content/get-started/using-git/getting-changes-from-a-remote-repository.md

---
title: Getting changes from a remote repository
intro: You can use common Git commands to access remote repositories.
redirect_from:
  - /articles/fetching-a-remote
  - /articles/getting-changes-from-a-remote-repository
  - /github/using-git/getting-changes-from-a-remote-repository
  - /github/getting-started-with-github/getting-changes-from-a-remote-repository
  - /github/getting-started-with-github/using-git/getting-changes-from-a-remote-repository
versions:
  fpt: '*'
  ghes: '*'
  ghec: '*'
shortTitle: Get changes from a remote
---
## Options for getting changes

These commands are very useful when interacting with [a remote repository](/get-started/git-basics/about-remote-repositories). `clone` and `fetch` download remote code from a repository's remote URL to your local computer, `merge` is used to merge different people's work together with yours, and `pull` is a combination of `fetch` and `merge`.

## Cloning a repository

To grab a complete copy of another user's repository, use `git clone` like this:

```shell
$ git clone https://{% data variables.product.product_url %}/USERNAME/REPOSITORY.git
# Clones a repository to your computer
```

You can choose from [several different URLs](/get-started/git-basics/about-remote-repositories) when cloning a repository. While logged in to {% data variables.product.prodname_dotcom %}, these URLs are available on the main page of the repository when you click **{% octicon "code" aria-hidden="true" aria-label="code" %} Code**.

  ![Screenshot of the main page of a repository. A green "Code" button is outlined in orange and expanded to show the HTTPS URL for the repository.](/assets/images/help/repository/remotes-url-global-nav-update.png)

When you run `git clone`, the following actions occur:
* A new folder called `repo` is made
* It is initialized as a Git repository
* A remote named `origin` is created, pointing to the URL you cloned from
* All of the repository's files and commits are downloaded there
* The default branch is checked out

For every branch `foo` in the remote repository, a corresponding remote-tracking branch
`refs/remotes/origin/foo` is created in your local repository. You can usually abbreviate
such remote-tracking branch names to `origin/foo`.

## Fetching changes from a remote repository

Use `git fetch` to retrieve new work done by other people. Fetching from a repository grabs all the new remote-tracking branches and tags _without_ merging those changes into your own branches.

If you already have a local repository with a remote URL set up for the desired project, you can grab all the new information by using `git fetch *remotename*` in the terminal:

```shell
$ git fetch REMOTE-NAME
# Fetches updates made to a remote repository
```

Otherwise, you can always add a new remote and then fetch. For more information, see [AUTOTITLE](/get-started/git-basics/managing-remote-repositories).

## Merging changes into your local branch

Merging combines your local changes with changes made by others.

Typically, you'd merge a remote-tracking branch (i.e., a branch fetched from a remote repository) with your local branch:

```shell
$ git merge REMOTE-NAME/BRANCH-NAME
# Merges updates made online with your local work
```

## Pulling changes from a remote repository

`git pull` is a convenient shortcut for completing both `git fetch` and `git merge`in the same command:

```shell
$ git pull REMOTE-NAME BRANCH-NAME
# Grabs online updates and merges them with your local work
```

Because `pull` performs a merge on the retrieved changes, you should ensure that
your local work is committed before running the `pull` command. If you run into
[a merge conflict](/pull-requests/collaborating-with-pull-requests/addressing-merge-conflicts/resolving-a-merge-conflict-using-the-command-line)
you cannot resolve, or if you decide to quit the merge, you can use `git merge --abort`
to take the branch back to where it was in before you pulled.

## Further reading

* ["Working with Remotes" from the _Pro Git_ book](https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-Basics-Working-with-Remotes){% ifversion fpt or ghec %}
* [AUTOTITLE](/get-started/using-github/troubleshooting-connectivity-problems){% endif %}