🔧 Git & Codeberg Pages Cheat Sheet

By Robert Pandeya

Created November 2025 • Part of the Golden Thread

"The luminous thread of thought"

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🚀 Basic Git Workflow

# Check status of your repo
$ git status

# Add all changes
$ git add .

# Add specific file
$ git add filename.html

# Commit with message
$ git commit -m "Your commit message here"

# Push to remote
$ git push origin main

🔄 Pulling & Syncing

# Pull latest changes
$ git pull origin main

# Pull and allow unrelated histories
$ git pull origin main --allow-unrelated-histories

# Pull from pages branch
$ git pull origin pages

🌿 Branch Operations

# List all branches
$ git branch

# Switch to existing branch
$ git checkout pages

# Create and switch to new branch
$ git checkout -b new-branch-name

# Merge another branch into current
$ git merge main

# Merge with unrelated histories
$ git merge main --allow-unrelated-histories

⚔️ Conflict Resolution

# Keep YOUR version (local) during merge conflict
$ git checkout --ours .
$ git add .
$ git commit -m "Resolved conflicts - kept local version"

# Keep THEIR version (remote) during merge conflict
$ git checkout --theirs .
$ git add .
$ git commit -m "Resolved conflicts - kept remote version"

# Abort a merge
$ git merge --abort

🗑️ Removing Files

# Remove file from Git tracking (keep locally)
$ git rm --cached filename

# Remove folder from Git tracking
$ git rm --cached -r foldername/

# Remove and delete file
$ git rm filename

# Force remove
$ git rm -rf .forgejo

💪 Force Operations

⚠️ Warning: Force operations can overwrite history and cause data loss. Use with extreme caution and only when you know what you're doing! 
# Force push (overwrites remote)
$ git push origin main --force

# Force add (ignores .gitignore)
$ git add -f public/

📦 Submodule Operations

# Remove submodule from tracking
$ git rm --cached themes/golden-thread

# Delete submodule's .git folder (PowerShell)
$ Remove-Item -Recurse -Force themes/golden-thread/.git

# Delete submodule's .git folder (Bash)
$ rm -rf themes/golden-thread/.git

🌐 Codeberg Pages Workflow

💡 Key Insight: Codeberg Pages serves from the pages branch, not main. You must merge your changes from main → pages for them to appear on your website. 
# Standard workflow for Codeberg Pages
# 1. Work on main branch
$ git checkout main
$ git add .
$ git commit -m "Update content"
$ git push origin main

# 2. Merge to pages branch (what Codeberg serves)
$ git checkout pages
$ git merge main --allow-unrelated-histories
$ git push origin pages

# 3. Wait 1-2 minutes for Codeberg to rebuild

🔧 Hugo Commands

# Build Hugo site locally
$ hugo

# Build with minification
$ hugo --minify

# Serve locally for testing
$ hugo server

# Serve with drafts visible
$ hugo server -D

📝 Vim Quick Commands

When Git opens Vim for commit messages:

# Save and quit
:wq

# Quit without saving
:q!

# Force save and quit
:wq!

🐛 Common Issues & Fixes

"Updates were rejected because the remote contains work"

$ git pull origin main
$ git push origin main

"refusing to merge unrelated histories"

$ git merge main --allow-unrelated-histories

"Merge conflict in file.html"

# Keep your version
$ git checkout --ours .
$ git add .
$ git commit -m "Resolved conflicts"

"Authentication failed"

  • Use lowercase username: ropa not ROPA
  • Use personal access token instead of password
  • Check your token hasn't expired

"404 Not Found on Codeberg Pages"

  • Check files are in pages branch (not main)
  • Wait 1-2 minutes after pushing
  • Verify files are in repo root, not subfolder
  • Check file names are correct (case-sensitive!)

🎯 Quick Reference Table

Command What It Does
git status Check what's changed
git add . Stage all changes
git commit -m "msg" Save changes with message
git push origin main Upload to main branch
git push origin pages Upload to pages branch (for Codeberg)
git pull origin main Download latest changes
git checkout branch Switch branches
git merge branch Merge another branch
git rm --cached file Stop tracking file

💡 Pro Tips

  1. Always check status first: Run git status before doing anything to see what's changed
  2. Commit often: Small, frequent commits are better than huge ones
  3. Write clear messages: "Fix bug" ❌ vs "Fixed navbar overlap on mobile" ✅
  4. Test locally first: Use hugo server before pushing to production
  5. Keep main and pages in sync: Regularly merge main → pages for Codeberg
  6. Use branches: Create feature branches for experimental work
  7. Read the error messages: Git's errors are usually helpful!
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