Initial Configuration

Introduction

After installing GIT, proper configuration is essential. This lesson covers all the important configuration options.

Setting Up Your Identity

The first thing you should configure is your name and email. This information appears in every commit:

git config --global user.name "Your Name"
git config --global user.email "your.email@example.com"

The --global flag sets these values for all repositories on your system.

Configuring Your Editor

Set your preferred text editor for commit messages:

# VS Code
git config --global core.editor "code --wait"
Vim
git config --global core.editor "vim"
Nano
git config --global core.editor "nano"
Notepad++ (Windows)
git config --global core.editor "'C:/Program Files/Notepad++/notepad++.exe' -multiInst -notabbar -nosession -noPlugin"

Line Ending Configuration

Windows

git config --global core.autocrlf true

macOS / Linux

git config --global core.autocrlf input

Or to disable entirely:

git config --global core.autocrlf false

Useful Configurations

Set Default Branch Name

git config --global init.defaultBranch main

Enable Color Output

git config --global color.ui auto

Set Default Push Behavior

git config --global push.default current

Configure Merge Tool

For resolving merge conflicts:

git config --global merge.tool vimdiff

Or use other tools:

git config --global merge.tool kdiff3
git config --global merge.tool tortoisemerge

Viewing Your Configuration

View All Settings

git config --list

View Specific Setting

git config user.name
git config user.email

View Global Settings

git config --global --list

View Local Settings (Repository-specific)

git config --local --list

Configuration Levels

GIT has three configuration levels:

Creating a GIT Alias

Create shortcuts for common commands:

git config --global alias.st status
git config --global alias.co checkout
git config --global alias.br branch
git config --global alias.ci commit
git config --global alias.unstage 'reset HEAD --'
git config --global alias.last 'log -1 HEAD'
git config --global alias.visual 'log --graph --oneline --all'

Now you can use git st instead of git status.

Setting Up GPG Signing

For signed commits, first generate or import your GPG key:

git config --global commit.gpgsign true
git config --global gpg.program gpg
Or on macOS
git config --global gpg.program /usr/local/MacGPG2/bin/gpg2

Configuration Example

A comprehensive .gitconfig file:

[user]
    name = Your Name
    email = your.email@example.com
[core]
    editor = code --wait
    autocrlf = input
[init]
    defaultBranch = main
[alias]
    st = status
    co = checkout
    br = branch
    ci = commit
    unstage = reset HEAD --
    last = log -1 HEAD
[color]
    ui = auto

Summary

Proper GIT configuration makes your workflow smoother:

• Always set your name and email first
• Choose a comfortable editor
• Configure line endings for your OS
• Create aliases for frequently used commands
• Use --global for settings that apply to all repositories

Next Lesson

Now let's learn how to create a new repository and start tracking your project.