In order to create a new git alias, use the “ git config” command and define a new alias named “pushd” $ git config -global alias.pushd 'push -u origin HEAD' In order to avoid having to define the upstream everytime you create a new branch, define an alias for the command we just wrote.įor aliases, you have two choices, you can either create a git alias or a bash alias. In fact, pushing to HEAD is equivalent to pushing to a remote branch having the same name as your current branch. Set upstream branch using an aliasĪnother way to set the upstream branch is to define an alias for your “git push” command. We have successfully set the upstream branch for our newly created branch. * branch 808b598 Initial commit master 808b598 Initial commit Let’s have a look at the tracking branches again with the branch command. $ git push -u origin branchīranch 'branch' set up to track remote branch 'branch' from 'origin'. We can set the upstream branch using the “git push” command. Master 808b598 Initial commitĪs you can see, compared to master, the branch “branch” has no tracking branches yet (and no upstream branches as a consequence) You can check tracking branches by running the “ git branch” command with the “ -vv” option. $ git push -set-upstream Īs an example, let’s say that you created a branch named “ branch” using the checkout command. $ git push -u Īlternatively, you can use the “ –set-upstream” option that is equivalent to the “-u” option. The easiest way to set the upstream branch is to use the “ git push” command with the “-u” option for upstream branch.

Inspecting tracking branches configuration.

Why are upstream branches so useful in Git?.

Set tracking branches for existing local branches.

Set tracking branches for new local branches.

Set upstream branch for an existing remote branch.

You just have to be careful.ĮDIT: sorry, it is deprecated in commit b347d06bf097aca5effd07871adf4d0c8a7c55bd, but these commits only mention git-branch, not git-push. I don't know if it was deprecated more recently, but the fact the the git-branch(1) manpage for git-2.7.5 mentions it without warning about it, means it's still around and is going to stay around. I would say it's not quite deprecated but it is discouraged. To set the current branch's upstream to be origin's master. Git branch -set-upstream-to origin/master Should be and one optinal argument indicating which branch to change, To work around this, introduce -set-upstream-to whichĪccepts a compulsory argument indicating what the new upstream branch As -set-upstream already exists, we can't simply change itsīehaviour. To create a new local branch 'origin/master' that tracks the currentīranch. Usual branch convention of assuming a starting point of HEAD if none The existing -set-uptream option can cause confusion, as it uses the Any version more recent than that should include it. set-upstream-to was introduced in 2012 in the 1.7.12-1.7.13 timeframe. It's related to git branch -set-upstream-to, but not the same. And now you can use git branch -set-upstream-to, but it might be nice if git push could do that automatically-and that's the git push -set-upstream, aka -u, option. Now that they do have a newbranch, your Git creates your origin/newbranch to remember their newbranch.

Soon, however, you git push your local newbranch to their Git, so that their Git creates newbranch in their repository. But if you try, it fails: $ git branch -set-upstream-to=origin/newbranchĮrror: the requested upstream branch 'origin/newbranch' does not existīecause origin/newbranch does not exist yet, because the other git at origin does not have a branch named newbranch.

That is, suppose you have created a branch newbranch: $ git checkout -b newbranchĪnd want to set its upstream to origin/newbranch. It means that if the push succeeds, your local Git should set, as the upstream of a branch reference supplied as your source, the remote-tracking branch corresponding to the destination branch you got the other Git to set, which in many cases, your own Git has just now created in your repository because their Git has also just created their branch. The git push command has only -u aka -set-upstream, which takes no argument. The git branch command has both -set-upstream and -set-upstream-to, with the former deprecated in favor of the latter for the reason already given in Nick's answer.

Set upstream origin master git