How to Check If a Git Repository Has Multiple Branches

Introduction

In this lab, you will learn how to check if a Git repository has multiple branches. We will explore how to list all branches in your repository using the git branch command and understand its output, including identifying the currently active branch.

Furthermore, you will discover how to efficiently count the total number of branches in your repository by combining the git branch command with the wc -l command using the pipe operator. Finally, you will apply these techniques to determine whether a repository contains a single branch or multiple branches.

Skills Graph

List Branches with git branch

In this step, we'll learn how to see the different timelines (branches) in our Git repository. Remember how we talked about branches being like alternate timelines? The git branch command lets us see which timelines exist and which one we are currently on.

First, make sure you are in your my-time-machine directory. If you are not, use the cd command to navigate there:

cd ~/project/my-time-machine

Now, let's list the branches. Type the following command:

git branch

You should see output similar to this:

* master

What does this output mean?

• The * symbol indicates the branch you are currently on.
• master is the name of the branch. When you initialize a new Git repository, Git creates a default branch, which is often named master (or sometimes main). This is the main timeline of your project.

So, right now, your time machine only has one timeline, the master branch, and you are currently on that timeline.

Understanding branches is crucial in Git. They allow you to work on new features or fix bugs without affecting the main, stable version of your project. You can create a new branch, make changes there, and then merge those changes back into the main branch when they are ready. This keeps your main project timeline clean and functional.

In the next steps, we'll explore how to create new branches and switch between them, giving you the power to manage multiple timelines in your project!

Count Branches with git branch | wc -l

In the previous step, we used git branch to see the names of our branches. What if we just want to know how many branches we have? We can combine the git branch command with another useful Linux command called wc -l.

The wc -l command counts the number of lines in its input. By using the pipe symbol |, we can send the output of git branch as the input to wc -l.

Make sure you are still in the ~/project/my-time-machine directory:

cd ~/project/my-time-machine

Now, try combining the commands:

git branch | wc -l

You should see output like this:

1

This output tells us that there is currently only 1 branch in our repository. This makes sense, as we only have the default master branch right now.

Combining commands with the pipe symbol | is a powerful technique in the Linux command line. It allows you to chain together simple commands to perform more complex tasks. In this case, we're using it to process the output of git branch and get a simple count.

This might seem like a small thing now, but as your projects grow and you create more branches, being able to quickly count them can be helpful for managing your workflow.

In the next step, we'll actually create another branch and see how these commands reflect the change. Get ready to add another timeline to your time machine!

Test Single vs Multiple Branches

In the previous steps, we saw that our repository currently has only one branch, master. Now, let's create a new branch to see how Git handles multiple timelines.

We'll create a new branch called feature/add-greeting. This is a common naming convention for branches that are adding a new feature.

Make sure you are in the ~/project/my-time-machine directory:

cd ~/project/my-time-machine

Now, create the new branch using the git branch command followed by the name of the new branch:

git branch feature/add-greeting

This command doesn't produce any output, but it has created a new branch.

Let's verify that the new branch exists by listing the branches again:

git branch

You should now see output like this:

* master
  feature/add-greeting

Notice that both master and feature/add-greeting are listed. The * is still next to master, indicating that we are currently still on the master branch. We have created a new timeline, but we haven't switched to it yet.

Now, let's use our wc -l trick again to count the branches:

git branch | wc -l

This time, the output should be:

2

This confirms that we now have two branches in our repository.

This demonstrates the power of Git branches. You can have multiple independent lines of development within the same repository. This is incredibly useful for working on different features simultaneously or for experimenting with new ideas without affecting the main project.

In the next lab, we will learn how to switch between these branches and start making changes on our new feature/add-greeting timeline!

Summary

In this lab, we learned how to check the branches in a Git repository. We used the git branch command to list all existing branches and identify the currently active one, noting that a new repository typically starts with a single master or main branch. We also discovered how to count the number of branches using the git branch | wc -l command combination, which pipes the output of git branch to the wc -l command to count the lines, effectively counting the branches. These steps provide fundamental methods for understanding and assessing the branching structure of a Git project.