GitHub, making them available to the team.”

👉 Follow-up trap:
👉 “What if push is rejected?”

✔️ Answer:

“It usually means my branch is behind. I pull the latest changes, resolve conflicts if any, and push again.”

🔹 Round 2: Scenario-Based Questions

❓ Q3: You and another developer changed the same file. Your PR shows conflict. What do you do?

👉 Strong Answer:

“I pull the latest changes from main, resolve conflicts locally, test the code, commit the fix, and push again to update the PR.”

👉 Bonus point:
Mention testing after conflict resolution.

❓ Q4: You accidentally pushed sensitive data (API key) to GitHub. What will you do?

👉 Strong Answer:

“First, I revoke the key immediately. Then I remove it from the repository, rewrite history if needed, and ensure it’s added to .gitignore. Going forward, I store secrets using GitHub Secrets.”

👉 What interviewer checks:

Security awareness
Real-world handling

❓ Q5: Your teammate’s PR broke the build. What should happen?

👉 Strong Answer:

“The CI pipeline should fail automatically. The PR should not be merged until the issue is fixed. We enforce required checks before merging.”

👉 Extra credit:
Mention branch protection rules.

🔹 Round 3: CI/CD + Automation (Very Important)

❓ Q6: How do you integrate automation tests with GitHub?

👉 Strong Answer:

“We use GitHub Actions to trigger Playwright tests on every PR. The workflow installs dependencies, runs tests, and publishes reports.”

👉 Example flow:

PR created
Tests run automatically
Pass → merge allowed
Fail → fix required

❓ Q7: How do you ensure code quality before merging?

👉 Strong Answer:

“We use a combination of:

Pull request reviews
Automated tests
Linting checks
CI validation

Only after all checks pass, the PR is merged.”

🔹 Round 4: Advanced Problem Solving

❓ Q8: Your `main` branch is broken after a merge. What will you do?

👉 Strong Answer:

“I would quickly identify the faulty commit and revert it using git revert. Then fix the issue in a new branch and raise another PR.”

👉 Important:
Avoid rewriting history in shared branches.

❓ Q9: How do you handle multiple environments (dev, staging, prod)?

👉 Strong Answer:

“We use different branches or deployment workflows. For example:

develop → dev environment
main → production
CI/CD pipelines deploy automatically based on branch.”

❓ Q10: How do you manage large teams working on the same repo?

👉 Strong Answer:

“We use:

Feature branches
Clear naming conventions
Code owners
Mandatory PR reviews
CI/CD checks

This ensures smooth collaboration and avoids conflicts.”

🔹 Round 5: Rapid Fire (Quick Checks)

❓ Difference between Fork and Clone?

👉 Fork = copy on GitHub
👉 Clone = copy on local machine

❓ What is HEAD in Git?

👉 Pointer to the current commit/branch

❓ What is Rebase?

👉 Rewrites commit history to make it linear

❓ What is Stash?

👉 Temporarily saves uncommitted changes

❓ What is a Tag?

👉 Marks a release/version

🔹 Real Interview Challenge (Hands-On Thinking)

❓ Q11: Design a GitHub workflow for automation testing.

👉 Strong Answer:

“I would:

Trigger workflow on PR and push
Install dependencies
Run Playwright tests
Generate reports
Upload artifacts
Fail build if tests fail

This ensures only tested code gets merged.”

🔹 Final HR + Practical Question

❓ Q12: Tell me a real problem you faced in GitHub and how you solved it.

👉 Sample Answer:

“We had frequent merge conflicts due to long-running branches. I suggested smaller PRs and frequent rebasing. This reduced conflicts and improved deployment speed.”

GitHub Fundamentals

1. What is GitHub?

GitHub is a platform to store, manage, and collaborate on code.
It uses Git (a version control system).

👉 Think of GitHub as:

“Google Drive for code + collaboration tools for developers”

2. What is Git?

Git tracks changes in your code.
Helps you:
- Save versions
- Undo mistakes
- Work with teams

3. Repository (Repo)

A repository is a project folder stored on GitHub.

Example:

my-project/
 ├── index.html
 ├── style.css
 └── script.js

👉 This entire folder = 1 repository

4. Clone a Repository

Copy a GitHub repo to your local machine.

Command:

git clone https://github.com/user/project.git

Example:

git clone https://github.com/deepesh/my-app.git

5. Basic Git Workflow

The most important concept 👇

Working Directory → Staging Area → Repository

Steps:

git add file.js      # Add file to staging
git commit -m "Added feature"   # Save changes
git push            # Upload to GitHub

6. Commit

A commit is a snapshot of your code.

Example:

git commit -m "Fixed login bug"

👉 Good commit message = clear + meaningful

7. Branch

A branch lets you work on features without affecting main code.

Example:

git branch feature-login
git checkout feature-login

Or shortcut:

git checkout -b feature-login

8. Merge

Combine changes from one branch into another.

Example:

git checkout main
git merge feature-login

9. Pull Request (PR)

A Pull Request is used to merge code on GitHub.
You request others to review your code.

👉 Workflow:

Create branch
Push code
Open PR
Review → Merge

10. Push & Pull

Push (upload changes):

git push origin main

Pull (get latest changes):

git pull origin main

11. Fork

A fork is a copy of someone else’s repository.

👉 Used in open-source contributions.

12. .gitignore

Tells Git which files to ignore.

Example:

node_modules/
.env
*.log

13. Real Example Workflow

Let’s say you’re building a JavaScript project:

Step 1: Initialize repo

git init

Step 2: Add files

git add .

Step 3: Commit

git commit -m "Initial project setup"

Step 4: Connect GitHub

git remote add origin https://github.com/user/project.git

Step 5: Push

git push -u origin main

14. Common Commands Cheat Sheet

Command	Purpose
`git init`	Start repo
`git clone`	Copy repo
`git add`	Stage changes
`git commit`	Save changes
`git push`	Upload
`git pull`	Download updates
`git branch`	List branches
`git checkout`	Switch branch

15. Best Practices

✅ Commit often
✅ Use clear commit messages
✅ Use branches for features
✅ Pull before push
❌ Don’t push sensitive data

🎯 Mini Practice Exercise

Try this:

Create a folder
Add a file app.js
Run:
Push it to GitHub

git init
git add .
git commit -m "First commit"
git push

Pro Tip

Start with:

Personal projects
Practice branching + PRs

That’s how real developers learn GitHub fast.

16. GitHub Issues (Task Tracking)

Issues are used to track bugs, tasks, or feature requests.

Example:

You create an issue:

Title: Fix login error
Description: Login fails when password is incorrect

👉 You can:

Assign team members
Add labels (bug, feature, urgent)
Track progress

📌 17. Labels (Organizing Work)

Labels help categorize issues.

Example labels:

bug 🐛
enhancement 🚀
documentation 📄

👉 Helps teams quickly understand task types.

📊 18. GitHub Projects (Kanban Board)

GitHub provides project boards similar to Trello.

Example workflow:

To Do → In Progress → Done

👉 You can drag issues between columns.

🔐 19. README.md File

This is the first file people see in your repo.

Example:

# My AppThis is a simple JavaScript project.## Features
- Login system
- Dashboard

👉 A good README increases project visibility.

⚙️ 20. GitHub Actions (Automation)

GitHub Actions lets you automate workflows.

Example:

Run tests automatically when code is pushed.

name: Test App
on: [push]jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - run: echo "Running tests..."

👉 Used for:

CI/CD (Continuous Integration / Deployment)
Auto testing
Deployment

🔁 21. Pull vs Fetch

Git Pull:

git pull origin main

👉 Fetch + merge

Git Fetch:

git fetch

👉 Only downloads changes (no merge)

🔄 22. Merge Conflict (Important!)

Occurs when Git can’t merge automatically.

Example conflict:

<<<<<<< HEAD
console.log("Hello");
=======
console.log("Hi");
>>>>>>> branch

👉 You must manually fix it:

console.log("Hello Hi");

Then:

git add .
git commit -m "Resolved conflict"

🧪 23. Stash (Temporary Save)

Save changes without committing.

git stash

Restore:

git stash pop

👉 Useful when switching branches quickly.

📜 24. Git Log (History)

View commit history:

git log

Short version:

git log --oneline

⏪ 25. Undo Changes

Undo staged file:

git reset file.js

Undo last commit:

git reset --soft HEAD~1

Discard changes:

git checkout -- file.js

🌐 26. Remote Repository

Link your local repo to GitHub.

git remote add origin https://github.com/user/repo.git

Check:

git remote -v

🔒 27. SSH vs HTTPS

Two ways to connect GitHub:

HTTPS:

https://github.com/user/repo.git

SSH:

git@github.com:user/repo.git

👉 SSH is more secure (no need to enter password repeatedly)

📦 28. Fork + Clone + PR (Real Open Source Flow)

Step-by-step:

Fork repository on GitHub
Clone it:

git clone https://github.com/your-username/repo.git

Create branch:

git checkout -b fix-bug

Make changes + commit
Push:

git push origin fix-bug

Create Pull Request

👉 This is how open-source contributions work.

🧱 29. Rebase (Advanced Concept)

Instead of merge, you can use rebase for cleaner history.

git checkout feature
git rebase main

👉 Keeps history linear (no extra merge commits)

🏷️ 30. Tags (Versioning)

Used for releases.

git tag v1.0
git push origin v1.0

👉 Example:

v1.0 → first release
v2.0 → major update

Real-World Scenario (Important)

Scenario: Team Development

Developer A creates feature branch
Developer B works on another branch
Both create Pull Requests
Code review happens
Merge into main

👉 This prevents breaking the main codebase.

🧠 Pro Learning Tips

Practice daily with small repos
Break code → fix using Git
Try merge conflicts intentionally
Explore open-source repos

💻 Practice Tasks (Next Level)

Try these:

Create 2 branches and merge them
Create a merge conflict and resolve it
Use git stash while switching branches
Create a Pull Request on your own repo
Add a README with project details

📁 1. File & Directory Navigation

1. pwd

2. ls

3. cd

📂 2. File & Directory Management

4. mkdir

5. rmdir

6. rm

7. cp

8. mv

📝 3. File Viewing & Editing

9. cat

10. less

11. nano

12. vim

🔍 4. Search & Filtering

13. grep

14. find

⚙️ 5. Permissions & Ownership

15. chmod

16. chown

🌐 6. Networking (Useful for Git)

17. ssh

18. curl

🧰 7. Archive & Compression

19. tar

20. zip / unzip

🧪 8. System & Process Commands

21. clear

22. history

23. top

🔄 How These Help in Git Workflow

🚀 Example Git Workflow with Linux Commands

1. What is GitHub? How is it different from Git?

2. What is a Repository?

3. What is the difference between Fork and Clone?

4. What is a Branch?

5. What is a Pull Request (PR)?

6. What is Merge Conflict?

7. What is GitHub Actions?

8. What is .gitignore?

9. What is Git Workflow (Branching Strategy)?

10. What is Staging in Git?

11. Difference between Commit and Push?

12. What is Rebase vs Merge?

13. What is Tag in Git?

14. What is Git Stash?

15. What is Code Review in GitHub?

🔹 Scenario-Based GitHub Interview Questions

16. You pushed wrong code to main branch. What will you do?

17. Multiple developers working on same feature. How to manage?

18. How do you handle large files in GitHub?

19. How do you secure sensitive data in GitHub?

20. Explain CI/CD pipeline using GitHub Actions

🔹 Advanced Practical Questions

21. How do you revert a specific file to previous version?

22. How do you squash commits?

23. What is Detached HEAD?

24. How do you delete a branch?

25. What is Upstream in Git?

Mock Interview: GitHub (Real Company Style)

🔹 Round 1: Basics + Practical Understanding

❓ Q1: Explain your GitHub workflow in your current project.

❓ Q2: What happens when you run git push?

🔹 Round 2: Scenario-Based Questions

❓ Q3: You and another developer changed the same file. Your PR shows conflict. What do you do?

❓ Q4: You accidentally pushed sensitive data (API key) to GitHub. What will you do?

❓ Q5: Your teammate’s PR broke the build. What should happen?

🔹 Round 3: CI/CD + Automation (Very Important)

❓ Q6: How do you integrate automation tests with GitHub?

❓ Q7: How do you ensure code quality before merging?

🔹 Round 4: Advanced Problem Solving

❓ Q8: Your main branch is broken after a merge. What will you do?

❓ Q9: How do you handle multiple environments (dev, staging, prod)?

❓ Q10: How do you manage large teams working on the same repo?

🔹 Round 5: Rapid Fire (Quick Checks)

❓ Difference between Fork and Clone?

❓ What is HEAD in Git?

❓ What is Rebase?

❓ What is Stash?

1. `pwd`

2. `ls`

3. `cd`

4. `mkdir`

5. `rmdir`

6. `rm`

7. `cp`

8. `mv`

9. `cat`

10. `less`

11. `nano`

12. `vim`

13. `grep`

14. `find`

15. `chmod`

16. `chown`

17. `ssh`

18. `curl`

19. `tar`

20. `zip` / `unzip`

21. `clear`

22. `history`

23. `top`

❓ Q2: What happens when you run `git push`?

❓ Q8: Your `main` branch is broken after a merge. What will you do?