Here you learn about the difference between Git and GitHub.
A novice, might assume that Git and GitHub are the same, and serve the same purpose, but this is not the case. Git is a version control system that is used to manage different versions of our project whereas GitHub is a Git repository hosting service.
Git-
Git is a very popular version control system that is used to manage projects. However, a version control system is a software that is used to track changes made to projects, and it stores these modifications as different versions of a project.
It manages the different versions of our project by maintaining a series of snapshots of the project. Anytime we want to commit or store a change permanently a new snapshot of our current version is taken and stored by Git. Also, every project managed using Git is called a Git Repository.
One of the major advantages of using Git, or any other version control system, is that we can easily compare the current version of our project with previous versions and rectify errors. We can also roll back to the previous versions.
Git is a distributed version control system, as such anyone who clones our repository will have access to the entire commit history.
Git provides excellent branching support as well. A branch is simply a pointer to a commit and is used to create an independent working environment for developers where they can experiment with different things without worrying about affecting the project.
Although, there are other version control systems out there like Mercurial, SVN, ClearCase, however, Git is probably the most popular and the most widely used.
GitHub-
GitHub is a Git Repository hosting service owned by Microsoft a tech giant. Thus, it is possible for us to upload our local Git repository to GitHub and access it anywhere in the world.
GitHub is highly useful for collaborative purposes. A developer can share his code with other developers by simply uploading the Git Repository to GitHub. Also, one can authorize other developers to make changes to his remote repository. In addition, GitHub can be used as a backup for our repository.
Also, GitHub provides all the features of Git and it is more user-friendly and intuitive to use as well.
Also, there are other Git hosting services such as Bitbucket or GitLab, but GitHub is the most popular and the most widely used one.
Differences between Git and GitHub
The differences between Git and GitHub are highlighted in the table below.
Git | GitHub |
This is a version control system. | It is a Git repository hosting service. |
It is installed on our local machine and internet access is needed to use Git. | This is completely cloud-based and an internet connection is needed to use it. |
Microsoft maintains GitHub. | |
This is software and used as a command-line tool. | GitHub provides a service, as well as a Graphical Interface to its users. |
Git is totally free to use. | GitHub has free as well as paid plans. |
