Switching from Subversion to Git
June 2014 by Tobias Günther

Switching from Subversion to Git

Table of Contents

These days, many Subversion users move to Git. The switch becomes easy once you understand a few core concepts and how they are different between the systems.

Distributed vs. Centralized

Subversion is a centralized version control system: all team members work towards a single central repository, placed on a remote server. A "checkout" from this central repository will place a "working copy" on the user's machine. This is a snapshot from a certain version of the project on his disk.

In Git, a distributed version control system, things work a little differently. Instead of a "checkout", a Git user will "clone" a repository from a remote server. In return, he receives a full-fledged repository, not just a working copy. The user then has his own repository on his local machine - including all of the project's history.
You can do everything on your local machine: commit, inspect history, restore older revisions, etc. Only if you want to share your work with the world you have to connect to a remote server.


Continue reading in our free online book to understand the differences between SVN and Git regarding Repository structures and URLs, Branching, Committing and Sharing work

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