Git

There are lots of different approaches to managing Backdrop CMS configuration files in Git, but this one is my favorite. It works great for projects with multiple developers, and it can also be easily adapted for multiple deployment environments, as on Pantheon.

This versioned staging directory strategy has been adapted from a recommendation from @populist and @davidstrauss based on how the config directory is being managed for Drupal 8/9/10 on Pantheon.

When porting modules from Drupal 7 to Backdrop CMS, it's natural for people to download the Drupal project as usual, and then start to make changes to the code so it will work for Backdrop. When they have got a working Backdrop version of the module, they are often inclined to contribute it back to the Backdrop community -- which is great!

Working with Git is great, but before you see the real benefits of using Git you'll need to have your project hooked up to a remote repository.

Most people enter the world of Git when they are brought on to a project with multiple developers. In this case, there is likely already an existing repo, and all you need to learn to do is pull the latest changes, and push your own.

Tools like Git desktop and Acquia dev desktop allow people to use Git without understanding how it actually works. These tools are a fantastic on-ramp to the world of Git, but at some point I hope that everyone gets a chance to work with Git directly from the command line. This will complete your understanding of what happens when you push those buttons in the desktop applications, and make you better at using both! Here are some basics to get started.

I've written about how to manage your configuration directory in version control (Git) several times, but now that I've done it in the wild on a few different sites, I thought I'd write it up here as well.

I don't recommend trying to stay 100% on top of all updates for all of your modules all the time. However, when a security update becomes available for one of your modules, you should certainly make that update as soon as is reasonable. And while you're at it, that might be a good time to bring everything else up to date as well. Below is my recipe for keeping modules on my Drupal sites up to date, by using two of my favorite development tools, Git and Drush.