How to use the command "hg push" (with examples)

The “hg push” command is used to push changes from the local repository to a specified destination. It is a command in Mercurial, a distributed version control system. When changes are made in the local repository, they can be pushed to a remote repository, allowing others to access and work with the changes.

Use case 1: Push changes to the “default” remote path

Code:

hg push

Motivation: The “hg push” command without any arguments is used to push changes to the “default” remote path. This is useful when the remote repository has been previously configured as the default path.

Explanation: The command “hg push” without any arguments will push all the changes from the local repository to the remote repository configured as the “default” path.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/default
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Use case 2: Push changes to a specified remote repository

Code:

hg push path/to/destination_repository

Motivation: Sometimes, the remote repository to push changes to may not be the “default” path. In such cases, the “hg push” command can be used with the path to the destination repository specified.

Explanation: The command “hg push” with the “path/to/destination_repository” argument will push all the changes from the local repository to the specified remote repository.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/destination_repository
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Use case 3: Push a new branch if it does not exist (disabled by default)

Code:

hg push --new-branch

Motivation: By default, Mercurial does not allow new branches to be pushed unless explicitly enabled. This use case is useful when pushing a new branch to the remote repository.

Explanation: The command “hg push –new-branch” will push changes from the local repository to the remote repository, creating a new branch if it does not exist. This command overrides the default behavior of not allowing new branches to be pushed.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/default
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Use case 4: Specify a specific revision changeset to push

Code:

hg push --rev revision

Motivation: Sometimes, it may be necessary to push only a specific revision changeset to the remote repository, rather than pushing all the changes.

Explanation: The command “hg push –rev revision” will push only the specified revision changeset from the local repository to the remote repository. This can be useful when working with a specific version of the code.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/default
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Use case 5: Specify a specific branch to push

Code:

hg push --branch branch

Motivation: In some cases, there may be multiple branches in the local repository, and only a specific branch needs to be pushed to the remote repository.

Explanation: The command “hg push –branch branch” will push the changes from the specified branch in the local repository to the remote repository. This is useful when working with multiple branches and wanting to push changes from a specific branch.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/default
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Use case 6: Specify a specific bookmark to push

Code:

hg push --bookmark bookmark

Motivation: Bookmarks in Mercurial are used to track a specific commit or point in the commit history. This use case allows pushing changes from a specific bookmark to the remote repository.

Explanation: The command “hg push –bookmark bookmark” will push the changes from the specified bookmark in the local repository to the remote repository. This is useful when working with bookmarks and wanting to push changes from a specific bookmark.

Example output:

pushing to http://example.com/default
searching for changes
adding changesets
adding manifests
adding file changes
added 1 changesets with 1 changes to 1 files

Conclusion:

The “hg push” command in Mercurial is a versatile command that allows pushing changes from the local repository to a specified destination. By using different arguments, such as specifying the remote repository, revision changeset, branch, or bookmark, users can have fine-grained control over which changes to push. This flexibility makes it easier to collaborate with others and manage code versions effectively.