Git Commands versus SVN Commands

[qingquan-li]

Git is a distributed version control system (DVCS) and SVN (Subversion) is a centralized version control system (CVCS), their commands differ in many ways, but both serve similar fundamental purposes in managing versions of code.

Here's a comparison of some of the common Git commands versus their equivalents or similar commands in SVN.

1. Repository Creation & Cloning

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Create a repository (locally)	git init	svnadmin create /path/to/repository
Clone a repository (copy)	git clone <repository-url>	svn checkout <repository-url>

Explanation:
Git's git init creates a local repository, while in SVN, svnadmin create initializes a repository on the server. Cloning (copying a remote repository) is handled by git clone in Git and svn checkout in SVN.

2. Adding and Removing Files

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Add a file to be tracked	git add <file>	svn add <file>
Remove a file	git rm <file>	svn delete <file>

Explanation:
Both Git and SVN require adding files before tracking them. However, in Git, you must explicitly add changes to the staging area before committing, while SVN tracks changes automatically upon commit.

3. Committing Changes

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Commit changes	git commit -m "message"	svn commit -m "message"
Commit all tracked changes	git commit -a -m "message"	Not necessary in SVN

Explanation:
In Git, you need to stage changes before committing, while SVN automatically includes all changes in the working directory during the commit process.

4. Checking Status and Logs

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Check status of working directory	git status	svn status
View commit history	git log	svn log

Explanation:
Both Git and SVN have equivalent commands to check the working directory's status (git status vs svn status) and to view the commit history (git log vs svn log).

5. Branching and Merging

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Create a new branch	git branch <branchname>	svn copy <trunk_url> <branch_url>
Switch to a branch	git checkout <branchname>	svn switch <branch_url>
Merge branches	git merge <branchname>	svn merge <branch_url>

Explanation:
Git's branching is more lightweight and faster than SVN’s, as it uses git branch and git checkout. SVN branches are created using the svn copy command, and switching to a branch is done with svn switch.

6. Syncing with Remote Repository

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Pull changes from the remote repository	git pull	svn update
Push changes to the remote repository	git push	Not applicable (SVN commits directly to the central repo)

Explanation:
Git requires git pull to fetch and merge changes from the remote repository, while SVN uses svn update. In Git, git push sends local changes to the remote repository. SVN commits directly to the central repository, so there's no equivalent to git push.

7. Viewing Differences (Diffs)

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
View changes in working directory	git diff	svn diff
Compare two commits (revisions)	git diff <commit1> <commit2>	svn diff -r <revision1>:<revision2>

Explanation:
Both systems provide diff commands to see changes between versions of files or in the working directory.

8. Reverting Changes

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Undo changes in the working directory	git checkout -- <file>	svn revert <file>
Revert to a previous commit (revision)	git reset --hard <commit>	svn merge -r HEAD:<revision> <path>

Explanation:
In Git, git checkout reverts uncommitted changes, while git reset can undo commits. In SVN, svn revert undoes changes in the working directory, and svn merge can be used to roll back to a previous revision.

9. Tagging a Version

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Create a tag	git tag <tagname>	svn copy <trunk_url> <tag_url>

Explanation:
Git uses git tag to mark specific points in history as being important. In SVN, tags are created by copying the trunk to a new URL, which is a virtual equivalent of a tag.

10. Inspecting Remote Repositories

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Show remote repository details	git remote -v	svn info

Explanation:
git remote -v shows the URL of the remote repositories in Git, while svn info gives detailed information about the SVN repository and working copy.

11. Handling Conflicts

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Resolve merge conflicts	git mergetool	svn resolve

Explanation:
Both Git and SVN have tools for resolving conflicts that arise when merging changes. Git uses git mergetool for manual conflict resolution, while SVN uses svn resolve.

12. Ignoring Files

Task	Git Command	SVN Command
Ignore untracked files	Create a .gitignore file	Set svn:ignore property

Explanation:
In Git, you create a .gitignore file to list the files or directories you want to ignore. In SVN, you use the svn:ignore property to achieve the same effect.

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Summary Table

Action	Git	SVN
Create repository	git init	svnadmin create
Clone repository	git clone	svn checkout
Add files	git add	svn add
Remove files	git rm	svn delete
Commit changes	git commit	svn commit
Check status	git status	svn status
Log history	git log	svn log
Branching	git branch	svn copy
Switch branch	git checkout	svn switch
Merge branches	git merge	svn merge
Pull changes	git pull	svn update
Push changes	git push	N/A (SVN commits directly)
Diff changes	git diff	svn diff
Undo changes	git checkout, git reset	svn revert, svn merge
Tag a version	git tag	svn copy (for tags)
Resolve conflicts	git mergetool	svn resolve
Ignore files	.gitignore	`svn