Lab 1 - Create a new repository and add files

The goal of this lab is to create a new repository and sync it with GitHub.

Prerequisites:

• A GitHub account
• Tools installed on your local machine:
  • Visual Studio Code
  • Git and GitHub CLI - see Setting Up Git for PowerShell
  • PowerShell with the posh-git module - see Installing and Using Posh-Git

Step 1 - Create a new repository

There are two ways to create a new repository when you want to host a copy of it on GitHub.

1. Create a new repository on GitHub and then clone it to your local machine. This is the easiest and most common way to create a new repository.
2. Create a new repository on your local machine and in GitHub, then push the local respository to GitHub. This method is more complicated but is useful if you have an existing project that you want to host on GitHub.

Option 1 - Create a new repository on GitHub and clone it

GitHub lets you add a README file at the same time you create your new repository. GitHub also offers other common options such as a license file, but you don’t have to select any of them now.

1. In the upper-right corner of any page, select + , then click New repository.

   

2. In the Repository name box, type in a name for your project (no spaces or special characters). For this lab, choose a name that’s different from your lab partner’s name. For example, you could add your initials to create a name like sdwGitFun.

3. In the Description box, type a short description. For example, type “This repository is for practicing the GitHub Flow.”

4. Select whether your repository to be Public or Private.

5. Select Add a README file.

6. Click Create repository.

7. Copy the URL of the repository. You need this URL to clone the repository to your local machine.

   

8. In your terminal, navigate to the directory where you want to clone the repository. For example, type cd ~/Git and press Enter.

9. Type git clone <repository URL> and press Enter.

   Git creates a new directory with the same name as the repository and copies all of the files from the remote repository to your local machine.

Option 2 - Create a new repository on your local machine and push it to GitHub

1. In your terminal, navigate to the directory where you want to create the new repository. For example, type cd ~/Git and press Enter.
2. Type mkdir <repository name> and press Enter. For example, type mkdir git-fundamentals and press Enter.
3. Type cd <repository name> and press Enter. For example, type cd git-fundamentals and press Enter.
4. Type git init and press Enter.
5. Type git status and press Enter. You should see a message that says “On branch main” and “No commits yet.”
6. Using Visual Studio Code, create a new file called README.md in the new repository directory. Type a short description of the project in the file and save it.
7. Type git add README.md and press Enter. This adds the README file to the staging area.
8. Type git commit -m "Initial commit" and press Enter. This creates the first commit in the repository.
9. Follow the instructions in the previous section to create a new repository on GitHub, but don’t select the options to add any files. Use the same name as the local repository.
10. Copy the URL of the new repository.
11. Type git remote add origin <repository URL> and press Enter. This adds the remote repository to your local repository.
12. Type git push -u origin main and press Enter. This pushes the local repository to GitHub. The -u option sets the upstream branch for the local repository to the remote repository. This means that you can use git push and git pull without specifying the remote repository in the future.

Step 2 - Add files to the repository

Now take a few minutes to add files to the repository. You can add any files you want, but here are a few suggestions:

• Create a new file called LICENSE.md and add a license to the file. You can use the ChooseALicense website to help you choose a license.
• Create a new file called CONTRIBUTING.md and add a short description of how to contribute to the project.
• Create a new file called CHANGELOG.md and add a short description of the changes made to the project.

Use the commands you learned in Tracking changes to add the files to the staging area and commit.