Effective Use of Git Cherry-Pick for Code Management Quiz

Explore key concepts of git cherry-pick, including use cases, common pitfalls, command syntax, and handling conflicts. Enhance your understanding of selective commit integration and best practices in team workflows with this quiz on Git’s cherry-pick functionality.

1. Basic Function of Cherry-Pick

   What does the git cherry-pick command do when used on a specific commit in your repository?

   1. It applies the changes introduced by the specified commit onto your current branch.
   2. It merges entire branches, combining all commits from one branch into another.
   3. It reverts the given commit, undoing its changes in the history.
   4. It deletes the specified commit from the repository history.

   Explanation: The git cherry-pick command applies the changes from a specific commit onto your current working branch, creating a new commit with those changes. It does not merge everything from another branch, as merge does that. Cherry-pick does not undo or revert commits; revert is the command for that. It also does not delete commits; remove or filter-branch would be used for such history rewriting.

2. When to Use Cherry-Pick

   In which scenario is it most appropriate to use git cherry-pick instead of a merge or rebase?

   1. When you want to integrate only a select commit from a feature branch into the main branch.
   2. When you need to combine all new changes from one branch into another.
   3. When you want to undo the effects of a problematic commit.
   4. When you are trying to resolve a series of merge conflicts across multiple branches.

   Explanation: Cherry-pick is ideal for applying individual commits selectively, such as pulling in a bug fix from a feature branch without merging all its changes. For combining all changes, merge or rebase is more suitable. To undo a commit, revert should be used. Cherry-pick is not primarily a conflict resolution tool for multiple branches; rather, it may itself introduce conflicts that need to be resolved.

3. Cherry-Pick Syntax

   Given the commit hash abc12345, which is the correct command to cherry-pick this commit onto your current branch?

   1. git cherry-pick abc12345
   2. git pick abc12345
   3. git branch-pick abc12345
   4. git cherry abc12345

   Explanation: The correct syntax is git cherry-pick followed by the commit hash. The command git pick does not exist, making it an incorrect option. git branch-pick is not a valid command either, and git cherry is used for different purposes, such as comparing branches for unique commits rather than applying them.

4. Resolving Cherry-Pick Conflicts

   What should you do if you encounter a merge conflict while running git cherry-pick on a commit?

   1. Manually resolve the conflict, then run git cherry-pick --continue.
   2. Delete the conflicting files and retry the cherry-pick command.
   3. Abort the operation by closing your terminal window.
   4. Ignore the conflict and proceed to the next commit without addressing it.

   Explanation: When a conflict occurs during cherry-pick, you need to manually resolve the conflicting files and then use git cherry-pick --continue to complete the process. Deleting files will result in data loss and is not a proper conflict resolution technique. Simply closing the terminal does not abort or resolve the operation. Ignoring the conflict and proceeding is not possible; unresolved conflicts block further progress.

5. Cherry-Pick Limitations

   What is a potential risk of using git cherry-pick extensively between long-lived branches?

   1. You might introduce duplicated changes and complicate future merges.
   2. Your commit history will become completely hidden from view.
   3. Every cherry-pick will permanently delete local tags.
   4. Cherry-pick always overwrites remote repositories without warning.

   Explanation: Frequent use of cherry-pick across long-lived branches can lead to duplicate changes and make merges harder due to repeated commits appearing in multiple places. It does not hide the commit history; commit logs remain visible. Cherry-picking does not affect tags or delete them. The command does not automatically overwrite remotes; it only affects your local branch until you push changes.