Change the name of remote git branch

Warning: Reader is strongly encouraged to take a backup of the local repository before performing the steps mentioned in this post.

This post is intended to guide the reader about how to change the name of a remote branch in Github. Suppose there is a branch named feature/branch_a, and it is to be renamed to test/branch_a. The initial remote and local repositories may look something like this:

Remote:



Local:


* Command(s):
-  git branch -v (Shows a list of all branches, with current branch highlighted)

With the branch feature/branch_a checked out, create a new branch with the name test/branch_a.


* Command(s):
-  git branch -v (Shows a list of all branches, with current branch highlighted)

-  git checkout -b test/branch_a (Creates a new branch and at the same time switches to the branch)

Push the branch on the remote server, and then delete the older branch from both remote and local repositories.


* Command(s):
-  git push --set-upstream origin test/branch_a (link locally create branch to the remote server, and push it)
-  git push origin :feature/branch_a test/branch_a (Deletes branch from remote and replaces it with the new one)

That is it! You are good to go.



Enjoy!