Working with Gitflow

Syntax#

git flow <subcommand>
git flow init
git flow [feature|release|hotfix] [start|finish]

Parameters#

Subcommand	Details
init	Initialize a new git repo with support for the branching model.
feature	Manage your feature branches.
release	Manage your release branches.
hotfix	Manage your hotfix branches.

Remarks#

Operation on 5 common branches locally

One of most common use cases of Gitflow

Initialize repo and define branches

$ git flow init
    # if you use default setup, you'll define six types of branches:
    #
    # main branches (lives forever)
    #
    #   1. master:  for production releases
    #   2. develop: for "next release" development
    #
    # supporting branches
    #
    #   3. feature: for a product feature
    #   4. release: for preparation of a new production release
    #   5. hotfix:  for resolving critical bug of production version
    #   6. support
    #
    # also, two main branches are created: master, develop

Start and Finish a Feature

$ git flow feature start my_feature
    # create branch 'feature/my_feature' based on the 'develop'

    # made development and commits...

$ git flow feature finish my_feature
    # merge 'feature/my_feature' back to the 'develop'
    # delete 'feature/my_feature'

Start and Finish a Release

$ git flow release start my_release
    # create branch 'release/my_release' based on the 'develop'

    # made bug fixes...

$ git flow release finish my_release
    # merge branch 'release/my_release' to the 'master' and add tag
    # merge branch 'release/my_release' back to the 'develop'
    # delete 'release/my_release'

Start and Finish a Hotfix

$ git flow hotfix start my_hotfix
    # create branch 'hotfix/my_hotfix' based on the 'master'

    # made some hotfixes...

$ git flow hotfix finish my_hotfix
    # merge branch 'hotfix/my_hotfix' back to the 'master' and add tag
    # merge branch 'hotfix/my_hotfix' to the 'develop'
    # delete 'hotfix/my_hotfix'