Installing Git and Initializing a Repository

This second chapter of the Git and GitHub for Beginners series gets your machine ready and walks you through creating your very first repository. By the end you will have Git installed, your identity configured so commits are properly signed, and a project folder that Git is watching.

Installing Git

Git is free, open source and available on every major platform. Installation takes a few minutes, and once the command git works in your terminal you never have to install it again. Pick the row that matches your machine:

If the version line prints, stop there — do not worry about build options or GUI clients yet. The terminal is the best place to learn, because every graphical tool is a coat of paint over these same commands.

Telling Git who you are

Every commit is stamped with an author name and email, so Git needs to know yours before it will record anything. Configuration is stored as key/value pairs, and the --global flag applies them to every repository on your machine — which is what you want for your identity. Use an email that matches the one on your GitHub account so your commits are linked to your avatar.

Creating your first repository

A repository (or repo) is simply a project folder plus a hidden .git directory where Git stores the entire history. Running git init in a folder switches Git on for that project. The command creates .git and nothing else — no files are recorded until you start committing in the next chapter. Running git init again in the same folder is harmless; Git tells you it is reinitialising an existing repository.

Your first status report

git status is the command you will type more than any other. It answers three questions at once: which branch am I on, what has changed, and what should I do next. On a brand-new repository the answer is honest — there are no commits yet, and every file is untracked, meaning Git can see it but is not recording it. A useful habit is to run status before and after every other command until their output feels automatic.

Ignoring files before they annoy you

Some files never belong in history: dependencies, build output, editor settings and secrets. A .gitignore file at the root of the repository lists patterns Git should silently skip. Ignored files never appear in git status, so your view of the project stays clean from the first commit onwards.

git init bakery-site

Expected output:

Initialized empty Git repository in /Users/sara/Projects/bakery-site/.git/

git config --global user.name "Sara Mehta"
git config --global user.email "sara@example.com"
git config --global --list

Expected output:

user.name=Sara Mehta
user.email=sara@example.com
init.defaultBranch=main
core.autocrlf=input

git status

Expected output:

On branch main

No commits yet

Untracked files:
  (use "git add <file>..." to include in what will be committed)
	index.html
	bakery-menu.txt

nothing added to commit but untracked files present (use "git add" to track)

Read that output slowly: the branch is already named main, Git knows two files exist, and it is telling you exactly which command comes next. That guidance in the status output is your built-in tutor.

Common mistakes

• Configuring without --global — the identity applies only to one repository, and the next project “forgets” who you are.
• Using the wrong email — commits will not match your GitHub account, so your contributions show up unlinked.
• Running git init inside a folder that is already tracked — nested repositories behave strangely; run git status first to check.
• Skipping .gitignore — you end up committing node_modules or an accidental .env full of keys.
• Expecting Git to record files automatically — it watches them, but only git add and git commit put them into history.

Practice checklist

1. Install Git, close and reopen your terminal, then confirm with git --version.
2. Set user.name and user.email globally and verify them with git config --global --list.
3. Create a folder called git-practice, run git init inside it, then run git status.
4. Add a .gitignore containing node_modules/, .env and .DS_Store, and confirm status stays tidy.
5. Create one text file, run git status again, and find it listed under “Untracked files”.

What's next?

Your repository exists but its history is empty — time to fill it. Head to Staging and Committing to learn how changes travel from your working folder into a permanent snapshot.