Git Workflow for Professional Developers

Branch Structure

main
  └── integration
        ├── feature/xyz
        ├── feature/abc
        └── fix/bug-123

Branch	Purpose
main	Production-ready code (stable, tested)
integration	Staging area where features are merged and tested
feature/*	Individual work branches for new features
fix/*	Bug fix branches

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Workflow Steps

1. Start New Work

git switch integration
git pull origin integration
git switch -c feature/my-feature

2. Develop and Commit

git add .
git commit -m "Add feature description"

3. Merge to Integration

git switch integration
git pull origin integration
git merge feature/my-feature
git push origin integration

4. Test

docker-compose up --build

5. Release to Production

git switch main
git pull origin main
git merge integration
git push origin main

6. Tag the Release

git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "First production release"
git push origin v1.0.0

7. Cleanup

git branch -d feature/my-feature

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Visual Workflow

feature/xyz → integration → main
     ↓             ↓          ↓
  develop        test     production

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Best Practices

1. Never work directly on main — always go through integration
2. Never push to main without testing on integration first
3. Keep features small and focused — easier to review and merge
4. Merge early, merge often — small merges are easier than large ones
5. Pull before merge — always update your branch before merging
6. Update long-running feature branches — merge integration into your feature branch regularly

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Git Tags (Version Releases)

What Are Tags?

Tags are permanent bookmarks to specific commits — used to mark production releases.

Why Tags Instead of Branches?

Feature	Branch	Tag
Moves with new commits	✅ Yes	❌ No (stays fixed)
Points to latest code	✅ Yes	❌ No
Marks a specific release	❌ No	✅ Yes
Creates GitHub Releases	❌ No	✅ Yes

Example:

main → [commit C] → [commit B] → [commit A]
                         ↑
                      v1.0.0 (stays here forever)

Even after 100 more commits, v1.0.0 still points to commit B.

Version Numbering

v1.0.0 → First release
v1.0.1 → Bug fix (patch)
v1.1.0 → New feature (minor)
v2.0.0 → Breaking changes (major)

Version Part	When to Increment
Major (v2.0.0)	Breaking changes, major rewrites
Minor (v1.1.0)	New features, backwards compatible
Patch (v1.0.1)	Bug fixes, small improvements

When to Tag

Situation	Action
Code tested & merged to main	Create tag v1.0.0
Hotfix deployed	Create tag v1.0.1
New feature released	Create tag v1.1.0

Tag Commands

# Create annotated tag
git tag -a v1.0.0 -m "First production release"

# Push tag to GitHub
git push origin v1.0.0

# List all tags
git tag

# Delete local tag
git tag -d v1.0.0

# Delete remote tag
git push origin --delete v1.0.0

Benefits of Tagging

1. Rollback easily — if v1.1.0 breaks, checkout v1.0.0
2. GitHub Releases — tags become downloadable releases with assets
3. Track production — always know exactly which code is live
4. CI/CD triggers — many pipelines auto-deploy when a tag is pushed

TIP: Tag it when it hits production! 🚀

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Handling Multiple Features

If you need to pause a feature:

# Save current work
git add .
git commit -m "WIP: feature progress"

# Switch to integration, start new feature
git switch integration
git pull origin integration
git switch -c feature/urgent-fix

# When done, go back to original feature
git switch feature/my-feature
git merge integration

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Resolving Merge Conflicts

When conflicts occur:

1. Open the conflicted file
2. Look for conflict markers:

   <<<<<<< HEAD
   (your branch content)
   =======
   (incoming branch content)
   >>>>>>> branch-name
   

3. Edit to keep desired content
4. Delete the markers (<<<<<<<, =======, >>>>>>>)
5. Save and commit:

   git add .
   git commit -m "Resolve merge conflict"
   

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Vim Keybindings for Conflict Resolution

Modes

Key	Mode	Description
i	Insert	Start editing text
Esc	Normal	Stop editing, navigate
:	Command	Run commands (save, quit)

Navigation (Normal mode)

Key	Action
h j k l	Left, Down, Up, Right
gg	Go to top of file
G	Go to bottom of file
0	Go to start of line
$	Go to end of line
w	Jump forward one word
b	Jump backward one word
/text	Search for "text"
n	Next search result

Editing (Normal mode)

Key	Action
i	Insert before cursor
a	Insert after cursor
o	New line below and insert
O	New line above and insert
x	Delete character
dd	Delete entire line
u	Undo
Ctrl+r	Redo

Save and Quit (Normal mode)

Command	Action
:w	Save
:q	Quit
:wq	Save and quit
:q!	Quit without saving
ZZ	Save and quit (shortcut)

Quick Conflict Resolution Workflow

1. Press /<<< then Enter to find conflict markers
2. Press dd to delete the marker line
3. Navigate with j and k to review content
4. Delete unwanted lines with dd
5. Delete remaining markers (=======, >>>>>>>)
6. Press :wq to save and exit