Git | Rushil Patel

01. Understanding Version Control

What is it ?

A system that tracks and manages changes to code over time. Think infinite undo for your whole project.
Why we need it ?
- Many devs, same files, so conflicts happen
- Roll back when something breaks
- Know who changed what, and when
- Build features in parallel
Two models
- Centralized (SVN, Perforce): history lives only on a central server
- Distributed (Git): every clone has the full history, work offline, every copy is a backup

What is Git ?

The world's most-used version control system - distributed, fast, and built for safety.
- Distributed: every clone is a full repo + complete history
- Content-tracked
  - Git tracks modifications to file (commits)
  - Maintains multiple version of files (branches)
  - Synchronize with other computers (remote)
- Tamper-evident: every commit is hashed (SHA-1), so history can't be silently changed
What is Github ?
- Web platform that host git projects (repositories)
- Visualize git stuff (files, commits, branches)
- Report problems (issues)
- Suggest code modifications and gather feedback (pull-requests(PR))
- Host projects (CI/CD)
With GitHub, developers, agents, and code come together on one platform

Git = the tool. The version control system that runs on your machine.
GitHub = a web service. A website that hosts your Git repos in the cloud and adds collaboration features on top.
Git = the camera (takes the snapshots), GitHub = Google Photos (stores them online, shares with others).
Git works perfectly with zero internet & no GitHub account. GitHub is useless without Git.

What each one gives you

	Git	GitHub
What it is	Software (CLI tool)	Cloud platform / website
Runs where	Your local machine	Remote servers
Needs internet	No	Yes
Core job	Track versions, branches, history	Host repos, enable collaboration
Extra features	Nothing	Pull requests, Issues, code review, Actions (CI/CD), access control

GitHub is not the only option