What does "upstream" mean in programming?
upstream is one of the most common terms in software development. This guide explains what it means, how it is used in practice, and why it matters, with real examples from the developer world.
Definition
The original repository that a fork was created from, or the remote branch that a local branch tracks. Keeping your fork in sync with upstream ensures you are building on the latest code from the source project.
Example
"Add the original repo as upstream so you can pull the latest changes into your fork."
Related terms
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