Clone from GitHub

Clone from GitHub

Cloning copies a repository from GitHub down to your computer so you can work on it locally.

The clone command

git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git

This downloads the project and its complete history into a folder named after the repository.

What you get

A clone includes:

• All the files.
• The full commit history.
• The origin remote, already set up.

Clone into a specific folder

git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git my-project

The last argument sets the destination folder name.

Clone a specific branch

git clone -b dev https://github.com/user/repo.git

The -b flag checks out the given branch instead of the default one.

SSH clone

git clone git@github.com:user/repo.git

This uses SSH instead of HTTPS, which works if you set up an SSH key.

TL;DR

• git clone URL copies a remote repository locally.
• You get all files, full history, and origin set up.
• -b branch clones a specific branch.
• SSH URLs use your SSH key for authentication.