title	titleSuffix	description	ms.assetid	ms.technology	ms.topic	ms.date	monikerRange
Get started with Git and Visual Studio	Azure Repos	Learn how to get started developing your code with Azure Repos, Visual Studio, and Git command-line.	d7dcb364-056f-421b-8896-0304cddf12fe	devops-code-git	conceptual	12/10/2021	<= azure-devops

Get started with Git in Azure Repos

[!INCLUDE temp] [!INCLUDE temp]

Get started with developing your code using Azure Repos and Git repositories. You can use Visual Studio or Git commands to clone a repository, define local branches, commit and push changes, and sync with others. If you need to create or import a repository, see Create a new Git repo in your project or Import a Git repository.

Note

This article describes how to use Visual Studio to manage Azure Repos Git repositories. Using similar procedures, you can use Visual Studio to manage GitHub repositories. To clone a GitHub repository, get the URL as described in Cloning a repository.

For an overview of the Git workflow, see Azure Repos Git tutorial.

[!INCLUDE temp]

Prerequisites

::: moniker range="azure-devops"

Repos must be enabled in your Azure DevOps project settings. If the Repos hub and associated pages don't display, see Turn an Azure DevOps service on or off to reenable Repos.
To view code, you must be a member of an Azure DevOps project with Basic access or higher.
- If you don't have a project, create one or sign up for free.
- If you aren't a project member, get added.
To clone or contribute to code, you must be a member of the Contributors security group or have the corresponding permissions.

[!NOTE] For public projects, users granted Stakeholder access have full access to Azure Repos.

::: moniker-end

::: moniker range=">= azure-devops-2019 < azure-devops"

Repos must be enabled in your Azure DevOps project settings. If the Repos hub and associated pages don't display, see Turn an Azure DevOps service on or off to reenable Repos.
To view code, you must be a member of the Azure DevOps project with Basic access or higher. If you aren't a project member, get added.
To clone or contribute to code, you must be a member of the Contributors security group, or have the corresponding permissions, in the project you want to change.

::: moniker-end

::: moniker range="< azure-devops-2019"

To view code, you must be a member of an Azure DevOps project with Basic access or higher. If you aren't a project member, get added.
To clone or contribute to code, you must be a member of the Contributors security group or have the corresponding permissions.

::: moniker-end

To learn more about permissions and access, see Default Git repository and branch permissions and About access levels.

Get your code

You can clone a remote Git repository to create a local copy of it. Cloning creates both a copy of the source code for you to work with and version control information so Git can manage the source code.

If you prefer to create a local repository without cloning, see Create a new Git repo. After creating your local repository you can proceed to commit, share, and sync your work.

Visual Studio 2019

Visual Studio 2019 version 16.8 and later versions provides a Git version control experience while maintaining the Team Explorer Git user interface. You can exercise Git features from either interface interchangeably. Below, we provide a side-by-side comparison for cloning a repository.

Note

One advantage of connecting to a project through Team Explorer is you gain access to the Work Items hub. For an overview of Team Explorer features, see Navigate in Visual Studio Team Explorer.

:::row::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Git** <br><br>

1. From the **Git** menu on the menu bar, choose **Clone Repository...**

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/clone-repo.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Clone Repository' option in the Git menu in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/clone-repo-lrg.png":::

2. In the **Clone a repository** window, enter the remote repo location and the folder path for the cloned repo. If you don't know the remote repo location, select **Azure DevOps** from **Browse a repository** options.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/specify-repo.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Clone Repository' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/specify-repo-lrg.png":::

3. Select **Clone**. After you’ve cloned a Git repository, Visual Studio detects the repository and adds it to your list of Local Repositories in the Git menu.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/local-repositories.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Local Repositories' option in the Git menu in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/local-repositories-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Team Explorer** <br><br>

1. In **Team Explorer**, select **Connect** to open the **Connect** page, and then choose **Manage Connections** > **Connect to Project**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/manage-connections.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Connect to a Project' link in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/manage-connections-lrg.png":::

2. In the **Connect to a Project** window, choose the repo you want to clone and select **Clone**. If you don't see your repo, select **Add Azure DevOps Server** to add a server that hosts a repo. You can filter the list to find your repo.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/connect-add-server.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Connect to a Project' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/connect-add-server-lrg.png":::

3. Verify the location for the cloned repo on your computer, and then select **Clone**.

:::column-end::: :::row-end:::

[!INCLUDE project-urls]

Visual Studio 2017

[!INCLUDE temp]

In Team Explorer, select Connect to open the Connect page, and then choose Manage Connections > Connect to Project.
In Connect to a Project, select the repo you want to clone and select Clone. If you don't see your repo, select Add Azure DevOps Server to add a server that hosts a repo. You can filter the list to find your repo.

[!INCLUDE project-urls]
Verify the location of the cloned repo on your computer and select Clone.

Visual Studio 2015

In Team Explorer, open up the Connect page by choosing Projects and My Teams then Manage Connections
Choose Connect, select your organization, choose the projects you want to work on, then click Connect.
Right click on the project and click Clone.... Then enter a local folder on your drive to store the downloaded code.

Visual Studio 2013

Go to your team's project page (https://dev.azure.com/{yourorganization}/{yourteamproject}) and then open Visual Studio to connect to your project. Click Allow if prompted to open Visual Studio.
Sign in to Azure DevOps Services from Visual Studio.
Clone the repository to your computer.
The clone URL is automatically populated and a default local path is provided. Change the local path to the location where you want to store your repo. Click Clone to start copying the repo locally.

Git Command Line

Download and install Git and the Git Credential Manager for your platform.
Open the Azure DevOps Services web portal in your browser by going to https://<your account name>.visualstudio.com.
Open the Azure DevOps Services web portal in your browser by navigating to https://<your account name>.visualstudio.com and find your Git repository. Copy the clone URL from the Clone pop-up.

[!INCLUDE project-urls]
At the command prompt, go to the folder where you want the code stored on your local computer.
From the command prompt, run git clone followed by the clone URL, as shown in the following example.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git clone https://dev.azure.com/fabrikam-fiber/_git/FabrikamFiber
```
Git downloads and creates your own copy of the code in a new folder for you.

Commit your work

Git branches isolate your changes from other work in the project. The recommended Git workflow is to use a new branch for every feature or fix you work on. You make commits in your local Git repository to save your changes on that branch.

Visual Studio 2019

:::row::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Git** <br><br>

1. From the **Git** menu on the menu bar, choose **New Branch...** to open the **Create a new branch** window.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/branches.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'New Branch' option in the Git menu in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/branches-lrg.png":::

2. In the **Create a new branch** window, enter a descriptive branch name to let others know what work the branch contains. By default, Visual Studio creates your new branch from the current branch. The **Checkout branch** checkbox automatically switches you to the newly created branch. Select **Create**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/new-local-branch.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Create a new branch' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/new-local-branch-lrg.png":::

3. Add a README.md file to your cloned repo. In Solution Explorer, you can browse the repo contents using **Folder View** or open Visual Studio solutions in the repo. Git tracks changes made both inside and outside of Visual Studio.

4. When you're satisfied with your changes, save them in Git using a commit. In the **Git Changes** window, enter a message that describes the changes, and then select **Commit All**. **Commit All** commits unstaged changes and skips the staging area. You can choose to stage all files before committing by selecting the stage all + (plus) button at the top of the Changes section in the **Git Changes** window.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/changes.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Commit All' button in the 'Git Changes' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/changes-lrg.png":::

  Select the commit information link to get further details about the commit.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/commit-created-locally.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot showing the commit information link in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/commit-created-locally-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Team Explorer** <br><br>

1. In **Team Explorer**, select the **Home** button and choose **Branches**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/branches.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot showing the Branches option in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/branches-lrg.png":::

2. Right-click the default branch, often named `main`, and then choose **New Local Branch From...**

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-local-branch-menu.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'New Local Branch From' menu option in the context menu of the main branch in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-local-branch-menu-lrg.png":::

3. Enter a descriptive branch name to let others know what work the branch contains. Select **Create Branch**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-local-branch.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the branch name text and 'Create Branch' button in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-local-branch-lrg.png":::

4. Add an README.md file to your cloned repo. From the **Home** view of **Team Explorer**, you can browse the repo contents using **Show Folder View** or open Visual Studio solutions in the repo. Git tracks changes made both inside and outside of Visual Studio.

5. When you're satisfied with your changes, save them in Git using a commit. Open the **Changes** view of **Team Explorer** by selecting the **Home** button and choosing **Changes**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/changes.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Changes option in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/changes-lrg.png":::

6. Enter a message that describes the commit, and then select **Commit All**.

  :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/commit-all.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of commit message text and 'Commit All' button in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/commit-all-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::row-end:::

Note

If you have multiple files and you don't want to commit them all, you can right-click each file and choose Stage. When you've staged all the files you'd like to commit, select Commit Staged. Commit Staged replaces Commit All when you manually stage your changes.

:::row::: :::column span="":::

Visual Studio Git

:::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/stage-changes.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Stage option in the 'Git Changes' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/stage-changes-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::column span="":::

Visual Studio Team Explorer

:::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/stage-changes.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Stage option in the changed-file context menu in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/stage-changes-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::row-end:::

Visual Studio 2017

[!INCLUDE temp]

In Team Explorer, select the Home button and choose Branches.
Right-click the main branch and choose New Local Branch From.
Enter a descriptive branch name for your work to remind you and others what kind of work is in the branch. Select Create Branch.
Make changes to your files in the cloned repo. From the Team Explorer Home view, you can open Visual Studio solutions in the repo or browse the repo contents using Show Folder View. Git keeps track of changes made to your code both inside and outside of Visual Studio.
When you're satisfied with the changes, save them in Git using a commit. Open the Changes view from Team Explorer by selecting the Home button and choosing Changes.
Enter a message that describes the commit, and select Commit All.

[!NOTE] If you have multiple files and you don't want to commit them all, you can right-click each file and choose Stage. When you have staged all the files you would like to commit, select Commit Staged. Commit Staged replaces Commit All when you manually stage your changes before the commit.

Visual Studio 2015

In Team Explorer, click the drop down and choose Branches. Right click the main branch and choose New Local Branch From...

Choose a descriptive branch name for your work to remind you and others what kind of work is in the branch.
Make changes to your files in the cloned repo. From the Team Explorer Home view, you can open up Visual Studio solutions in the repo or browse the repo contents using the Show Folder View link. Git keeps track of changes made to your code both inside and outside of Visual Studio.
When you are satisfied with the changes, save them in Git using a commit. Open up the Changes view from Team Explorer. Stage the changes to add to your next commit by right-clicking the files and selecting Stage, add a message describing the commit, then select Commit Staged.

Visual Studio 2013

Go to your team's project page (https://dev.azure.com/{yourorganization}/{yourteamproject}) and then open Visual Studio to connect to your project. Click Allow if prompted to open Visual Studio.
Sign in to Azure DevOps from Visual Studio.
Clone the repository to your computer.
The clone URL is automatically populated and a default local path is provided. Change the local path to the location where you want to store your repo. Click Clone to start copying the repo locally.

Git Command Line

Create a branch where you make your changes to the code. If you're collaborating with someone using a branch they've created, you can skip to the following git checkout step.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git branch ReadMeFix
```
Choose a descriptive branch name for your work to remind you and others what kind of work is in the branch.
Check out your branch so you can start working in it.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git checkout ReadMeFix
```
You can also use the checkout command to start working on a branch that other team members are already working in.
Make changes using your favorite tools on the code.
When you're satisfied with the changes, even if you aren't ready to share the work, save them in Git using a commit. Your changes won't be shared until you push them, as described in the following section.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git commit -a -m "Descriptive message"
```
This command saves your changes locally to a new commit in Git. Make sure to give the commit a short message that describes your changes after -m.

Share your changes

After you've added one or more commits to a branch and you're ready to share those changes with others, push your commits so others can see them.

Once you've pushed your commits, you can create a pull request. A pull request lets others know you'd like to have your changes reviewed. After approval, a pull request typically adds your changes to the default branch of the remote repository.

Visual Studio 2019

:::row::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Git** <br><br>

1. In the **Git Changes** window, select the up-arrow push button to push your commit.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-changes-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the up-arrow push button in the 'Git Changes' window of Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-changes-window-lrg.png":::

   Or, you can push your changes from the **Git Repository** window. To open the **Git Repository** window, select the outgoing / incoming link in the **Git Changes** window.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-repositories-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'outgoing / incoming' link in the 'Git Changes' window, and the Push link in the 'Git Repository' window of Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-repositories-window-lrg.png":::

   Or, you can push your changes from the **Git** menu on the menu bar.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-menu.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Push option from the Git menu in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/push-commit-git-menu-lrg.png":::

2. Create a pull request so that others can review your changes. If you've just pushed your changes from the **Git Changes** window, you can select the **Create a Pull Request** link to open a web browser where you can create a new pull request in the Azure Repos web portal.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-git-changes-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Create a Pull Request' link in the 'Git Changes' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-git-changes-window-lrg.png":::
   
   Or, if you've just pushed your changes from the **Git Repository** window, you can select the **Create a Pull Request link** at the top of that window.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-git-repository-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Create a Pull Request' link in the 'Git Repository' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-git-repository-window-lrg.png":::
   
   Or, you can right-click any branch in the **Git Repository** window and select **Create Pull Request**.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-from-branch-git-repository-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Create a Pull Request' menu option from the branch context menu in the 'Git Repository' window in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/create-pull-request-from-branch-git-repository-window-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Team Explorer** <br><br>

1. In **Team Explorer**, select **Home** and then choose **Sync** to open **Synchronization**.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/sync.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Sync option in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/sync-lrg.png":::

   You can also go to the **Synchronization** view from **Changes** by choosing **Sync** immediately after making a commit.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/commit-created-locally.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Sync link that appears after making a commit in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/commit-created-locally-lrg.png":::

2. In the **Synchronization** view, choose **Push** to upload your commit to the remote repo. If this is your first push to the repo, you'll see the message: `The current branch does not track a remote branch...`, which lets you know that your commit was pushed to a new branch on the remote repo and that future commits pushed from the current branch will be uploaded to that remote branch.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/push-to-origin.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Push link in the Synchronization view of Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/push-to-origin-lrg.png":::

3. Create a pull request so that others can review your changes. Open **Pull Requests** in **Team Explorer** by selecting **Home** and choosing **Pull Requests**.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/pull-requests.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'Pull Requests' option in Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/pull-requests-lrg.png":::

4. In **Pull Requests**, you can view pull requests opened by you, assigned to you, and you can create new pull requests. Select **New Pull Request** to open a web browser where you can create a new pull request in the Azure Repos web portal.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-pull-request.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'New Pull Request' link in the Pull Requests view of Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/new-pull-request-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::row-end:::

When the pull request opens in the Azure Repos web portal, verify your source and destination branches. In this example, we want to merge commits from the add-readme-file branch into the main branch. Enter a title and optional description, specify any reviewers, optionally associate any work items, and then select Create.

:::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/create-pull-request.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the 'New Pull Request' form in the Azure Repos web portal.":::

For more information on pull requests, see the Pull request tutorial.

Visual Studio 2017

[!INCLUDE temp]

In Team Explorer, select Home and then choose Sync to open Synchronization.

You can also go to the Synchronization view from Changes by choosing Sync immediately after making a commit.
Select Push to share your commit with the remote repository.

If this push is your first to the repository, you'll see the following message: The current branch does not track a remote branch. Push your changes to a new branch on the origin remote and set the upstream branch. Select Push to push your changes to a new branch on the remote repository and set the upstream branch. The next time you push changes, you'll see the list of commits.
Create a pull request so that others can review your changes. Open Pull Requests in Team Explorer by selecting Home and choosing Pull Requests.
In Pull Requests, you can view pull requests opened by you, assigned to you, and you can create new pull requests. Select New Pull Request to open a web browser where you can create the new pull request in the Azure Repos web portal.
Verify your branches. In this example, we want to merge the commits from the ReadMeFix branch into the main branch. Enter a title and optional description, specify any reviewers, optionally associate any work items, and then select Create.

For more information on pull requests, see the pull request tutorial.

Visual Studio 2015

Open up the Synchronization view in Team Explorer. You can see the outgoing commits and share them by clicking Push if you are working with a branch that is already shared, or Publish if you are working with a newly created local branch.
Create a pull request so that others can review your changes. Open Pull Requests in Team Explorer, and click New Pull Request. Verify the remote branch to merge the changes into, such as my-feature.
You can review comments made in your pull request in a web browser on the Azure Repos pull request page. Once all changes are approved by the team, you complete the pull request through the web browser.

Visual Studio 2013

To share the changes in your topic branch, you'll need to publish it to the server.

Click on the Sync link in the successful commit notification to open the Synchronization page.
On the Sync page, click on the Publish link to push the changes on your topic branch to the server.

Git Command Line

Push your branch so that others can see the changes you've saved.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git push -u origin ReadMeFix
```
Open the project in the web portal and browse to your repository under the Code tab. Select Create a pull request to create a pull request for the branch that you pushed.
Verify your branches. In this example, we want to merge the commits from the ReadMeFix branch into the main branch. Enter a title and optional description, specify any reviewers, optionally associate any work items, and select Create.
Once the changes are approved, complete the pull request. A complete pull request adds your changes from the branch into the main branch of the code.

For more information on pull requests, see the pull request tutorial.

Sync with others

You can keep your local branches in sync with their remote counterparts by pulling commits created by others. Although Git is good at merging incoming changes with your changes, sometimes you might have to resolve a merge conflict. While you're working on your feature branch, it's a good idea to periodically switch to your main branch and pull new commits to keep it current with the remote main branch.

Visual Studio 2019

:::row::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Git** <br><br>

In the **Git Changes** window, you can keep your local branch current with its remote counterpart by using the **Fetch**, **Pull**, **Push**, and **Sync** buttons.

:::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/sync-git-changes-window.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Fetch, Pull, Push and Sync buttons in the 'Git Changes' window of Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/sync-git-changes-window-lrg.png":::

From left to right in the previous screenshot, the button controls are:

- **Fetch** downloads remote commits that aren't in your local branch, but doesn't merge them.
- **Pull** performs a fetch and then merges the downloaded commits into your local branch.
- **Push** uploads your unpushed commits to the remote repository, which adds them to the corresponding remote branch.
- **Sync** performs a **Pull** then a **Push**.

You can also select **Fetch**, **Pull**, **Push**, and **Sync** from the Git menu.

:::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/sync-git-menu.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Fetch, Pull, Push and Sync options in the Git menu in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/git/sync-git-menu-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::column span="":::

**Visual Studio Team Explorer** <br><br>

1. In **Team Explorer**, select **Home** and choose **Sync** to open **Synchronization**.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/sync.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Sync option in 'Team Explorer' in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/sync-lrg.png":::

2. You can download the latest changes to your branch using the **Pull** link. There are two **Pull** links, one near the top and one in the **Incoming Commits** section. You can use either because they both do the same thing.

   :::image type="content" source="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/incoming-commits.png" border="true" alt-text="Screenshot of the Pull link in the Synchronization view of Team Explorer in Visual Studio 2019." lightbox="media/git-quickstart-visual-studio-2019/team-explorer/incoming-commits-lrg.png":::

:::column-end::: :::row-end:::

Visual Studio 2017

[!INCLUDE temp]

In Team Explorer, select Home and choose Sync to open Synchronization.
You can download the latest changes to your branch using the Pull link. There are two Pull links, one near the top and one in the Incoming Commits section. You can use either because they both do the same thing.

Visual Studio 2015

Open up the Sync view in Team Explorer. You can download the latest changes to the branch you are on using the "Pull" link.

Visual Studio 2013

Open up the Sync view in Team Explorer. You can download the latest changes to the branch you are on using the "Pull" link.

Git Command Line

Switch to the branch where you want to download the changes others have made.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git checkout ReadMeFix
```
In this example, you pull changes made by others on your team to the ReadMeFix branch to your local copy of the branch.
Pull the changes made by others to your local branch.

[!div class="tabbedCodeSnippets"]
```
> git pull
```
Git downloads the changes and merges them with your own changes into your local branch.

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