👀 Git on Debian: A Complete Setup and Workflow Guide (2025 Edition)

Date Created: 2025-05-27
By: 16BitMiker
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Whether you're managing your own codebase or collaborating via a self-hosted Gitea instance, Git remains the cornerstone of modern development workflows. This guide offers a comprehensive, up-to-date walkthrough for setting up Git on Debian, connecting to Gitea via SSH, and mastering the six most essential Git commands. Let's get you running efficiently and securely. 🏔️

📋 Git Installation on Debian

📦 Install Git via APT (Recommended)

For most users, Debian's stable packages are more than sufficient:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install git -y
git --version  # Confirm installation

📦 Compile from Source (Advanced)

For the latest Git features or when you're customizing the build:

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# Install required dependencies
sudo apt install wget dh-autoreconf libcurl4-gnutls-dev \
libexpat1-dev gettext libz-dev libssl-dev asciidoc xmlto \
docbook2x install-info build-essential

# Download and compile Git
wget https://github.com/git/git/archive/v2.44.0.tar.gz
tar -xf v2.44.0.tar.gz
cd git-2.44.0
sudo make prefix=/usr/local all
sudo make prefix=/usr/local install

📋 Configure Git for Daily Use

🛠️ Set Identity and Preferences

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git config --global user.name "Your Full Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"
git config --global init.defaultBranch main
git config --global core.editor vim
git config --global color.ui auto
git config --global credential.helper cache --timeout=3600
git config --list  # Verify all settings

📋 SSH Key Setup for Gitea

SSH is the preferred method for secure Git access.

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ssh-keygen -t ed25519 -C "your.email@example.com"
eval "$(ssh-agent -s)"
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519
cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub  # Copy this to Gitea

In Gitea:

1. Go to Settings → SSH/GPG Keys

2. Click “Add Key” → Paste your public key

3. Save with a descriptive name

Test SSH connection:

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ssh -T git@your-gitea-instance.com

📋 Create and Link a Repository

🔄 Create Repository in Gitea

• Click ➕ → “New Repository”

• Set name, description, visibility

• Copy the SSH URL for cloning

🔄 Initialize Locally

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# Clone an existing repo
git clone git@your-gitea-instance.com:username/repo.git
cd repo

# OR initialize a brand new one
mkdir my-project && cd my-project
git init
echo "# My Project" > README.md
git add README.md
git commit -m "Initial commit"
git remote add origin git@your-gitea-instance.com:username/repo.git
git push -u origin main

📋 Six Essential Git Commands

✅ 1. git status – Inspect Your Workspace

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git status        # Full status
git status -s     # Short version
git status -b     # Show current branch

Helps you track staged, unstaged, and untracked changes.

✅ 2. git add – Stage Changes

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git add file.txt        # Add specific file
git add .               # Add all files
git add -u              # Update tracked files only
git add -A              # Include everything
git add -p              # Interactive staging

Tip: Use git add -p to review changes before staging.

✅ 3. git commit – Save to Local History

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git commit -m "Message"                    # Quick commit
git commit                                 # Opens editor
git commit -am "Message"                   # Skip staging for tracked files
git commit --amend -m "Updated message"    # Modify last commit

Write clear, imperative commit messages:

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Fix: Handle null pointer in login handler

- Added null check to login function
- Prevents crash on empty form submission

Resolves: #42

✅ 4. git push – Upload to Remote

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git push -u origin main         # First-time push
git push                        # Regular push
git push origin feature-xyz     # Push feature branch
git push --all origin           # Push all branches
git push --force-with-lease     # Safer force push

Always pull before you push to avoid merge conflicts.

✅ 5. git pull – Download and Merge Updates

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git pull                        # From current branch
git pull origin main            # Specify branch
git pull --rebase               # Linear history
git pull --autostash            # Auto-stash local changes

Tip: Set git config pull.rebase true for a cleaner commit history.

✅ 6. git clone – Copy a Remote Repository

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git clone git@your-gitea-instance.com:user/repo.git
git clone -b develop ...
git clone --depth 1 ...         # Shallow clone
git clone --recursive ...       # Include submodules

Use HTTPS only if SSH access is not available.

📋 Daily Git Workflow Example

🚀 From start to finish in a real-world scenario:

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# Clone project
git clone git@your-gitea-instance.com:user/my-project.git
cd my-project

# Create a branch
git checkout -b feature/auth-module

# Make changes
echo "def login(): pass" > auth.py

# Stage changes
git add auth.py

# Commit
git commit -m "Add login function skeleton"

# Push branch
git push -u origin feature/auth-module

# Merge later
git checkout main
git pull origin main
git merge feature/auth-module
git push origin main

📋 Git Power Features

🔧 Git Aliases to Save Time

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git config --global alias.st status
git config --global alias.co checkout
git config --global alias.br branch
git config --global alias.ci commit
git config --global alias.graph "log --oneline --graph --decorate --all"

Now you can run git st, git ci -m "...", or git graph.

🔧 .gitignore Setup

Avoid committing temp files or build artifacts:

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# .gitignore
*.pyc
*.log
node_modules/
.vscode/
build/
.env

Add language- and tool-specific entries as needed.

🔧 Git Hooks for Automation

Create a pre-commit hook to enforce standards:

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# .git/hooks/pre-commit
#!/bin/sh
echo "Running checks..."
flake8 . || exit 1

Make it executable:

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chmod +x .git/hooks/pre-commit

📋 Troubleshooting and Optimization

🛠️ SSH Key Issues

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ssh -T git@your-gitea-instance.com
ssh -Tv git@your-gitea-instance.com       # Verbose output
ssh-add -l                                # Check keys
ssh-add ~/.ssh/id_ed25519                 # Re-add key

🛠️ Merge Conflicts

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git status
vim conflicted-file.txt   # Resolve manually
git add conflicted-file.txt
git commit                # Finalize merge

Use git mergetool for assisted resolution.

🛠️ Undo Mistakes

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git restore file.txt              # Discard changes
git restore --staged file.txt     # Unstage file
git reset --soft HEAD~1           # Undo last commit (keep changes)
git reset --hard HEAD~1           # Undo and discard
git revert abc123                 # Revert specific commit

Be cautious with --hard as it deletes changes permanently.

🛠️ Maintenance

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git gc --aggressive      # Clean up repo
git clean -fd            # Remove untracked files
git remote prune origin  # Remove stale branches
git fsck                 # Check repository health

👥 Security Best Practices

🔐 GPG Commit Signing

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gpg --full-generate-key
gpg --list-secret-keys --keyid-format LONG
git config --global user.signingkey YOUR_KEY_ID
git config --global commit.gpgsign true

To sign commits manually:

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git commit -S -m "Secure commit"

🔐 Secure Git Configuration

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git config --global credential.helper ""     # Avoid plaintext storage
git config --global push.default simple
git config --global merge.ff only
git config --global fetch.prune true

📚 Read More

• Pro Git Book

• Git Cheat Sheet (GitHub)

• Gitea Docs

• Debian Git Packaging Guide

Mastering Git on Debian with Gitea integration sets you up for collaborative coding success. With secure SSH access, a clean commit history, and automation via hooks and aliases, you can focus more on building and less on battling your tools. ✅

Happy hacking! 💻