Mercurial Hg

Mercurial Hg

Mercurial is a distributed version control system (DVCS) suitable for scenarios ranging from small personal projects to large-scale enterprise projects.

Quick Start

Initialize New Repository

hg init myproject
cd myproject

Clone Existing Repository

hg clone https://example.com/​repo myproject

Basic Workflow

# Check current status
hg status

# Add files
hg add file1 file2

# Commit changes
hg commit -m "Describe your changes"

# Pull remote changes
hg pull

# Push local changes
hg push

Common Scenarios

View History

# Short history
hg log

# Detailed history
hg log -v

# History for specific file
hg log path/​to/​file

# Graphic history
hg log -G

Undo Operations

# Revert uncommitted changes
hg revert file

# Revert all uncommitted changes
hg revert --all

# Backout to specific changeset (keep history)
hg backout <revision>

# Strip to specific changeset (remove history)
hg strip <revision>

When to Read Reference Documentation

Comparison with Git

Best Practices

1. Check before commit: Use hg diff and hg status to confirm changes
2. Descriptive commit messages: Commit messages should clearly explain changes
3. Pull frequently: Use hg pull -u to regularly get remote updates
4. Use bookmarks: For branching workflows, use bookmarks instead of named branches
5. Handle conflicts: When merging conflicts, carefully check each conflicted file
6. Get help: For any unclear command, use hg help --verbose <command> to view official documentation

Important Concepts

• Changeset: Basic unit of commit in Mercurial, identified by hash or revision number
• Repository: Complete copy containing project history and current working directory
• Working Directory: Files currently being edited
• Tip: The latest changeset of the current branch
• Head: A changeset with no successors