DING — Ding Is Not Git

A complete Version Control System built from scratch in Python.

DING is an version control system developed as part of OpenCode by IIITA.
The goal of this project is to build a VCS that implements most of the features git

DING focuses on teaching core concepts such as content-addressable storage, snapshots, commits, branching, diffs, and logs - all through readable, well-structured Python code.

If you've ever wondered “What actually happens when I run git commit?”, DING is for you.

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Objectives

• Build a fully functional VCS, not a mock or toy model
• Keep the implementation simple, readable, and hackable
• Encourage contributors to learn by building, not just using tools

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Features

Repository Initialization

• Initialize a DING repository inside any directory
• Creates internal metadata and object storage
• Inspired by Git’s .git structure

Object Storage

• Content-addressable storage using hashes
• Stores:
  • Blobs (file contents)
  • Trees (directory snapshots)
  • Commits (project states)

Commits & History

• Snapshot-based commits
• Commit metadata (message, parent, timestamp)
• Linear history traversal
• Commit logs similar to git log

Branching

• Lightweight branch references
• HEAD pointer management
• Switch between branches safely

Diff & Status

• Show changes between commits
• Working directory vs last commit
• Track modified, added, and deleted files

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Getting Started

Before starting - check out our CONTRIBUTING.md to get a refresher on contribution and general workflow.

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Tech Stack

Language

• Python 3.x

External Dependencies

NONE, build from scratch just using std

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Project Structure

.
├── setup.py
└── ugit
    ├── base.py
    ├── cli.py
    ├── data.py
    ├── diff.py
    └── remote.py