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JavaScript Express Basics (2015) Developing Express Apps Like a Boss Adding Routes to the App

Posted by Gabriel D. Celery
Gabriel D. Celery
13,810 Points

Issue with remote branch after cloning github repository

This might be something I don't remember from the git course, but I ran into an issue I don't understand.

So in this course after cloning the repo with the command "git clone https://github.com/hdngr/treehouse-express-basics.git express-basics" if I check out the branches with "git branch" I only see the master branch.

But if I do "git checkout addingRoutesToTheApp" then git switches me to the branch and now I can see both the master and the newly added branch. How's that?

1 Answer

Sue Dough
Sue Dough
35,800 Points
Sue Dough
Sue Dough
35,800 Points

git branch will show the branchs you have on your machine. You have given git no arguements and you only downloaded the master branch when doing git clone.

It sounds like your looking to see the ones locally as well as remotely so you need to pass in the -a arguement. 

git branch -a

Expected output 

* master
  remotes/origin/HEAD -> origin/master
  remotes/origin/addStaticToLayout
  remotes/origin/addingPartials
  remotes/origin/addingRoutesToTheApp
  remotes/origin/admin-addons
  remotes/origin/easilyDebugExpress
  remotes/origin/final
  remotes/origin/improvingYourFirstAppSomeFinalTouches
  remotes/origin/interactiveDebuggingAndExploratoryProgramming
  remotes/origin/listsInJadeTemps
  remotes/origin/logicInJadeTemps
  remotes/origin/master
  remotes/origin/requests
  remotes/origin/responseRenderMethod
  remotes/origin/responses
  remotes/origin/settingUpStaticServer
  remotes/origin/usingJade
  remotes/origin/whatIsJade
  remotes/origin/whereFromHere
  remotes/origin/yourFirstExpressApp

git checkout addingRoutesToTheApp will first see if you have it locally and if you don't, it will fetch it remotely.

Now if you switch back to master and type git branch it will show

  addingRoutesToTheApp
* master

because you passed no arguements and these are the only 2 branches on your local machine.

Gabriel D. Celery
Gabriel D. Celery
13,810 Points

Thx, I didnt know the cloning process only cloned the master branch. Now it all makes sense.

Brigette Eckert
Brigette Eckert
16,957 Points

Thanks that clears some things up.