Get the Git Commit ID via Command Line

By  on  

I know just enough git to be dangerous.  I'm not doing advanced bisecting but I can stash, rebase, and reset with the best of them.  One new trick I learned from my boss, Luke Crouch, saves me loads of time:  getting the commit ID via command line.  For years I would merge a PR, go the project's main page, and copy the commit ID so that I could push code to staging and production.  Always seemed like an extra step rather than just making it happen from the terminal.  Here's the magical command:

git rev-parse HEAD

Of course you need to update your local repo to remote master, but you do that anyway, right?  Hopefully this will become a timesaver the same way it has for me!

Recent Features

  • By
    fetch API

    One of the worst kept secrets about AJAX on the web is that the underlying API for it, XMLHttpRequest, wasn't really made for what we've been using it for.  We've done well to create elegant APIs around XHR but we know we can do better.  Our effort to...

  • By
    9 More Mind-Blowing WebGL Demos

    With Firefox OS, asm.js, and the push for browser performance improvements, canvas and WebGL technologies are opening a world of possibilities.  I featured 9 Mind-Blowing Canvas Demos and then took it up a level with 9 Mind-Blowing WebGL Demos, but I want to outdo...

Incredible Demos

  • By
    background-size Matters

    It's something that makes all men live in fear, and are often uncertain of. It's never spoken, but the curiosity is always there. Nine out of ten women agree in the affirmative. Advertisers do their best to make us feel inadequate but...

  • By
    MooTools-Like Element Creation in jQuery

    I really dislike jQuery's element creation syntax. It's basically the same as typing out HTML but within a JavaScript string...ugly! Luckily Basil Goldman has created a jQuery plugin that allows you to create elements using MooTools-like syntax. Standard jQuery Element Creation Looks exactly like writing out...

Discussion

  1. On Mac, you should try this, it will copy the commit ID to your clipboard:

    git rev-parse HEAD | pbcopy
  2. Also you can use short version of git hash:

    git rev-parse --short HEAD
    
  3. Daniel Mejia

    I miss working a Mac, but Windows is working out just great too.

    git rev-parse HEAD | clip
  4. Christian Knappke

    To shorten things further, you can use @ as an abbreviation of HEAD.

  5. Adam Stankiewicz

    Here’s npm package if you need it in JS: https://github.com/sheerun/git-commit-id

Wrap your code in <pre class="{language}"></pre> tags, link to a GitHub gist, JSFiddle fiddle, or CodePen pen to embed!