Documentation / git.txton commit Merge branch 'pk/fast-import-tars' (4a452ed)
   1git(1)
   2======
   3
   4NAME
   5----
   6git - the stupid content tracker
   7
   8
   9SYNOPSIS
  10--------
  11[verse]
  12'git' [--version] [--exec-path[=GIT_EXEC_PATH]] [--html-path]
  13    [-p|--paginate|--no-pager]
  14    [--bare] [--git-dir=GIT_DIR] [--work-tree=GIT_WORK_TREE]
  15    [--help] COMMAND [ARGS]
  16
  17DESCRIPTION
  18-----------
  19Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an
  20unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations
  21and full access to internals.
  22
  23See linkgit:gittutorial[7] to get started, then see
  24link:everyday.html[Everyday Git] for a useful minimum set of commands, and
  25"man git-commandname" for documentation of each command.  CVS users may
  26also want to read linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7].  See
  27the link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] for a more in-depth
  28introduction.
  29
  30The COMMAND is either a name of a Git command (see below) or an alias
  31as defined in the configuration file (see linkgit:git-config[1]).
  32
  33Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest git
  34documentation can be viewed at
  35`http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/`.
  36
  37ifdef::stalenotes[]
  38[NOTE]
  39============
  40
  41You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly
  42unreleased) version of git, that is available from 'master'
  43branch of the `git.git` repository.
  44Documentation for older releases are available here:
  45
  46* link:v1.6.4.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.4.3]
  47
  48* release notes for
  49  link:RelNotes-1.6.4.3.txt[1.6.4.3],
  50  link:RelNotes-1.6.4.2.txt[1.6.4.2],
  51  link:RelNotes-1.6.4.1.txt[1.6.4.1],
  52  link:RelNotes-1.6.4.txt[1.6.4].
  53
  54* link:v1.6.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.3.4]
  55
  56* release notes for
  57  link:RelNotes-1.6.3.4.txt[1.6.3.4],
  58  link:RelNotes-1.6.3.3.txt[1.6.3.3],
  59  link:RelNotes-1.6.3.2.txt[1.6.3.2],
  60  link:RelNotes-1.6.3.1.txt[1.6.3.1],
  61  link:RelNotes-1.6.3.txt[1.6.3].
  62
  63* release notes for
  64  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.5.txt[1.6.2.5],
  65  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.4.txt[1.6.2.4],
  66  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.3.txt[1.6.2.3],
  67  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.2.txt[1.6.2.2],
  68  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.1.txt[1.6.2.1],
  69  link:RelNotes-1.6.2.txt[1.6.2].
  70
  71* link:v1.6.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.1.3]
  72
  73* release notes for
  74  link:RelNotes-1.6.1.3.txt[1.6.1.3],
  75  link:RelNotes-1.6.1.2.txt[1.6.1.2],
  76  link:RelNotes-1.6.1.1.txt[1.6.1.1],
  77  link:RelNotes-1.6.1.txt[1.6.1].
  78
  79* link:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6]
  80
  81* release notes for
  82  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6],
  83  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5],
  84  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4],
  85  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3],
  86  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2],
  87  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1],
  88  link:RelNotes-1.6.0.txt[1.6.0].
  89
  90* link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6]
  91
  92* release notes for
  93  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6],
  94  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5],
  95  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4],
  96  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3],
  97  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2],
  98  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1],
  99  link:RelNotes-1.5.6.txt[1.5.6].
 100
 101* link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6]
 102
 103* release notes for
 104  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6],
 105  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5],
 106  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4],
 107  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3],
 108  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2],
 109  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1],
 110  link:RelNotes-1.5.5.txt[1.5.5].
 111
 112* link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7]
 113
 114* release notes for
 115  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7],
 116  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6],
 117  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5],
 118  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4],
 119  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3],
 120  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2],
 121  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1],
 122  link:RelNotes-1.5.4.txt[1.5.4].
 123
 124* link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8]
 125
 126* release notes for
 127  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8],
 128  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7],
 129  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6],
 130  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5],
 131  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4],
 132  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3],
 133  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2],
 134  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1],
 135  link:RelNotes-1.5.3.txt[1.5.3].
 136
 137* link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5]
 138
 139* release notes for
 140  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5],
 141  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
 142  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
 143  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
 144  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
 145  link:RelNotes-1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
 146
 147* link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
 148
 149* release notes for
 150  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
 151  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
 152  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
 153  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
 154  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
 155  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
 156  link:RelNotes-1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
 157
 158* link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
 159
 160* release notes for
 161  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
 162  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
 163  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
 164  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
 165  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
 166  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
 167  link:RelNotes-1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
 168
 169* documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
 170  link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
 171  link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
 172  link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
 173
 174============
 175
 176endif::stalenotes[]
 177
 178OPTIONS
 179-------
 180--version::
 181        Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
 182
 183--help::
 184        Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
 185        commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all
 186        available commands are printed. If a git command is named this
 187        option will bring up the manual page for that command.
 188+
 189Other options are available to control how the manual page is
 190displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information,
 191because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git
 192help ...`.
 193
 194--exec-path::
 195        Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
 196        This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
 197        environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print
 198        the current setting and then exit.
 199
 200--html-path::
 201        Print the path to wherever your git HTML documentation is installed
 202        and exit.
 203
 204-p::
 205--paginate::
 206        Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER).
 207
 208--no-pager::
 209        Do not pipe git output into a pager.
 210
 211--git-dir=<path>::
 212        Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
 213        setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute
 214        path or relative path to current working directory.
 215
 216--work-tree=<path>::
 217        Set the path to the working tree.  The value will not be
 218        used in combination with repositories found automatically in
 219        a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
 220        This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
 221        environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
 222        variable. It can be an absolute path or relative path to
 223        the directory specified by --git-dir or GIT_DIR.
 224        Note: If --git-dir or GIT_DIR are specified but none of
 225        --work-tree, GIT_WORK_TREE and core.worktree is specified,
 226        the current working directory is regarded as the top directory
 227        of your working tree.
 228
 229--bare::
 230        Treat the repository as a bare repository.  If GIT_DIR
 231        environment is not set, it is set to the current working
 232        directory.
 233
 234
 235FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
 236---------------------
 237
 238See the references above to get started using git.  The following is
 239probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
 240
 241The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
 242user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide
 243introductions to the underlying git architecture.
 244
 245See linkgit:gitworkflows[7] for an overview of recommended workflows.
 246
 247See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
 248examples.
 249
 250The internals are documented in the
 251link:technical/api-index.html[GIT API documentation].
 252
 253GIT COMMANDS
 254------------
 255
 256We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
 257("plumbing") commands.
 258
 259High-level commands (porcelain)
 260-------------------------------
 261
 262We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
 263ancillary user utilities.
 264
 265Main porcelain commands
 266~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 267
 268include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
 269
 270Ancillary Commands
 271~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 272Manipulators:
 273
 274include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
 275
 276Interrogators:
 277
 278include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
 279
 280
 281Interacting with Others
 282~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 283
 284These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
 285people via patch over e-mail.
 286
 287include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
 288
 289
 290Low-level commands (plumbing)
 291-----------------------------
 292
 293Although git includes its
 294own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
 295development of alternative porcelains.  Developers of such porcelains
 296might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and
 297linkgit:git-read-tree[1].
 298
 299The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
 300to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
 301than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
 302primarily for scripted use.  The interface to Porcelain commands
 303on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
 304end user experience.
 305
 306The following description divides
 307the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
 308the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
 309compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
 310repositories.
 311
 312
 313Manipulation commands
 314~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 315
 316include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
 317
 318
 319Interrogation commands
 320~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 321
 322include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
 323
 324In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
 325the working tree.
 326
 327
 328Synching repositories
 329~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 330
 331include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
 332
 333The following are helper commands used by the above; end users
 334typically do not use them directly.
 335
 336include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
 337
 338
 339Internal helper commands
 340~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 341
 342These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
 343users typically do not use them directly.
 344
 345include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
 346
 347
 348Configuration Mechanism
 349-----------------------
 350
 351Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
 352is used to hold per-repository configuration options.  It is a
 353simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
 354people.  Here is an example:
 355
 356------------
 357#
 358# A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
 359#
 360
 361; core variables
 362[core]
 363        ; Don't trust file modes
 364        filemode = false
 365
 366; user identity
 367[user]
 368        name = "Junio C Hamano"
 369        email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
 370
 371------------
 372
 373Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
 374their operation accordingly.
 375
 376
 377Identifier Terminology
 378----------------------
 379<object>::
 380        Indicates the object name for any type of object.
 381
 382<blob>::
 383        Indicates a blob object name.
 384
 385<tree>::
 386        Indicates a tree object name.
 387
 388<commit>::
 389        Indicates a commit object name.
 390
 391<tree-ish>::
 392        Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name.  A
 393        command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 394        operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
 395        <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
 396
 397<commit-ish>::
 398        Indicates a commit or tag object name.  A
 399        command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 400        operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
 401        <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
 402
 403<type>::
 404        Indicates that an object type is required.
 405        Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
 406
 407<file>::
 408        Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
 409        root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
 410
 411Symbolic Identifiers
 412--------------------
 413Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
 414symbolic notation:
 415
 416HEAD::
 417        indicates the head of the current branch (i.e. the
 418        contents of `$GIT_DIR/HEAD`).
 419
 420<tag>::
 421        a valid tag 'name'
 422        (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag>`).
 423
 424<head>::
 425        a valid head 'name'
 426        (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head>`).
 427
 428For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
 429"SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:git-rev-parse[1].
 430
 431
 432File/Directory Structure
 433------------------------
 434
 435Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document.
 436
 437Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook.
 438
 439Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
 440`$GIT_DIR`.
 441
 442
 443Terminology
 444-----------
 445Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7].
 446
 447
 448Environment Variables
 449---------------------
 450Various git commands use the following environment variables:
 451
 452The git Repository
 453~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 454These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
 455is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
 456git so take care if using Cogito etc.
 457
 458'GIT_INDEX_FILE'::
 459        This environment allows the specification of an alternate
 460        index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
 461        is used.
 462
 463'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
 464        If the object storage directory is specified via this
 465        environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
 466        underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
 467        directory is used.
 468
 469'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
 470        Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
 471        archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
 472        specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list
 473        of git object directories which can be used to search for git
 474        objects. New objects will not be written to these directories.
 475
 476'GIT_DIR'::
 477        If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
 478        specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
 479        for the base of the repository.
 480
 481'GIT_WORK_TREE'::
 482        Set the path to the working tree.  The value will not be
 483        used in combination with repositories found automatically in
 484        a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
 485        This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
 486        option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
 487
 488'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES'::
 489        This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths.
 490        If set, it is a list of directories that git should not chdir
 491        up into while looking for a repository directory.
 492        It will not exclude the current working directory or
 493        a GIT_DIR set on the command line or in the environment.
 494        (Useful for excluding slow-loading network directories.)
 495
 496git Commits
 497~~~~~~~~~~~
 498'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME'::
 499'GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL'::
 500'GIT_AUTHOR_DATE'::
 501'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
 502'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
 503'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
 504'EMAIL'::
 505        see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1]
 506
 507git Diffs
 508~~~~~~~~~
 509'GIT_DIFF_OPTS'::
 510        Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
 511        number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
 512        This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
 513        value passed on the git diff command line.
 514
 515'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
 516        When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
 517        program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
 518        described above.  For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
 519        'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
 520
 521        path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
 522+
 523where:
 524
 525        <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
 526                         contents of <old|new>,
 527        <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
 528        <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
 529
 530+
 531The file parameters can point at the user's working file
 532(e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
 533when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
 534index).  'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
 535temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
 536+
 537For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
 538parameter, <path>.
 539
 540other
 541~~~~~
 542'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
 543        A number controlling the amount of output shown by
 544        the recursive merge strategy.  Overrides merge.verbosity.
 545        See linkgit:git-merge[1]
 546
 547'GIT_PAGER'::
 548        This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
 549        to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
 550        a pager.  See also the `core.pager` option in
 551        linkgit:git-config[1].
 552
 553'GIT_SSH'::
 554        If this environment variable is set then 'git-fetch'
 555        and 'git-push' will use this command instead
 556        of 'ssh' when they need to connect to a remote system.
 557        The '$GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
 558        the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
 559        shell command to execute on that remote system.
 560+
 561To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
 562you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
 563then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
 564+
 565Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
 566personal `.ssh/config` file.  Please consult your ssh documentation
 567for further details.
 568
 569'GIT_FLUSH'::
 570        If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
 571        as 'git-blame' (in incremental mode), 'git-rev-list', 'git-log',
 572        and 'git-whatchanged' will force a flush of the output stream
 573        after each commit-oriented record have been flushed.   If this
 574        variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
 575        using completely buffered I/O.   If this environment variable is
 576        not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
 577        based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
 578
 579'GIT_TRACE'::
 580        If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
 581        is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
 582        stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
 583        execution and external command execution.
 584        If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
 585        and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
 586        value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
 587        trace messages into this file descriptor.
 588        Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
 589        (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
 590        as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
 591        into it.
 592
 593Discussion[[Discussion]]
 594------------------------
 595
 596More detail on the following is available from the
 597link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
 598user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].
 599
 600A git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"
 601subdirectory at the top level.  The .git directory contains, among other
 602things, a compressed object database representing the complete history
 603of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current
 604contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such
 605as tags and branch heads.
 606
 607The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which
 608hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up
 609directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree
 610and some number of parent commits.
 611
 612The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or
 613"version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent
 614represents an immediately preceding step.  Commits with more than one
 615parent represent merges of independent lines of development.
 616
 617All objects are named by the SHA1 hash of their contents, normally
 618written as a string of 40 hex digits.  Such names are globally unique.
 619The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing
 620just that commit.  A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this
 621purpose.
 622
 623When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for
 624efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".
 625
 626Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history.  A ref
 627may contain the SHA1 name of an object or the name of another ref.  Refs
 628with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA1 name of the most
 629recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development.  SHA1 names of
 630tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`.  A special ref named
 631`HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.
 632
 633The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each
 634path, a blob object and a set of attributes.  The blob object represents
 635the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch.  The
 636attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the
 637corresponding file in the working tree.  Subsequent changes to the
 638working tree can be found by comparing these attributes.  The index may
 639be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the
 640content stored in the index.
 641
 642The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")
 643for a given pathname.  These stages are used to hold the various
 644unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.
 645
 646Authors
 647-------
 648* git's founding father is Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org>.
 649* The current git nurse is Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>.
 650* The git potty was written by Andreas Ericsson <ae@op5.se>.
 651* General upbringing is handled by the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
 652
 653Documentation
 654--------------
 655The documentation for git suite was started by David Greaves
 656<david@dgreaves.com>, and later enhanced greatly by the
 657contributors on the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
 658
 659SEE ALSO
 660--------
 661linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],
 662link:everyday.html[Everyday Git], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],
 663linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],
 664linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual],
 665linkgit:gitworkflows[7]
 666
 667GIT
 668---
 669Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite