MSysGit vs. Git for Windows

Question

I am having trouble determining the difference between MSysGit and Git for Windows. How are they different? Why would I choose one over the other?

Answer 1

Git for Windows is newer than msysGit. If you want to use Git version 2.x you need to download from https://github.com/git-for-windows/git/releases. https://github.com/msysgit/git/releases is used for Git version 1.x.

Some technical details from https://github.com/git-for-windows/git/wiki/FAQ

Git for Windows used to be developed using the development environment called "msysGit", but roughly coinciding with Git 2.1, msysGit was superseded by a new development environment: the Git for Windows SDK.

Answer 2

The titles on the download page have just been updated so that the "Git for Windows" versions are fully identified. There is now both an 'installed' version (with right click menu options), and a Portable version that runs direct from a memory stick etc.

Answer 3

Git for Windows is probably what you want. It includes the following primary features:

Git BASH Git for Windows provides a BASH emulation used to run Git from the command line. *NIX users should feel right at home, as the BASH emulation behaves just like the "git" command in LINUX and UNIX environments.

Git GUI As Windows users commonly expect graphical user interfaces, Git for Windows also provides the Git GUI, a powerful alternative to Git BASH, offering a graphical version of just about every Git command line function, as well as comprehensive visual diff tools.

Shell Integration Simply right-click on a folder in Windows Explorer to access the BASH or GUI. The Git-Cheetah plugin also provides a TortoiseSVN-like interface that displays Git functions directly on the context menu.

The following is available as a separate download from the same page...

msysGit is a build environment that includes all the tools necessary for developers who want to contribute by writing code for Git for Windows.

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Git BASH delivers a familiar environment for Linux experts who occasionally need to use a Windows machine -- even if they don't need git itself. It starts with the BASH prompt and adds a collection of core utility programs such as ssh, find, grep, vi, awk, and of course git.