Git Fetch (with examples)

Git is a distributed version control system that allows multiple developers to work collaboratively on a project. One of the essential commands in Git is git fetch, which allows you to download objects and references from a remote repository.

In this article, we will explore different use cases of the git fetch command and provide detailed explanations, motivations, and example outputs for each case.

Use Case 1: Fetch the latest changes from the default remote upstream repository

git fetch

Motivation:

• This use case is useful when you want to update your local repository with the latest changes from the default remote upstream repository (usually named origin).

Explanation:

• Running git fetch without any arguments will fetch the latest changes from the default remote upstream repository. It updates the remote branches and their respective commits, but does not update your local branches.

Example Output:

$ git fetch
remote: Counting objects: 10, done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (6/6), done.
remote: Total 7 (delta 3), reused 0 (delta 0)
Unpacking objects: 100% (7/7), done.
From https://github.com/username/repository
  a6dbf06..2e0dfeb  master     -> origin/master

The output shows that the fetch was successful. The remote branch master was updated from commit a6dbf06 to 2e0dfeb.

Use Case 2: Fetch new branches from a specific remote upstream repository

git fetch remote_name

Motivation:

• This use case is helpful when you want to fetch new branches from a specific remote upstream repository other than the default origin. It allows you to access new branches created by other developers.

Explanation:

• By specifying the name of the remote upstream repository (e.g., remote_name), git fetch will download the new branches present in that repository. These new branches will be accessible in your local repository.

Example Output:

$ git fetch upstream
From https://github.com/upstream_username/repository
 * [new branch]      feature/new_branch_1  -> upstream/feature/new_branch_1
 * [new branch]      feature/new_branch_2  -> upstream/feature/new_branch_2

The output shows that two new branches (feature/new_branch_1 and feature/new_branch_2) were fetched from the upstream remote repository.

Use Case 3: Fetch the latest changes from all remote upstream repositories

git fetch --all

Motivation:

• This use case is beneficial in a scenario where you are working with multiple remote upstream repositories and want to update your local repository with the latest changes from all of them simultaneously.

Explanation:

• The --all option tells git fetch to fetch from all the remote upstream repositories associated with your local repository.

Example Output:

$ git fetch --all
Fetching origin
remote: Counting objects: 10, done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (6/6), done.
remote: Total 7 (delta 3), reused 0 (delta 0)
Unpacking objects: 100% (7/7), done.
From https://github.com/username/repository
  a6dbf06..2e0dfeb  master     -> origin/master

Fetching upstream
remote: Counting objects: 5, done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (3/3), done.
remote: Total 3 (delta 0), reused 0 (delta 0)
Unpacking objects: 100% (3/3), done.
From https://github.com/upstream_username/repository
   1a2b3c4..5d6e7f8  main     -> upstream/main

The output shows that the latest changes from both the origin and upstream remote upstream repositories were fetched successfully.

Use Case 4: Also fetch tags from the remote upstream repository

git fetch --tags

Motivation:

• This use case is useful when you want to fetch not only branches but also tags from the remote upstream repository. Tags are commonly used to mark specific points in a project’s history, such as releases or important milestones.

Explanation:

• The --tags option tells git fetch to fetch all tags from the remote upstream repository along with the branches.

Example Output:

$ git fetch --tags
From https://github.com/username/repository
 * [new tag]         v1.0.0         -> v1.0.0

From https://github.com/upstream_username/repository
 * [new tag]         v2.0.0         -> v2.0.0

The output shows that two new tags (v1.0.0 from origin and v2.0.0 from upstream) were fetched along with the branches.

Use Case 5: Delete local references to remote branches that have been deleted upstream

git fetch --prune

Motivation:

• This use case is important for keeping your local repository in sync with the remote upstream repository. It allows you to delete local references to remote branches that have been deleted upstream.

Explanation:

• The --prune option tells git fetch to remove any local references to remote branches that no longer exist in the remote upstream repository. This ensures that your local repository accurately reflects the state of the remote repository.

Example Output:

$ git fetch --prune
- [deleted]         (none)     -> upstream/deleted_branch

The output shows that the local reference to the upstream branch deleted_branch was deleted since it no longer exists upstream.

Conclusion

In this article, we explored the different use cases of the git fetch command. We covered fetching changes from the default remote upstream repository, fetching from specific remote upstream repositories, fetching from all remote upstream repositories, fetching tags, and pruning deleted branches. Understanding these use cases will help you effectively update and synchronize your local repository with the remote repositories, ensuring efficient collaboration with other developers.