Hello Fellow Devs đź‘‹,
Have you ever wondered how Git actually works under the hood? Most of us use just a handful of Git commands every day, but Git is far more powerful than git add, git commit, and git push.
To really understand Git, we need to look at its layers. Why? Because Git isn’t just a collection of commands — it’s a distributed version control system, written in C by Linus Torvalds (the creator of Linux). And like any well-designed software, Git has multiple layers working together.
Why Learn About Git’s Layers?
Most developers stay at the surface, using Git as a command-line tool to push and pull code. But behind the scenes, Git organizes, stores, and manages data in a very structured way.
By understanding these layers, you’ll not only know what happens when you type a command, but you’ll also be better prepared to solve tricky Git problems in real projects.
The Four Layers of Git
The persistence layer is what makes Git, well, Git. It stores all of your project’s history in a special hidden folder called .git inside your project directory. This includes:
- Commits
- Branches
- Tags
- Objects (blobs, trees, commits)
When you run:
git init
Git sets up this .git folder and initializes its internal file system. From this point on, every change you make can be tracked, committed, and versioned. That folder is your repository—the heart of Git.
Wrapping Up
Most developers see Git only as a set of commands, but under the hood, it’s a layered system. By starting with the persistence layer, we can appreciate how Git manages to track everything so reliably.
In the next post, we’ll uncover how Git uses hashing to uniquely identify everything you store. Don’t miss it 👀
If you found this useful, give it a đź‘Ť and follow along for the next part!
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