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Eclipse EGit for git repo management

August 5, 2014
Leo Ufimtsev
Related topics:
Linux
Related products:
Red Hat Enterprise Linux

Share:

    Eclipse EGit plugin allows one to perform most every day git operations through the gui. (e.g commit with a sign-off/gerrit ID. View history, hard-reset, difference comparisons, Stashing, branching, etc.. )

    The main advantage is that it makes some operations faster than through the command line, (e.g one doesn't have to type in file names or copy commit-id's).

    Egit is only a thin layer on top of git itself. So it does the same git commands underneath.

    Compatibility
    Linux/Windows/Mac. Already available in Red Hat Developer Toolset (DTS).

    Installation

    It is installed on most Eclipse distributions already.
    If not:
    sudo yum install eclipse-egit
    To find out if you have it, go to the drop down menu Window -> Views -> Other ... search for "git".
    eclipse window view other
    You should see a bunch of Git views:
    Git views

    In case it is not, look here:
     http://www.vogella.com/tutorials/EclipseGit/article.html#eclipseinstallation

    Git Staging Area
    It's easy to add or remove files from staging area for commits.
    Open the "Git Staging" view (as above) for your project.

    If you double click on your files, you will see a comparison between your modifications and HEAD. This is useful when you want to tidy your code before a commit:
    git stage compare

    Now you can drag files into the staging area to prepare for your commit.
    You can iterate over your files very quickly this way (compare & add to staging).
    Git Staging

    You can un-stage by dragging files back again.

    Git Commit
    You can perform a commit with 'signed off'  a 'gerrit-id' and you can amend if amendment is needed:
    git commiting annotated

    You might notice that the commit-ID is all 00's when you press the button. This is ok because it will be replaced with a full commit id when you do the actual commit.

    As a bonus, you don't have to download the hooks script, Eclipse automatically generates a unique commit id for you.

    Git Branching
    Enable the git tool bar for your perspective:
    Open the drop down menu: Window  -> Customize Perspective -> Command Groups Availability
    find 'git'  and enable it:
    git toolbar

    Now click on a file and then on the branching icon:
    git toolbar branch

    And you can now switch to another branch, checkout a new branch, delete/rename existing branches. You can even branch based on a remote repo or a stash:
    git branch select

    History
    You can enable the 'git history' view (Drop down menu: Window -> Views -> Other) and view the git history:
    git History

    You can perform hard-resets, branch of commits, rebases. You can view the files from individual commits in the bottom right plane and you can compare commits side-by-side.  This is useful if you want to see what you did or what changes were pulled in:
    git history compare

    With filters you can see which commits have touched the file that you have selected and which lines were altered by whom:
    git history filter

    Git Annotation (blame)
    If you select a file ->team -> show annotations, the left margin turns orange. When hovering over the margin, a window pops up showing who last-modified the line.
    git team annotations

    git annotation mouse over

    Git Stashing
    You can open the "Git Repository" view. (Window -> view -> other). From here you can stash by right-clicking on a repo. You can view your stashes and apply them.
    git stashing

    Git import
    And of course if you don't already know, you can import git repositories. (File -> Import).
    Either clone a repo from URI or from a local git repository.

    git import

    Merging
    If you did a pull and have merge conflicts, the staging area will help you find files that conflict. Then you can use the merge tool to see a side by side comparison of your changes and the other person's changes. There is also a button to view the ancestor.
    Git merge tool

    Git merge tool (use head)

    For details, please see Vogella's Merge-resolution section.

    Once the merge is complete, add the files via the staging area and there will be a button to complete the merge.

    My preferences

    For me personally, EGit fulfills 95% of my git needs. However some things I still prefer to do via the command line, e.g:

    • Interactive rebase  (pasting in commit id is sometimes easier than fiddling with gui)
    • push to review (#gives me link to my gerrit review)

    Sources:
    For a more complete tutorial, please visit our friend Vogella:
    http://www.vogella.com/tutorials/EclipseGit/article.html

    Feel free to contact me if you have questions:  lufimtse AT redhat DOT com.

    Last updated: February 22, 2024

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