Interview Q&A

Short answer: git filter-repo (preferred) git filter-repo --path path/to/file --invert-paths

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: git add . git commit git push

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Prefer clear commits: fix(cart): prevent negative quantities instead of update.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: A Git submodule is a repository inside another repository — useful for including shared components or libraries.

Example code

You have multiple microservices that share a common authentication library. Instead of duplicating it, you include it as a submodule: git submodule add libs/auth Pros: Keeps shared code centralized. Cons: Requires careful syncing; new contributors must initialize submodules using: git submodule update --init --recursive

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Forking is when you create your own copy of someone else’s GitHub repository.

Explain a bit more

You do this directly on GitHub by clicking the “Fork” button on the top right of the repository page. Example: You want to contribute to a public project like freeCodeCamp. You click Fork, creating your own version under your account. You can modify it freely and then make pull requests to the original project. Command-line analogy: Forking is like cloning, but on the GitHub server level — it gives you your own remote repository to push to.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Add the resolved file: git add <file> git commit # or continue the rebase

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Feature work for “UPI payment” lives on feature/upi-payment. Open a PR to main; resolve conflicts before merge.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Comman Description Safe for shared repos? git revert Creates a new commit that undoes changes from a previous commit ✅ Yes git reset Moves the branch pointer back to a previous commit, potentially removing commits ❌ No (rewrites history)

Example code

If you realize a commit caused an error: git revert will make a new commit that undoes it. git reset will erase it as if it never happened (good for local cleanup).

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Mark conflicts as resolved: git add <filename> git commit

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Working Directory: This is where you make changes to the files. It's your local workspace where you're actively editing code.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Working Directory (modified files), Staging Area (files marked for next commit), Local Repository (committed files).

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Conventional Commits define a standard format for commit messages, such as: feat: add new user registration flow fix: correct login validation chore: update dependencies To enforce this automatically, use commitlint with husky: Setup: npm install --save-dev @commitlint/{config-conventional,cli} husky Create a commitlint.config.js: module.exports = { extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'] }; Then add a Git…

Explain a bit more

hook: npx husky install npx husky add .husky/commit-msg 'npx --no-install commitlint --edit "$1"' Now every commit is checked — bad messages are rejected. Example: ✅ feat: add password reset feature ❌ Added new password reset → ❌ rejected Why this matters: Enables automatic changelog and versioning. Keeps Git history consistent. Works well with tools like semantic-release.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Prefer clear commits: fix(cart): prevent negative quantities instead of update.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: nother to “v2.0.” Git will stop and ask you to pick which to keep.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Reset Type What It Does Example Scenario -soft Moves HEAD to a previous commit but keeps your changes staged You committed too early and just want to edit the message or add more changes.

Explain a bit more

-mixed (default) Moves HEAD and unstages files but keeps your changes in the working directory You want to redo your git add selections. -hard Completely resets everything — deletes all local changes You want to discard all work and return to a clean state. Example: git reset --soft HEAD~1 # undo last commit, keep staged git reset --mixed HEAD~1 # undo last commit, unstage files git reset --hard HEAD~1 # undo last commit and delete changes

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: nother changes the same header), Git won’t know which to keep — you decide manually.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Instead of long-lived access keys, use federated identity: ■ AWS/GCP trusts GitHub’s identity token. ■ Short-lived credentials are issued dynamically. Example for AWS: permissions: id-token: write contents: read Real-world example: In one project, we replaced static AWS keys with OIDC-based auth in GitHub Actions — no more long-lived tokens, and access was automatically scoped per workflow.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Conventional Commits define a standard format for commit messages, such as: feat: add new user registration flow fix: correct login validation chore: update dependencies To enforce this automatically, use commitlint with husky: Setup: npm install --save-dev @commitlint/{config-conventional,cli} husky Create a commitlint.config.js:… module.exports = {……… extends: ['@commitlint/config-conventional'] }; Then add a Git…

Explain a bit more

hook: npx husky install npx husky add .husky/commit-msg 'npx --no-install commitlint --edit "$1"' Now every commit is checked — bad messages are rejected.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Prefer clear commits: fix(cart): prevent negative quantities instead of update.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: git push origin --force

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: A detached HEAD means Git’s HEAD points to a specific commit instead of a branch — commits made now won’t belong to any branch. To fix it: Check what commit you’re on: git status

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Example: If your teammate accidentally ran git push origin main --force, you can still restore your lost commits using your local reflog if you had pulled the branch before the overwrite.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Feature work for “UPI payment” lives on feature/upi-payment. Open a PR to main; resolve conflicts before merge.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Example: Before approving a PR for a new payment API, I check: Code readability and naming consistency Proper test coverage Security considerations (e.g., no API keys in code) Bonus: I sometimes use Suggested Changes in GitHub comments to make small fixes easier for contributors.

Example code

Before approving a PR for a new payment API, I check: Code readability and naming consistency Proper test coverage Security considerations (e.g., no API keys in code) Bonus: I sometimes use Suggested Changes in GitHub comments to make small fixes easier for contributors.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: When GitHub reports conflicts in a PR: Fetch and switch to your branch locally: git fetch origin git checkout feature/new-ui

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Feature work for “UPI payment” lives on feature/upi-payment. Open a PR to main; resolve conflicts before merge.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Add comments or suggestions.? is a common interview topic in Git & GitHub. Give a clear definition, then one concrete example.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: A Pull Request is a request to merge your changes from one branch or fork into another repository or branch — typically to propose new code, bug fixes, or improvements. Example: You fixed a typo or added a feature in your fork of a project. You create a PR asking the original maintainers to “pull” your changes into their main branch. PRs enable: Code review Automated testing Discussion before merging

Real-world example (ShopNest)

ShopNest’s team uses GitHub PRs with reviews and CI checks so broken builds never reach production unnoticed.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Example: If you merge feature/login into main, Git finds the last point they shared code, applies your login branch changes, and creates a new commit that connects both histories. Intermediate / Advanced Git Concepts

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Feature work for “UPI payment” lives on feature/upi-payment. Open a PR to main; resolve conflicts before merge.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: If two developers change the same line in index.html (e.g., one changes the header text, another changes the same header), Git won’t know which to keep — you decide manually.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.

Short answer: Aspect Merging Rebasing History Keeps all commits, including merge commits Creates a linear, cleaner history Safety Safe for shared/public branches Risky for shared branches (rewrites history) Use Case When collaboration is ongoing When you want a clean, linear history before merging Real-world example: Before merging a feature into main, many teams rebase it to make the commit history cleaner.

Explain a bit more

But during teamwork, merging is safer because it doesn’t rewrite other people’s work.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.