FEBRUARY 29, 2020

Git vs GitHub: A Complete Guide

• 2 Comments
• By: Priyadarshini Nayak
• Technology

You as an IT professional must have come across tools like Git and GitHub when you have worked with several codes. But do you know what the definition of Git or GitHub is? What is the difference between those two platforms? Looking to get started with Git and GitHub as you’re working on a project? Well, these are the cases, no worries! This blog is for you.

This piece of editorial will help you understand the basics of Git and GitHub. It will also make you learn more if you want to use Git and GitHub in your project.

Let’s get started!

What does it mean by Git and GitHub?

Git is an extremely popular version control system for everybody working in IT, starting from developers to designers. GitHub is a web-based service for version control using Git and also known as a social networking site for developers. GitHub is the social code-hosting platform where you can play and experiment; a place to learn and to get involved; a place to find the most incredible open-source information, emerging technologies, features, and designs.

But before we discuss deeply the difference between Git and GitHub, let us understand the concept of version control.

Version Control

The version control system is like a savings program and that gives you the power to review or even restore earlier versions by tracking and logging the changes you make to your file sets over time. Any development project does not come into existence ex nihilo; it is built code line upon code line from the ground up. Thus, a lot of trial, error, and correction that drives into creating something that actually works the way it’s supposed to. And this is where version control comes in.

Version control is often useful as it takes snapshots of every revision to your project. You as a developer or programmer can then access these versions to compare or restore them as required.

(Image Source: C-sharpcorner.com)

What is Git?

Git is an extremely popular version control system developed back in 2005. Git is installed on your local system (not in the cloud), which gives you a self-contained record of your ongoing programming versions. It can be used completely exclusive of any cloud-hosting service without even using internet access, except for downloading it.

Git is designed to work well with text files, but one thing that separates Git is its branching model that allows you to create independent local branches in your code. This particular tool helps the developer to try out new ideas, set aside branches for production work, jump back to earlier branches, and easily merge the branches at the click of a button. As compared to other version control systems, Git is responsive, easy to use, and cheap.

What is GitHub?

GitHub is a platform, exclusively cloud-based, and designed as a Git repository hosting service. It’s an online database that allows the developers or programmers to keep track and their Git version control projects outside of their local server. GitHub is completely different from Git and known as a for-profit service. Though basic repository-hosting features are available at no cost to those developers whomsoever interested to create a user profile, making GitHub a popular choice for open-source projects. Additional features can also be implemented via the GitHub Marketplace service.

GitHub presents an extremely graphically represented user interface and provides programmers with built-in control and task-management tools. An individual’s Git repositories can be remotely accessed by any authorized person from any computer with an internet connection, anywhere in the world only because of the GitHub, which is cloud-based.

A comparison study between Git and GitHub

• Git is a software, whereas GitHub is a service
• Git is installed locally on the system, whereas GitHub is hosted on the Web
• Git is a command-line tool, whereas GitHub provides a graphical interface
• Git provides a desktop interface named Git Gui, whereas GitHub provides a desktop interface named GitHub desktop
• Git is a tool to manage different versions of edits made to files in a Git repository, whereas GitHub is a space to upload a copy of your Git repository
• Git provides functionalities like Version Control System Source Code Management, whereas GitHub provides functionalities of Git like VCS and Source Code Management, as well as adding a few of its features
• Git launched in 2005, whereas GitHub released in 2008
• Git is maintained by Linux foundation, whereas GitHub is maintained by Microsoft
• Git is built-in no user management features, whereas GitHub is built-in user management