Using Git worktrees for development

When working on iOS applications, I often find myself in situations where I need to develop a new feature while simultaneously fixing a bug. This can be challenging to manage, especially when the changes for the feature and the bug fix overlap. Developers have different approaches to handle this:

• Stashing changes
• Creating temporary commits
• Cloning the repository twice

While these methods work, they are not ideal. Recently, I discovered a better solution.

Git worktree

Git worktree is a lesser-known feature of Git that I wish I had started using sooner. It allows you to check out multiple branches of the same repository at the same time. This means you can work on a feature branch and a bug fix branch simultaneously, without needing to stash changes or create temporary commits.

Using Git worktree is straightforward

git worktree add ../bugfix-branch bugfix-branch

This creates a new directory (../bugfix-branch) where the bugfix-branch is checked out. You can now work on this branch independently of your current branch.

You can also create a worktree not just from an existing branch, but from a specific commit or tag

git worktree add ../hotfix v1.2.3

This will check out the tag v1.2.3 in a new worktree so you can inspect or modify files without switching branches in your main working directory.

To remove a worktree, you can use:

git worktree remove ../bugfix-branch

Alternatively, you can manually delete the folder

rm -rf ../bugfix-branch

If you delete it manually, Git will still list it as a worktree, so you need to prune it

git worktree prune

or configure Git to prune automatically

git config worktree.prune true

If you prefer using a GUI, tools like Fork for macOS support Git worktree. You can easily manage worktrees through the interface without needing to use the terminal.

Git Worktree simplifies the development workflow by allowing you to:

• Work on multiple branches simultaneously
• Avoid stashing or temporary commits
• Keep your repository clean

This feature has been a game-changer for my iOS development workflow, and I highly recommend giving it a try.