Introduction

In Agile development environments, things move fast. Feature branches are merged, hotfixes need to go live ASAP, and developers are often juggling multiple release versions at the same time. In this dynamic world, Git cherrypicking becomes a powerful tool.

In this post, we’ll look at:

• What Git cherrypicking is
• When to use it (especially in Agile workflows)
• How to cherrypick in Visual Studio and Visual Studio Code
• Common pitfalls and best practices
• A wrap-up summary

Let’s jump in.

What is Git Cherrypicking?

In Git, cherrypicking is the act of choosing a specific commit from one branch and applying it onto another — without merging the entire branch history.

This is especially useful when:

• You want to backport a bugfix from main to a release branch
• A feature in a different branch contains a small change that you want now
• You need to quickly propagate a hotfix across multiple versions

Example scenario:

You’re working on a .NET project, and you fixed a critical bug on the main branch. QA tells you the bug also affects release/1.2, and you need to apply the fix there too — but without merging unrelated changes from main. That’s a perfect use case for cherrypicking.

How Cherrypicking Works in Git

The basic command-line syntax is:

git checkout target-branch
git cherry-pick <commit-hash>

This command applies the changes from the specific commit to your current branch.

You can find the commit hash via:

git log --oneline

You can also cherrypick multiple commits:

git cherry-pick <hash1> <hash2> ...

Or a range of commits:

git cherry-pick <start-commit>^..<end-commit>

Cherrypicking in Visual Studio

Visual Studio 2022+ has integrated Git tooling that makes cherrypicking really smooth.

Steps:

1. Open the Git Repository Window:
   View → Git Repository or use the Git menu.
2. Browse the branch or commit history where your target commit lives.
3. Right-click the commit you want to cherrypick.
4. Click Cherry-pick Commit.
5. Visual Studio will prompt you to choose the target branch (if you’re not already on it).
6. The changes are applied as a new commit on your branch.

If conflicts occur, Visual Studio will guide you through resolving them using its built-in merge tool.

This is ideal for .NET developers who live inside Visual Studio all day long.

Cherrypicking in Visual Studio Code

While VS Code doesn’t have a one-click GUI like Visual Studio, it works seamlessly with Git via the terminal or extensions.

Option 1: Terminal (Git CLI)

1. Open the integrated terminal: Ctrl + ~
2. Checkout the target branch: git checkout release/1.2
3. Get the commit hash from the Git Graph or log: git log --oneline
4. Cherrypick it: git cherry-pick abc123

If there are conflicts, VS Code will visually highlight them in the editor, and you can resolve them like a regular merge.

Option 2: Use an Extension (optional)

Install Git Graph or GitLens, which gives you a visual interface to right-click a commit and cherrypick it.

Common Pitfalls

• Cherrypicking merge commits: Avoid this unless you know what you’re doing. Git may get confused due to the complexity of merge metadata.
• Conflict resolution: Be prepared to resolve merge conflicts — they’re common if branches diverged a lot.
• Tracking cherrypicked commits: Use commit messages like Cherry-picked from <hash> to track origin.

Best Practices

• Always cherrypick from tested commits — avoid half-finished features.
• Use meaningful commit messages, especially when cherrypicking between versions.
• Communicate with your team — others may need to know which fixes were backported.

Summary

Git cherrypicking is a life-saver in Agile environments where speed, control, and precision are key. Whether you’re working on hotfixes, cross-version backports, or fast-tracking changes, cherrypicking allows you to surgically apply commits from one branch to another.

As a .NET developer:

• Use Visual Studio if you want the simplest GUI-based experience.
• Use VS Code + Git CLI for flexibility and fine-grained control.

Understanding how and when to cherrypick helps keep your release branches clean and your team productive — without unnecessary merges or noise.

Cherrypicking in Git: A Practical Guide for Agile .NET Developers