DevOps Version Control Systems Syllabus

Version Control Systems syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Version Control Systems in DevOps, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Git Basics

   4 topics

   • Installing Git
   • Basic Commands: init, clone, add, commit
   • Branching and Merging
   • Working with Remote Repositories
2. 2

   Advanced Git

   4 topics

   • Rebasing vs Merging
   • Cherry-picking
   • Stashing and Cleaning
   • Git Hooks

Version Control Systems flashcards for DevOps

18 of 49 cards from the Version Control Systems deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is Git, and what category of version control system does it belong to?

   Git is a free, open-source distributed version control system (DVCS). Every clone is a full repository with complete history, so it does not depend on a central server to function.

2. On a Debian/Ubuntu Linux system, what command installs Git from the package manager?

   sudo apt-get install git (or sudo apt install git).

3. After installing Git, which two commands set your global identity for commits?

   git config --global user.name "Your Name" and git config --global user.email "you@example.com".

4. How do you verify the installed Git version?

   Run git --version, which prints the installed version (e.g., git version 2.x.x).

5. Where does Git store global configuration set with --global, and where is repository-specific config stored?

   Global config is stored in ~/.gitconfig (the user's home directory). Repository-local config is stored in .git/config inside the repo. Local overrides global, which overrides system (/etc/gitconfig).

6. What does git init do?

   It creates a new, empty Git repository in the current directory by generating a hidden .git subdirectory that holds all objects, refs, and metadata.

7. What does git clone do?

   It copies an existing repository (and its full history) from a remote URL to your local machine, creates a working copy, and automatically sets up a remote named 'origin' tracking the source.

8. What is the purpose of git add?

   It stages changes — copying modified or new files from the working directory into the staging area (index) so they will be included in the next commit.

9. What does git commit do, and what does -m provide?

   git commit records the staged snapshot as a permanent object in the repository history. The -m flag provides the commit message inline, e.g., git commit -m "message".

10. What are the three main states/areas a file moves through in Git's basic workflow?

    Working directory (modified files) → Staging area / index (git add) → Repository / committed history (git commit). The states are: modified, staged, and committed.

11. What does git status show?

    It shows the current state of the working directory and staging area: which files are untracked, modified, or staged, and the current branch and its relation to the upstream.

12. What is the difference between git add . and git add -A?

    git add . stages new and modified files in the current directory and below (and, in modern Git, deletions too). git add -A stages all changes across the entire repository (new, modified, and deleted), regardless of current directory.

13. What is a Git branch, technically?

    A branch is simply a lightweight, movable pointer to a specific commit. The default branch is usually named main (formerly master), and HEAD points to the current branch.

14. Which command creates a new branch and switches to it in one step?

    git checkout -b <branch> or, in newer Git, git switch -c <branch>.

15. What does git merge do?

    It integrates changes from one branch into the current branch, combining their histories. Git creates a merge commit (unless a fast-forward is possible) that has two parent commits.

16. What is a fast-forward merge?

    When the target branch has not diverged, Git simply moves the branch pointer forward to the source branch's commit instead of creating a merge commit, because no integration work is needed.

17. What is a merge conflict and when does it occur?

    A conflict occurs when two branches modify the same lines of a file (or one edits while the other deletes) and Git cannot automatically reconcile them. Git marks the conflicting regions with <<<<<<<, =======, and >>>>>>> for manual resolution.

18. After manually resolving a merge conflict in a file, what steps complete the merge?

    Stage the resolved file with git add <file>, then finalize with git commit (or git merge --continue).

See more Version Control Systems flashcards →

Planning Version Control Systems for DevOps

Version Control Systems (DevOps) FAQ