How to use the command 'git summary' (with examples)

The git summary command is part of the git-extras suite, a collection of handy utilities that enhance Git’s functionality. This command is particularly useful for getting a quick overview of a Git repository’s history and statistics, providing insight into the contributions over a specified duration or across the entire life of the repository. It simplifies and automates the extraction of vital insights, saving time for developers and project managers who seek to analyze repository data efficiently.

Use case 1: Display data about a Git repository

Code:

git summary

Motivation:

Understanding the general activity and contribution structure of a Git repository is crucial for developers and project managers alike. Knowing who contributed what, when, and how much can help in managing resources, recognizing contributors, and planning future development phases. Using git summary without any additional parameters gives a straightforward overview of the entire repository, listing essential data such as number of commits, those who committed, and the dates of contributions.

Explanation:

• The command git summary alone, without additional parameters, fetches summary statistics for the entire Git repository. It is a concise, one-shot command that provides an overview of all the contributors and basic metrics such as total commits, lines added, and lines removed from the repository.

Example Output:

 project  : example-repo
 commits  : 200
 files    : 35
 authors  : 
   100  Alice
    75  Bob
    25  Charlie

Use case 2: Display data about a Git repository since a commit-ish

Code:

git summary commit|branch_name|tag_name

Motivation:

As projects progress, it becomes increasingly important to focus on the latest changes and their impact. By narrowing the scope of the summary to changes made since a specific commit, branch, or tag, developers can track recent activity, helping in reviewing past work or debugging issues that have arisen since a particular point in the development timeline. This functionality helps in zeroing in on substantial changes and monitoring ongoing project developments in a context-specific manner.

Explanation:

• The command git summary commit|branch_name|tag_name filters the data output to show only the changes after a specific commit, branch, or tag. This is particularly useful for teams working on multiple branches or in a feature development phase, where the focus is not entirely on historical data but rather on iterative and current improvements and adjustments.

Example Output:

 project  : example-repo
 commits  : 50
 files    : 10
 authors  : 
    30  Alice
    15  Bob
     5  Charlie

Use case 3: Display data about a Git repository, merging committers using different emails into 1 statistic for each author

Code:

git summary --dedup-by-email

Motivation:

One common issue in large repositories with multiple contributors is that users might commit with different email addresses, resulting in fragmented contributions logs. This parameter of git summary helps consolidate contributions data by grouping committers regardless of the email address they used for each commit. This provides a more accurate reflection of contributions and simplifies the acknowledgment of individual contributions, which is particularly useful for maintaining clean and understandable project records.

Explanation:

• The --dedup-by-email option instructs the git summary command to merge contributions from committers who have used different emails, summing their commits and other contributions to give a singular figure for each author. This aids in reducing noise in the contributor data and ensures that the displayed statistics truly reflect each person’s input into the project.

Example Output:

 project  : example-repo
 commits  : 200
 files    : 35
 authors  : 
   105  Alice
    74  Bob
    21  Charlie

Use case 4: Display data about a Git repository, showing the number of lines modified by each contributor

Code:

git summary --line

Motivation:

Evaluating a project’s progress and contributions often requires more than just counting commits. The --line option provides insight into the extent of changes made by each contributor, showing how many lines have been added or removed. This feature is particularly useful for project managers who need to gauge the magnitude of changes beyond simple commit counts, which might not effectively represent the scale of input provided by each developer.

Explanation:

• The --line argument modifies the git summary command to display the number of lines added and removed by each contributor. It extends the basic summary by offering a deeper understanding of the changes, enabling team leaders and development coordinators to measure real input and effort across different stages of project evolution accurately.

Example Output:

 project  : example-repo
 commits  : 200
 files    : 35
 authors  : 
   Alice  100 commits - 1000 lines added/500 lines removed
   Bob    75 commits - 700 lines added/300 lines removed
   Charlie 25 commits - 300 lines added/100 lines removed

Conclusion:

The git summary command, enriched with various options and parameters, becomes a versatile tool for developers and managers, offering granular insights into repository activities and contributions. Whether you’re looking at overall contributions, specific timeframe changes, deduplicating emails, or evaluating lines of code, git summary stands as a useful command within the Git toolkit, helping projects maintain clarity and track key metrics effectively.