git status & git diff — Inspecting Changes

Git Status & Diff File State Inspector

git diff (Working Directory vs Index)

Terminal Output (git diff app.js)

diff --git a/app.js b/app.js
index 83b4821..a91f342 100644
--- a/app.js
+++ b/app.js
@@ -10,3 +10,4 @@ function init() {
-  console.log("old logic");
+  console.log("new optimized logic");
+  connectDatabase();
 }

State Details

Modified files have changes in the working directory that differ from what is currently staged in the Index. Running git diff shows line-by-line insertions (+ green) and deletions (- red) between your disk and the staging area.

git status

git status shows the state of your working tree and index relative to the current HEAD commit.

git status       # full output
git status -s    # short/compact format
git status -b    # include branch and tracking info

Reading the output

On branch feature/JIRA-123
Your branch is ahead of 'origin/feature/JIRA-123' by 2 commits.

Changes to be committed:        ← in the index (staged)
  (use "git restore --staged <file>..." to unstage)
        modified:   src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java
        new file:   src/main/java/com/example/dto/ExportRequest.java

Changes not staged for commit:  ← in working tree, not staged
  (use "git add <file>..." to update what will be committed)
        modified:   src/main/resources/application.yml

Untracked files:                ← new files Git doesn't know about
        src/test/java/com/example/ExportServiceTest.java

Short format

git status -s
# M  TransactionService.java     ← staged modification
#  M application.yml             ← unstaged modification
# A  dto/ExportRequest.java      ← staged new file
# ?? ExportServiceTest.java      ← untracked

Symbol	Meaning
M (left column)	Staged modification
M (right column)	Unstaged modification
A	Staged new file
D	Deleted
R	Renamed
??	Untracked
!!	Ignored

---

git diff

git diff shows the actual line-by-line changes between states.

Unstaged changes (working tree vs index)

git diff
# Shows what you've changed but NOT yet staged

Staged changes (index vs last commit)

git diff --staged
# or:
git diff --cached
# Shows what WILL go into the next commit

Between two commits

git diff abc1234 def5678
git diff HEAD~3 HEAD
git diff v1.1.0 v1.2.0

Between two branches

git diff main feature/JIRA-123
git diff origin/main HEAD

A specific file only

git diff HEAD -- src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java

Stat summary (no line detail)

git diff --stat
git diff --stat main..feature/JIRA-123
# Output:
# src/main/java/.../TransactionService.java | 24 +++++++----
# src/main/java/.../ExportController.java   | 51 +++++++++++++++++++++
# 2 files changed, 64 insertions(+), 11 deletions(-)

Word-level diff (easier to read for prose/config changes)

git diff --word-diff

---

Reading a Diff

diff --git a/src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java b/src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java
index 3b1f2c4..9a0e7f1 100644
--- a/src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java   ← old version
+++ b/src/main/java/com/example/TransactionService.java   ← new version
@@ -24,7 +24,10 @@ public class TransactionService {    ← hunk header

     public Page<TransactionDto> findTransactions(...) {
-        validateDateRange(fromDate, toDate);           ← removed line (red)
+        validateDateRange(fromDate, toDate);           ← added line (green)
+        log.debug("Fetching for userId={}", userId);  ← new line
         return transactionRepository.findBy...
     }

• --- = the old (before) version
• +++ = the new (after) version
• @@ = hunk header showing line numbers
• - lines = removed
• + lines = added
• Unchanged context lines have no prefix

---

Useful Flags Summary

diff flags

Flag	Meaning
--staged / --cached	Diff index vs HEAD (what's staged)
--stat	Summary of files changed and line counts
--name-only	Only show filenames
--name-status	Filenames with M/A/D status
--word-diff	Highlight changes at word level
--ignore-space-change	Ignore whitespace changes
-U<N>	Show N lines of context (default 3)
--color-words	Color-code word-level changes inline

---

Use Your IDE Diff Tool

For complex diffs, open your IDE's diff viewer. You can configure Git to use IntelliJ IDEA's diff tool:

git config --global diff.tool intellij
git config --global difftool.intellij.cmd 'idea diff "$LOCAL" "$REMOTE"'
git difftool HEAD~1

Interview Questions

1. How do you establish a diff-review routine that catches risky changes early?
2. When should reviewers insist on split commits based on status/diff output?
3. What diff views are most useful for config-heavy versus code-heavy changes?
4. How do you avoid whitespace-only noise masking critical logic edits?

Short answer guide:

• Review staged and unstaged deltas separately before commit.
• Split mixed-intent changes to improve safety and traceability.
• Use word/stat/name-status modes based on change type.
• Apply ignore-whitespace views carefully, then re-check full diff.

Interview Focus

Describe a practical diff-review checklist that catches risky changes before they reach PR.

Interview Trap

Relying on file names or summary stats without inspecting actual staged hunks.