Pull Before You Push - Using Git to Manage Your Dot Files

Git is one of the simplest and most convenient ways of managing your dot files on any system and, although it is capable of doing some very sophisticated and clever things, basic usage is really simple.
Pulling before you push is just one of the basic things you need to know if you want to ensure that local and remote repos stay in sync. But other than that, three or four commands are all you need to know.
Whether you just want to back up your configuration files on a single machine in the event that you want to do a reinstall at some point, or you perhaps want to replicate your configuration on multiple machines, git is one of the most efficient solutions.
In this video I demonstrate what I do. There are many ways to do this so this is just my method, but whatever method you decide on just give it a spin. I guarantee yopu won't look back.
I hope you enjoy the video :-)
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[@bacanalienigena]

I was having the issue working with two laptops, so your tip about pull before push has no longer giving me any headaches, thanks Robert.

[@glidersuzuki5572]

git seems very complicated till you use it. Very easy and logical. Plus many resources out there.

[@trueriver1950]

A very welcome tutorial to demystify a service that is unfairly seen as difficult. It can do a lot but as this video shows there is a gentle learning curve for newcomers

[@TheBigBemaster]

Nice video, git is actually quite simple if you choose not to use the advanced features, which is one of the reasons I like it for this stuff. One comment though, if you are using git status to see if your local copy is out of date with the remote copy, it is probably best to do a git fetch first, to make sure your local copy knows about any new commits on the remote. I think the reason it worked here is because you did a git pull first, which implicitly runs fetch. But often you may want to check if you are in sync before pulling. Doing a fetch allows you to pull down the commit information, without actually pulling the changes, then running git status will show whether or not you are out of date, and if a pull will be required.

[@OldTechBloke]

Nice, cheers for this

[@puppy_BYTE]

to see if local copy is in sync, do git fetch before git add .?

[@taidee]

Great tutorial OTB, simple and straightforward, thank you.

[@whylde7834]

Thanks for the informative video.

[@Dechrissen]

good timing, i've been trying to figure how best to manage my dotfiles. I think I might give the symlink method a try :)

[@BrucesWorldofStuff]

Thanks OTB for the video that I will be referring to... Lol I don't use Git that often and I keep for getting the commands and the order they are in... I did make a text file with them twice and forgot where I put them. I will just bookmark this video, that is easier to find... Lol LOL The way you did the folders is a good thing to know. I use the drag N drop on the webpage. I find this better way. Wow... The ( . ) thing is awesome, didn't know that and I like the symlink idea too. Good Stuff! Till next week, keep your powder dry... LLAP

[@OldTechBloke]

Cheers Bruce 😀

[@torsten.breswald]

great video for basic usage it really is not that difficult and i don't use a gui there as well i have indeed set up my dotfiles on my void with a git bare repo, and i couldn't tell you, how often i watched several videos, from DT for example, until i got my head wrapped arround that magic ;P but that actually was the reason to do this, to learn how it works it took me a while to figure it out, but now it's so nice to edit a config file on my void vm on my mint laptop at work, push the changes to the repo and pull them when i'm home to my little void netbook and everything just works, no need to copy arround files or keep track of where they belong to

[@OldTechBloke]

That’s the beauty of it, it just makes life simple

[@sonopro1]

Merci !!

[@neotwenty-nineBzH]

Yet interesting before the introduction 🙂🙂🙂🙂

[@porky1118]

4:00 I tend to wait for my first commit until I'm happy with the basic features, so every started feature should be in a good initial state. (I don't use git for dot files, only for programming and writing)

[@RockawayCCW]

Let's git on with it :-)

[@kajoma1782]

I just host my own private git repo locally through ssh.

[@glidersuzuki5572]

If you create a repo with readme you will get other set of instructions like using an existing repo in your local system

[@stamatisperrakis4298]

maybe I am missing something, but I think that this whole git business is too much just for backing up some text files. Put them on a usb stick or in the cloud somewhere and be done with it. Of course if you are doing a software project, possibly with many people collaborating, then git can be valuable

[@diarmaidmac2149]

Text files are perfect for git. Don't think of git as just a back up system. It also provides the ability to travel back in time to view the state of your text files at some point in the past. You can go back to a previous version, look around and then jump back to the current version. It is amazing and once you start using it, you will realise how invaluable it is. I use it for general markdown notes as well as source code.

[@stamatisperrakis4298]

@@diarmaidmac2149 I see. That makes sense. Thanks