The essential git commands are: git status to check working tree state, git add to stage changes, git commit to save snapshots, git push to upload to remote, git pull to fetch and merge, git branch to manage branches, git checkout or git switch to change branches, git merge to combine branches, git log to view history, and git diff to compare changes. Beyond these, git stash temporarily shelves changes, git rebase rewrites history, and git cherry-pick applies specific commits. DevBolt's Git Command Builder covers 22 commands with interactive option selection.

Use git reset --soft HEAD~1 to undo the last commit while keeping all changes staged. Use git reset --mixed HEAD~1 to also unstage the changes. If you have already pushed the commit to a remote branch, use git revert HEAD instead, which creates a new commit that undoes the changes without rewriting history. Never use git reset on pushed shared-branch commits, as it rewrites history and causes conflicts for other contributors. DevBolt's Git Command Builder helps you select the right reset mode.

git merge combines two branches by creating a new merge commit that has both branches as parents, preserving the complete branching history. git rebase moves your branch's commits to the tip of another branch, rewriting history to create a linear sequence. Merge is safer for shared branches because it does not alter existing commits. Rebase produces cleaner, linear history. The common workflow is to rebase your feature branch onto main before merging. Never rebase commits that have been pushed to shared branches, as this rewrites history others depend on.