Git runs entirely from the command line — the Windows Command Line and Linux Terminal lessons from the Cybersecurity course are directly useful preparation if either feels unfamiliar.
| OS | How |
|---|---|
| Windows | Download and run the installer from git-scm.com — this also installs "Git Bash," a terminal that behaves like Linux's |
| macOS | Comes preinstalled on most systems, or run xcode-select --install, or install via Homebrew: brew install git |
| Linux (Debian/Ubuntu) | sudo apt install git |
| Linux (Fedora) | sudo dnf install git |
git --version
# git version 2.43.0Every commit records who made it — this needs to be set once, globally, before the first commit anywhere.
git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "you@example.com"# Set the default branch name for new repositories to "main"
git config --global init.defaultBranch main
# Set a default text editor for commit messages (nano, here)
git config --global core.editor "nano"
# Make Git's output colorful in the terminal
git config --global color.ui autogit config --list
# Check a single value
git config user.nameWhere this actually lives
These settings are stored in a plain text file — ~/.gitconfig — and can be edited directly if preferred over running commands one at a time.