How to Ignore a File in Git?

Last Updated : 22 May, 2024

In this article, we are going to discuss how to ignore files in Git. Essentially, you can ignore files by specifying them in the ".gitignore" file. Moreover, you can also ignore directories using this method.

Throughout this article, we'll cover everything from creating a GitHub account to setting up a repository, and then we will delve into ignoring files and folders. Additionally, we will unveil some tips and techniques related to this process.

Account on GitHub

You can access GitHub by searching for it in your web browser, or by following this link to GitHub. To create your GitHub account, click on the “Sign up” button and follow the instructions provided. Alternatively, you can follow the given steps:

Visit the GitHub website.
Click on the “Sign up” button.
Fill in your username, email, and password.
Verify your email address to complete the registration.

Now, you can create a repository where your project files will be stored along with their version history. You can do this by clicking on the “New” button on the top left and configuring it by providing details such as the repository name, description, and any additional information according to your needs.

New-Project-(online-video-cuttercom)-(1) — Creating New Repository

Ignore the File in Git

The “.gitignore” file acts like a filter for Git, letting it know which files and directories to ignore. It's like telling Git, "Hey, don't bother keeping track of these things." This is handy for stuff like temporary files or build outputs that you don't want cluttering up your version history. To set it up, you just create a ".gitignore" file in your project's main folder and list what you want to ignore inside. Then, when you share your project with others, they will also know what to ignore because the ".gitignore" file gets shared too.

You can follow the given steps to configure the “.gitignore” file:

Steps to Ignore Files in Git

Step 1: Create a “.gitignore” file in your project's root directory. You can do this by opening your terminal and navigating to the root directory of your project, then running the command:

touch .gitignore

Step 2:Add the patterns or rules for file and directories you want to ignore.

# Ignore node_modules directory
node_modules/

# Ignore environment variables file
.env

# Ignore build artifacts
/build
/.next
/.vscode
/.idea

# Ignore npm debug log
npm-debug.log*

# Ignore yarn lock file
yarn.lock

# Ignore macOS folder attributes
.DS_Store

# Ignore IDE specific files
*.iml
.idea/
.vscode/

Step 3: Save and exit

Now you can commit these changes with the ignored files and directories excluded from version control. This ensures that when you share your project with others, they will also know what to ignore because the .gitignore file gets shared too.

Tips

If you want to ignore a file that has already been checked into your repository, you need to untrack the file before adding a rule to ignore it. You can do this from your terminal with the following command:

git rm --cached file_name

Replace file_name with the name of the file you want to untrack. This command removes the file from the staging area without deleting it from your working directory. After running this command, you can add the appropriate rule to your ".gitignore" file.