GitHub Setup Guide 🚀

A comprehensive step-by-step guide on installing Git, setting up SSH authentication, and connecting to GitHub for seamless version control.

📌 Introduction

This repository provides detailed instructions on how to install Git, configure your Git environment, set up SSH authentication, and connect your local machine to GitHub. Whether you're a beginner or looking to refresh your knowledge, this guide will help you establish a solid Git workflow.

📖 Table of Contents

• Installation
• Configuring Git
• Generating SSH Key
• Connecting to GitHub
• Basic Git Commands
• Common Git Workflows
• Troubleshooting
• Contributing
• License

🔧 Installation

Follow the instructions below to install Git on your system:

Windows

1. Download and install Git from git-scm.com
2. During installation, select "Use Git from the Windows Command Prompt"
3. Open Command Prompt or Git Bash and verify installation:

   git --version
   

macOS

Using Homebrew:

brew install git

Or download the installer from git-scm.com

Linux (Ubuntu/Debian)

sudo apt update && sudo apt install git

Verify installation:

git --version

🛠 Configuring Git

After installation, set up your Git user details:

git config --global user.name "YourGitHubUsername"
git config --global user.email "your-email@example.com"

To check your configuration:

git config --global --list

Additional recommended configurations:

# Set default branch name
git config --global init.defaultBranch main

# Set default editor (replace with your preferred editor)
git config --global core.editor "code --wait"  # For VS Code

# Enable colorful output
git config --global color.ui auto

🔑 Generating SSH Key

To authenticate with GitHub securely, generate an SSH key:

ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your-email@example.com"

(Use ssh-keygen -t rsa -b 4096 -C "your-email@example.com" for older systems)

Press Enter to save the key in the default location (~/.ssh/).

Starting the SSH Agent

# For macOS and Linux
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519  # or id_rsa for RSA keys

# For Windows (Git Bash)
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519  # or id_rsa for RSA keys

Adding SSH Key to GitHub

1. Copy the key:

   # For macOS
   pbcopy < ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
   
   # For Linux
   cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
   
   # For Windows (Git Bash)
   cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub | clip

2. Go to GitHub → Settings → SSH and GPG Keys

3. Click "New SSH key", give it a descriptive title (e.g., "Work Laptop"), paste the copied key, and save

Test SSH Connection

ssh -T git@github.com

Expected output:

Hi YourGitHubUsername! You've successfully authenticated, but GitHub does not provide shell access.

🔗 Connecting to GitHub

Create a Repository on GitHub

1. Go to GitHub and sign in
2. Click "New Repository" and name it (e.g., "git-setup-guide")
3. Choose public or private visibility
4. (Optional) Add a README, .gitignore, and license
5. Copy the SSH repository URL: git@github.com:YourGitHubUsername/repository-name.git

Clone an Existing Repository

git clone git@github.com:YourGitHubUsername/repository-name.git
cd repository-name

Initialize a Local Repository and Push to GitHub

# Navigate to your project folder
cd path/to/your/project

# Initialize Git
git init

# Stage files
git add .

# Commit changes
git commit -m "Initial commit"

# Rename the branch to main
git branch -M main

# Link to GitHub
git remote add origin git@github.com:YourGitHubUsername/repository-name.git

# Push to GitHub
git push -u origin main

📝 Basic Git Commands

# Check repository status
git status

# Add all changes
git add .

# Add specific file
git add filename.txt

# Commit changes
git commit -m "Descriptive commit message"

# Push changes to GitHub
git push origin main

# Pull latest changes
git pull origin main

# View commit history
git log

# View simplified commit history
git log --oneline

# Create a new branch
git checkout -b branch-name

# Switch branches
git checkout branch-name

# Merge a branch into current branch
git merge branch-name

# Fetch updates from remote without merging
git fetch origin

🔄 Common Git Workflows

Feature Branch Workflow

# Create a feature branch
git checkout -b feature/new-feature

# Make changes and commit
git add .
git commit -m "Add new feature"

# Push to GitHub
git push -u origin feature/new-feature

# Create a pull request on GitHub

# After PR is approved and merged, switch back to main
git checkout main
git pull origin main

Handle Merge Conflicts

# When conflicts arise during merge
git status  # To see conflicted files
# Edit files to resolve conflicts
git add .  # Mark as resolved
git commit  # Complete the merge

❓ Troubleshooting

Authentication Issues

• Verify your SSH key is added to GitHub
• Ensure SSH agent is running: eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
• Add your key to the agent: ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519
• Test connection: ssh -T git@github.com

Failed Push

If you can't push changes due to remote changes:

git pull --rebase origin main
git push origin main

Undo Last Commit

# Keep changes but undo commit
git reset --soft HEAD~1

# Discard changes and undo commit
git reset --hard HEAD~1

🤝 Contributing

Feel free to open issues or submit pull requests to improve this guide!

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch: git checkout -b feature/improvement
3. Commit your changes: git commit -m 'Add some improvement'
4. Push to the branch: git push origin feature/improvement
5. Open a Pull Request

📜 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

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🔗 Author: TechDeo
📅 Last Updated: 2025-04-03