CRAFT Tutorials · Advanced
Version control quietly keeps a full history of your project, so you can look back at any earlier version — or undo a change cleanly. It’s the local foundation that checkpoints, “undo,” and GitHub backup all build on, and Claude can switch it on for you in one step.
What you’ll do: 2 steps · about 5 minutes · once.
Why turn it on?
Version control (the tool underneath is called Git) keeps a running history of your project. Every time you save a version, that point is remembered — so you can review what changed, and roll back to a known-good state if something goes wrong.
- It’s the safety foundation. CRAFT’s checkpoints and “undo a mistake” both rely on this history.
- It’s required for GitHub backup. Saving your project offsite to GitHub builds directly on version control.
- You won’t manage it by hand. Claude does the Git work for you — you just ask.
Step 1 — Install Git for Windows
Windows doesn’t come with Git, so install it once: get Git for Windows (free) from git-scm.com/download/win and run the installer with the default options. It also gives you the Git Bash app, handy elsewhere in these tutorials.
To confirm it installed, open Git Bash (from the Start menu) and run:
git --version✓ You’ll know it worked when git --version prints a version number (like git version 2.45.0.windows.1).
Step 2 — Ask Claude to turn it on
Open your project in Cowork and ask:
Claude turns on version control for the folder and saves your first version — no Git commands for you to learn or run.
✓ You’ll know it worked when Claude confirms version control is on and your first version is saved. From now on, your work can be checkpointed and rolled back.
That’s version control: a quiet history that makes the rest of CRAFT’s safety net possible. A good next step: Save checkpoints and restore points — or, to add an offsite backup, Set up GitHub to back up your CRAFT project.