Git vs GitHub – What Separate the 2 Version Controls?
It’s tempting to believe that Git and GitHub are the same, but they are not. You can use Git without GitHub because the two exist for different purposes. Git controls (manages) file versions, while GitHub is a platform for hosting Git repositories.
Let’s discuss more on these differences.
Primary function
Section titled “Primary function”Git is a distributed version control system that records different versions of a file (or set of files). It lets users access, compare, update, and distribute any recorded version(s) at any time.
However, GitHub is mainly a hosting platform for hosting Git repositories online. It lets users keep their remote repository private or open for collaborative endeavors.
Operation platform
Section titled “Operation platform”Users install and operate Git on their local machines, meaning most of Git’s operations can be performed without the Internet. GitHub, however, is a web-based service that operates solely online, so you need the Internet to do anything on GitHub.
Inventors
Section titled “Inventors”Linus Torvalds began the development of Git on April 3, 2005. In contrast, Chris Wanstrath, P. J. Hyett, Tom Preston-Werner, and Scott Chacon founded GitHub.com on February 8, 2008.
Maintainers
Section titled “Maintainers”On July 26, 2005, Linus Torvalds turned over Git’s maintenance to Junio C. Hamano, who has been the chief maintainer since then. However, Microsoft acquired GitHub on October 26, 2018.
Competitors
Section titled “Competitors”Popular alternatives to Git are Mercurial, Team Foundation Version Control (TFVC), Perforce Helix Core, Apache Subversion, and IBM Rational ClearCase.
GitHub’s closest competitors are GitLab, Bitbucket, SourceForge, Cloud Source Repositories, and AWS CodeCommit.