What is Cherry-Picking in Git?
Cherry-picking in Git refers to the process of selecting specific commits from one branch and applying them onto another branch. This is particularly useful when you want to incorporate certain changes or features without merging the entire branch, allowing for more granular control over your project's history.
How Cherry-Picking Works
When you use the command git cherry-pick , Git will take the changes
in the specified commit and create a new commit on your current branch with those changes. This
enables the safe transfer of specific features or bug fixes while avoiding the unnecessary code
changes from other commits.
Use Cases
- Integrating hotfixes from a development branch to the production branch.
- Isolating specific features that are ready for deployment while the rest of the branch is still in development.
- Moving changes across different parts of a project without a full merge.
Pros and Cons
While cherry-picking offers flexibility, it can lead to challenges, such as merge conflicts if the same lines of code have changed in the destination branch. It's essential to use it judiciously to maintain a clean and understandable Git history.