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Branching and Merging

In a professional environment like CodeHarborHub, we never work directly on the "Live" code (the main branch). Instead, we use Branches.

A branch is essentially a Parallel Universe. You can build a new feature, experiment with a new design, or fix a bug in a separate space without affecting the main project.

The Branching Workflow​

Imagine you are building a website. The main branch is the version users see. You want to add a "Dark Mode."

  1. Create a Branch: You step into a parallel universe called feat-dark-mode.
  2. Work: You write your CSS and JS. The main branch remains untouched and stable.
  3. Merge: Once the dark mode is perfect, you bring those changes back into the main universe.

Step 1: Creating and Switching​

You can create a branch and move into it using these commands:

# Create the branch
git branch feat-dark-mode

# Switch to the branch
git checkout feat-dark-mode

Step 2: Merging Changes​

Once your work in the branch is finished and committed, it’s time to merge it back to the main branch. Here’s how you do it:

1. Switch back to the destination (Main):

git checkout main

2. Pull the changes in:

git merge feat-dark-mode

3. Cleanup (Optional): Since the feature is now part of main, you can delete the temporary branch:

git branch -d feat-dark-mode

The Logic of Merging​

Handling Merge Conflicts​

Sometimes, Git gets confused. If you changed line 10 in main and your friend changed line 10 in feat-dark-mode, Git won't know which one to keep. This is a Merge Conflict.

How to fix it:

  1. Open the file in VS Code.
  2. You will see markers: <<<<<<< HEAD (Your version) and >>>>>>> branch-name (Their version).
  3. Delete the version you don't want and remove the markers.
  4. git add the file and git commit to finish the merge.

Industrial Best Practices​

RuleWhy?
Descriptive NamesUse feat/login-ui or fix/header-logo so others know what the branch is for.
Keep Branches SmallDon't build five features in one branch. One branch = One task.
Pull Before MergeAlways run git pull origin main before merging to ensure you have the latest team updates.
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Not sure what branch you are on? Run git branch. The one with the asterisk (*) and highlighted in green is your current "Parallel Universe."