How to Commit Changes in Git

Committing changes is one of the most important actions in Git. It records the current state of your project by saving staged changes along with a message that explains what was done and why. Whether you're fixing a typo, adding a feature, or cleaning up old code, well-structured commits help you track progress, collaborate with others, and maintain a clean version history. This article covers basic commits, skipping the staging step, and amending previous commits.

The Short Answer Version

# Stage all modified files
$ git add .

# Commit with a message
$ git commit -m "Describe what this commit does"

# Commit changes to tracked files without staging
$ git commit -a -m "Skip staging and commit modified files"

# Update the most recent commit message
$ git commit --amend -m "New commit message"

Common Options for Committing Changes

Git Commit Without Staging

The -a flag lets you commit all modified tracked files directly without staging them first. This is useful when you want to skip git add but still commit file changes.

Command Syntax

git commit -a -m "Your commit message"

• -a: Automatically stages all modified tracked files.
• -m: Attaches a commit message directly in the command.

Command Demonstration

1. Create a tracked file under Git.

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   $ echo "Hello" > demo.txt
   

2. Stage the file.

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   $ git add demo.txt
   

3. Make an initial commit.

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   $ git commit -m "Initial commit"
   

4. Modify the file without staging.

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   $ echo "Appended second line to demo.txt" >> demo.txt
   

5. Commit the changes directly using -a.

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   $ git commit -a -m "Added second line to demo.txt"
   

6. Check your commit history.

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   $ git log --oneline
   

This workflow skips git add but only works on tracked files. Any new files still require staging before committing.

Update or Amend a Git Commit

You can use the --amend flag with git commit to modify your most recent commit. This is helpful for adding missing changes, fixing typos in messages, or cleaning up your commit history before pushing.

Command Syntax

git commit --amend

• --amend: Replaces the previous commit with a new one. This can modify the commit message, content, or both.
• -m: (Optional) Use this to supply a new message inline instead of opening your editor.

Command Demonstration

Example 1: Add a forgotten file to the last commit

1. Stage the missing file.

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   $ git add file2.txt
   

2. Amend the last commit.

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   $ git commit --amend
   

   This opens your text editor to update the message (or keep it unchanged).

Example 2: Change the commit message without changing content

$ git commit --amend -m "Updated commit message"

This rewrites the most recent commit message without modifying the files.

Conclusion

In this article, you learned how to commit changes in Git effectively. You explored the core concepts of staging files, creating commits, skipping the staging step with -a, and updating the most recent commit using --amend. These workflows help maintain a clean, organized history and improve team collaboration.

With these techniques, you're now equipped to write clear commit messages, streamline your Git workflow, and maintain a version history that's easy to navigate and collaborate on.