BeginnerPhone
1 min

Git Shallow Clone

GitVersion ControlBuild Systems
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Interview Question

What does a shallow clone do in Git and when is it useful?

Key Points to Cover
  • `git clone --depth N` fetches limited history
  • Saves time/bandwidth in CI or large repos
  • Trade-off: limited history for bisect/annotate
Evaluation Rubric
Defines shallow clone correctly40% weight
Explains speed/bandwidth benefits30% weight
Mentions history limitations30% weight
Hints
  • 💡`--filter=blob:none` can further reduce size.
Potential Follow-up Questions
  • How to unshallow later?
  • Impacts on submodules?
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