Creating Pull Requests from Local Clones

Here is a workflow I often find myself in:

• I want to test out a potential solution some open source project offers.
  • Alternatively, I am about to begin work on a legacy project at work and want to check out the code before I get commit access.
• I clone the repository to play with it.
• I notice a bug or a simple feature that’s missing.
• I make a new branch and fix/add the bug/feature.
• I push the new branch to a new repository on my Github.
• Github has no idea I began this process by cloning — therefore it’s impossible to create a pull request.
• WTFFFFFF 😡❗️😤‼️😩⁉️😫❓😖

The simple solution: just fork it. If I had made a fork in the beginning instead of cloning someone else’s repository, my new branch would have been evidence enough for Github to give me the opportunity to make a pull request.

There is a way to get out of this mess, but you still have to create a fork. Lets jump back to when I checked-out a new branch and committed some changes.

• I make a new branch and fix/add the bug/feature.

At this point, we have to tell Github that we actually forked this repository:

• Go to the original repository on Github and fork it.

• Rename the remote (base repository) in your local clone from origin to upstream.

  git remote rename origin upstream
  

• Add your fork to as a remote — the origin — on your local clone.

  git remote add origin <link-to-your-forked-repo>
  

• Push the new branch to your forked repository.

  git push --all
  

• Go to your forked repository on Github and switch to the new branch.

• Create the pull request.

• Take a deep breath.