Git & GitHub Interview Q/A
📌 Section 1: Basics
Q1. What is Git?
Answer: Git is a distributed version control system (DVCS) that helps
track code changes, collaborate with teams, roll back to older
versions, and manage branching/merging.
💡 Pro Tip: Always mention "distributed" — it highlights Git’s offline
capability.
Q2. What is GitHub?
Answer: GitHub is a cloud platform to host Git repositories and
collaborate using Pull Requests, Issues, Actions (CI/CD), and project
boards.
💡 Pro Tip: Say Git = tool, GitHub = platform.
Q3. Common Git commands?
Answer:
git init → Initialize a new Git repository
git clone <url> → Copy repository from remote to local
git status → Show modified/untracked files
git add . → Stage all changes
git commit -m "msg" → Save a snapshot with a message
git log --oneline → Show commit history in short form
git branch → List branches
git checkout -b <branch> → Create + switch to a new branch
git merge <branch> → Merge branch into current
git push origin main → Push local commits to GitHub
git pull → Fetch + merge changes from remote
git fetch → Only download changes (no merge)
💡 Pro Tip: In interviews, mention git commit -am "msg" as a shortcut
for tracked files.
Q4. Difference between Git and GitHub?
Answer:
Git → Local VCS tool that manages versions of code.
GitHub → Cloud hosting service that extends Git with collaboration
features.
Interview Edge: Mention alternatives like GitLab, Bitbucket.
Q5. What is a repository?
Answer: A repository is a project directory managed by Git,
containing code, commit history, and branches.
Local repository → Exists on your machine (git init).
Remote repository → Hosted on GitHub for team collaboration.
💡 Pro Tip: Interviewers like when you highlight the difference
between local and remote repos.
Q6. What is a commit?
Answer: A commit is a snapshot of code at a point in time, identified
by a unique SHA hash, author, timestamp, and commit message.
💡 Pro Tip: A clear commit message helps track why a change was
made.
📌 Section 2: Branching & Merging
Q7. What is a branch?
Answer: A branch is a parallel line of development. It allows
developers to build features without affecting the main branch.
💡 Pro Tip: Mention how feature branches prevent breaking
production code.
Q8. What is a merge conflict? How do you resolve it?
Answer: A merge conflict happens when two branches modify the
same code section. Git cannot decide which change to keep.
Steps:
1. Open file and check conflict markers.
2. Decide correct changes (or combine).
3. Save → git add → git commit.
💡 Pro Tip: Mention that handling conflicts quickly is vital in team
projects.
Q9. Difference between git merge and git rebase?
Answer:
Merge → Combines histories, keeps non-linear commits.
Rebase → Replays commits on another branch, making history
linear.
💡 Pro Tip: Teams often use merge for collaboration, and rebase
for personal branches.
Q10. What is a fast-forward merge?
Answer: A fast-forward merge occurs when no new commits exist on
the target branch, so Git simply moves the branch pointer ahead
without creating a merge commit.
💡 Pro Tip: Fast-forward keeps history simple, but doesn’t show that a
branch existed.
Q11. What is a detached HEAD?
Answer: Detached HEAD occurs when Git points directly to a commit
instead of a branch.
Commits made here won’t belong to any branch unless you create
one.
💡 Pro Tip: Used for experiments or reviewing older commits.
📌 Section 3: Commands
Q11. Common Git commands?
Answer:
git init → Initialize a new Git repository
git clone <url> → Copy repository from remote to local
git status → Show modified/untracked files
git add . → Stage all changes
git commit -m "msg" → Save a snapshot with a message
git log --oneline → Show commit history in short form
git branch → List branches
git checkout -b <branch> → Create + switch to a new branch
git merge <branch> → Merge branch into current
git push origin main → Push local commits to GitHub
git pull → Fetch + merge changes from remote
git fetch → Only download changes (no merge)
💡 Pro Tip: In interviews, mention git commit -am "msg" as a shortcut
for tracked files.
Q12. What is the difference between git pull and git fetch?
Answer:
git fetch downloads commits from remote into remote-tracking
branches (like origin/main) but doesn’t merge them.
git pull does fetch + merge, updating your current branch
automatically.
Q13. What is git stash?
Answer:
git stash temporarily saves uncommitted changes and resets your working
directory.
Example: You are mid-feature but must switch to main to fix a bug. Run git
stash, switch branch, fix and commit the bug, then return and restore with
git stash pop.
📌 Section 4: Staging & Workflow
Q14. What is git add and why do we need it?
Answer: git add stages changes from the working directory to the
staging area. Git uses a 3-stage system: Working Directory → Staging
Area → Repository.
Q15. Do we always need git add . before commit?
Answer: No. For tracked files, you can commit directly with git
commit -am "msg". But for new/untracked files, git add is mandatory.
Q16. What is git stash and when is it useful?
Answer: git stash temporarily saves uncommitted work and clears the
working directory.
Example: In the middle of a feature, you need to switch to main to fix
a bug → run git stash, later use git stash pop to restore.
Q17. What is .gitignore?
Answer: A file that lists files/folders Git should ignore (e.g., logs, build
files, environment secrets).
Q18. Difference between git reset, git revert, and git checkout?
Answer:
reset → Moves HEAD pointer back, possibly deleting commits.
revert → Safely creates a new commit that undoes changes.
checkout → Switches branches or restores files.
💡 Pro Tip: Say “I prefer revert in teams because it preserves
history.”
📌 Section 5: Remote Operations
Q19. What is the difference between git pull and git fetch?
Answer:
fetch → Downloads changes into remote-tracking branch
(origin/main) but doesn’t merge.
pull → Fetch + Merge into local branch.
Q20. What is a remote in Git?
Answer: A remote is a reference to a hosted repository (usually on
GitHub). Default name = origin.
Q21. How do you push a branch to GitHub?
Answer:
git push origin branch-name
For first time:
git push -u origin branch-name
(-u sets upstream tracking for future pushes).
Q22. What is the difference between fork and clone?
Answer:
Fork → Copies repository to your GitHub account.
Clone → Copies repository to your local machine.
Q23. What is a Pull Request (PR)?
Answer: A PR is a request to merge code into another branch on
GitHub. It allows code review, discussion, and approval before
merging.
📌 Section 6: Tags & Releases
Q24. What is a Git tag?
Answer: A tag is a label pointing to a specific commit, often used for
releases (v1.0.0).
Q25. Difference between lightweight and annotated tags?
Answer:
Lightweight → Simple pointer.
Annotated → Stores metadata like tagger, date, and message
(preferred for releases).
Q26. How do you create and push a tag?
Answer:
git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "First release"
git push origin v1.0.0
Q27. How do you delete a tag?
Answer:
Local: git tag -d v1.0.0
Remote: git push --delete origin v1.0.0
Q28. How to see commits between two tags?
Answer:
git log v1.0.0..v2.0.0 --oneline
📌 Section 7: Advanced & Best Practices
Q29. What is GitHub Actions?
Answer: GitHub Actions is a CI/CD automation tool inside GitHub. It
allows workflows like build, test, and deployment triggered on events
(push, PR, etc.).
Q30. What is GitHub Flow vs Git Flow?
Answer:
GitHub Flow → Simple strategy: create branch → PR → merge into
main.
Git Flow → Structured: uses main, develop, feature, release, hotfix
branches.
💡 Pro Tip: Mention GitHub Flow for startups, Git Flow for
enterprise projects.
Q31. How do you handle large files in GitHub?
Answer: By using Git LFS (Large File Storage), which stores large
binaries outside normal Git history.
Q32. What is the difference between main and origin/main?
Answer:
main → Local branch.
origin/main → Remote-tracking branch (state of remote main).
Q33. Best practices with Git in teams?
Answer:
Write clear commit messages.
Use branches for new features.
Keep main protected.
Resolve merge conflicts early.
Use PRs for review.
💡 Pro Tip: Add “We also use GitHub Actions for CI/CD” to show
awareness of modern workflows.
