Branches

How to create multiple development lines for your app

Branches allow you to create a separate development line for your app. You can think of it as a copy of the code where you can make changes without affecting the main version.

How do branches work in Altinn Studio?

When you create a new app, it automatically gets a master branch. This is the main version of your app. When you want to develop new features or make changes, you can:

• Create a new branch from master - this gives you a working copy

• Save changes in the new branch without affecting master

• Merge the branch back to master when you’re satisfied

Benefits of branches

Branches allow you to work on multiple things simultaneously, for example one branch for new functionality and another for bug fixes. Different team members can also work in their own branches without interfering with each other’s work. If something goes wrong, the master branch remains safe and unchanged.

How to use branches in Studio

In Studio, you can switch between branches using the branch selector at the top right of the user interface. Here you can also create new branches.

1. Click on New branch to create a new branch.

2. In the window that appears, enter the name your branch should have, for example feature/payment or bugfix/hide-input-field.

3. If you have changes in the app that you haven’t shared, you’ll get a warning. Here you can choose between deleting your changes or going back to share them.

Merging branches to master

Pull request

1. Share the changes from your development branch by clicking Del dine endringer.
2. Go to Gitea using the Repositorium button in the dropdown menu on the right:

   

3. In Gitea you’ll get a prompt to create a pull request from the development branch:

   

4. Click on New Pull Request
5. Create an appropriate title and description for the changes in your branch.
6. Click on Create Pull Request.

Merging a pull request

Depending on how you or your team works, you can choose to merge the pull request yourself or ask a colleague to review it first.

When you’re ready to merge the branch, you’ll get the following options:

1. Select Create merge commit if you want to keep the message history from all the commits in your branch. If you prefer to combine all commits into one message, choose Create squash commit.
2. After selecting the type of merge commit, click on Create merge commit. This performs the actual merge to master.

You’ll now get the message Pull request successfully merged and closed, and a question about whether you want to delete your branch. It can be useful to delete the branch so that unused branches don’t pile up.

Deleting a branch

If you want to delete a branch, go back to the main page for your repository in Gitea:

1. Click on the branch selector, where it says master.
2. Click on View all branches.
3. Find the branch you want to delete and click on the trash can.

Note: If you delete a branch, it’s permanent. You cannot restore it.