1git(1) 2====== 3 4NAME 5---- 6git - the stupid content tracker 7 8 9SYNOPSIS 10-------- 11[verse] 12'git' [--version] [--help] [-C <path>] [-c <name>=<value>] 13 [--exec-path[=<path>]] [--html-path] [--man-path] [--info-path] 14 [-p|--paginate|--no-pager] [--no-replace-objects] [--bare] 15 [--git-dir=<path>] [--work-tree=<path>] [--namespace=<name>] 16 <command> [<args>] 17 18DESCRIPTION 19----------- 20Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an 21unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations 22and full access to internals. 23 24See linkgit:gittutorial[7] to get started, then see 25linkgit:giteveryday[7] for a useful minimum set of 26commands. The link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] has a more 27in-depth introduction. 28 29After you mastered the basic concepts, you can come back to this 30page to learn what commands Git offers. You can learn more about 31individual Git commands with "git help command". linkgit:gitcli[7] 32manual page gives you an overview of the command-line command syntax. 33 34Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest Git documentation 35can be viewed at `http://git-htmldocs.googlecode.com/git/git.html`. 36 37ifdef::stalenotes[] 38[NOTE] 39============ 40 41You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly 42unreleased) version of Git, that is available from the 'master' 43branch of the `git.git` repository. 44Documentation for older releases are available here: 45 46* link:v2.9.0/git.html[documentation for release 2.9] 47 48* release notes for 49 link:RelNotes/2.9.0.txt[2.9]. 50 51* link:v2.8.4/git.html[documentation for release 2.8.4] 52 53* release notes for 54 link:RelNotes/2.8.4.txt[2.8.4], 55 link:RelNotes/2.8.3.txt[2.8.3], 56 link:RelNotes/2.8.2.txt[2.8.2], 57 link:RelNotes/2.8.1.txt[2.8.1], 58 link:RelNotes/2.8.0.txt[2.8]. 59 60* link:v2.7.3/git.html[documentation for release 2.7.3] 61 62* release notes for 63 link:RelNotes/2.7.3.txt[2.7.3], 64 link:RelNotes/2.7.2.txt[2.7.2], 65 link:RelNotes/2.7.1.txt[2.7.1], 66 link:RelNotes/2.7.0.txt[2.7]. 67 68* link:v2.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 2.6.6] 69 70* release notes for 71 link:RelNotes/2.6.6.txt[2.6.6], 72 link:RelNotes/2.6.5.txt[2.6.5], 73 link:RelNotes/2.6.4.txt[2.6.4], 74 link:RelNotes/2.6.3.txt[2.6.3], 75 link:RelNotes/2.6.2.txt[2.6.2], 76 link:RelNotes/2.6.1.txt[2.6.1], 77 link:RelNotes/2.6.0.txt[2.6]. 78 79* link:v2.5.5/git.html[documentation for release 2.5.5] 80 81* release notes for 82 link:RelNotes/2.5.5.txt[2.5.5], 83 link:RelNotes/2.5.4.txt[2.5.4], 84 link:RelNotes/2.5.3.txt[2.5.3], 85 link:RelNotes/2.5.2.txt[2.5.2], 86 link:RelNotes/2.5.1.txt[2.5.1], 87 link:RelNotes/2.5.0.txt[2.5]. 88 89* link:v2.4.11/git.html[documentation for release 2.4.11] 90 91* release notes for 92 link:RelNotes/2.4.11.txt[2.4.11], 93 link:RelNotes/2.4.10.txt[2.4.10], 94 link:RelNotes/2.4.9.txt[2.4.9], 95 link:RelNotes/2.4.8.txt[2.4.8], 96 link:RelNotes/2.4.7.txt[2.4.7], 97 link:RelNotes/2.4.6.txt[2.4.6], 98 link:RelNotes/2.4.5.txt[2.4.5], 99 link:RelNotes/2.4.4.txt[2.4.4], 100 link:RelNotes/2.4.3.txt[2.4.3], 101 link:RelNotes/2.4.2.txt[2.4.2], 102 link:RelNotes/2.4.1.txt[2.4.1], 103 link:RelNotes/2.4.0.txt[2.4]. 104 105* link:v2.3.10/git.html[documentation for release 2.3.10] 106 107* release notes for 108 link:RelNotes/2.3.10.txt[2.3.10], 109 link:RelNotes/2.3.9.txt[2.3.9], 110 link:RelNotes/2.3.8.txt[2.3.8], 111 link:RelNotes/2.3.7.txt[2.3.7], 112 link:RelNotes/2.3.6.txt[2.3.6], 113 link:RelNotes/2.3.5.txt[2.3.5], 114 link:RelNotes/2.3.4.txt[2.3.4], 115 link:RelNotes/2.3.3.txt[2.3.3], 116 link:RelNotes/2.3.2.txt[2.3.2], 117 link:RelNotes/2.3.1.txt[2.3.1], 118 link:RelNotes/2.3.0.txt[2.3]. 119 120* link:v2.2.3/git.html[documentation for release 2.2.3] 121 122* release notes for 123 link:RelNotes/2.2.3.txt[2.2.3], 124 link:RelNotes/2.2.2.txt[2.2.2], 125 link:RelNotes/2.2.1.txt[2.2.1], 126 link:RelNotes/2.2.0.txt[2.2]. 127 128* link:v2.1.4/git.html[documentation for release 2.1.4] 129 130* release notes for 131 link:RelNotes/2.1.4.txt[2.1.4], 132 link:RelNotes/2.1.3.txt[2.1.3], 133 link:RelNotes/2.1.2.txt[2.1.2], 134 link:RelNotes/2.1.1.txt[2.1.1], 135 link:RelNotes/2.1.0.txt[2.1]. 136 137* link:v2.0.5/git.html[documentation for release 2.0.5] 138 139* release notes for 140 link:RelNotes/2.0.5.txt[2.0.5], 141 link:RelNotes/2.0.4.txt[2.0.4], 142 link:RelNotes/2.0.3.txt[2.0.3], 143 link:RelNotes/2.0.2.txt[2.0.2], 144 link:RelNotes/2.0.1.txt[2.0.1], 145 link:RelNotes/2.0.0.txt[2.0.0]. 146 147* link:v1.9.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.9.5] 148 149* release notes for 150 link:RelNotes/1.9.5.txt[1.9.5], 151 link:RelNotes/1.9.4.txt[1.9.4], 152 link:RelNotes/1.9.3.txt[1.9.3], 153 link:RelNotes/1.9.2.txt[1.9.2], 154 link:RelNotes/1.9.1.txt[1.9.1], 155 link:RelNotes/1.9.0.txt[1.9.0]. 156 157* link:v1.8.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.5.6] 158 159* release notes for 160 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.6.txt[1.8.5.6], 161 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.5.txt[1.8.5.5], 162 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.4.txt[1.8.5.4], 163 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.3.txt[1.8.5.3], 164 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.2.txt[1.8.5.2], 165 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.1.txt[1.8.5.1], 166 link:RelNotes/1.8.5.txt[1.8.5]. 167 168* link:v1.8.4.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.4.5] 169 170* release notes for 171 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.5.txt[1.8.4.5], 172 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.4.txt[1.8.4.4], 173 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.3.txt[1.8.4.3], 174 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.2.txt[1.8.4.2], 175 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.1.txt[1.8.4.1], 176 link:RelNotes/1.8.4.txt[1.8.4]. 177 178* link:v1.8.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.3.4] 179 180* release notes for 181 link:RelNotes/1.8.3.4.txt[1.8.3.4], 182 link:RelNotes/1.8.3.3.txt[1.8.3.3], 183 link:RelNotes/1.8.3.2.txt[1.8.3.2], 184 link:RelNotes/1.8.3.1.txt[1.8.3.1], 185 link:RelNotes/1.8.3.txt[1.8.3]. 186 187* link:v1.8.2.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.2.3] 188 189* release notes for 190 link:RelNotes/1.8.2.3.txt[1.8.2.3], 191 link:RelNotes/1.8.2.2.txt[1.8.2.2], 192 link:RelNotes/1.8.2.1.txt[1.8.2.1], 193 link:RelNotes/1.8.2.txt[1.8.2]. 194 195* link:v1.8.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.1.6] 196 197* release notes for 198 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.6.txt[1.8.1.6], 199 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.5.txt[1.8.1.5], 200 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.4.txt[1.8.1.4], 201 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.3.txt[1.8.1.3], 202 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.2.txt[1.8.1.2], 203 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.1.txt[1.8.1.1], 204 link:RelNotes/1.8.1.txt[1.8.1]. 205 206* link:v1.8.0.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.8.0.3] 207 208* release notes for 209 link:RelNotes/1.8.0.3.txt[1.8.0.3], 210 link:RelNotes/1.8.0.2.txt[1.8.0.2], 211 link:RelNotes/1.8.0.1.txt[1.8.0.1], 212 link:RelNotes/1.8.0.txt[1.8.0]. 213 214* link:v1.7.12.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.12.4] 215 216* release notes for 217 link:RelNotes/1.7.12.4.txt[1.7.12.4], 218 link:RelNotes/1.7.12.3.txt[1.7.12.3], 219 link:RelNotes/1.7.12.2.txt[1.7.12.2], 220 link:RelNotes/1.7.12.1.txt[1.7.12.1], 221 link:RelNotes/1.7.12.txt[1.7.12]. 222 223* link:v1.7.11.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.11.7] 224 225* release notes for 226 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.7.txt[1.7.11.7], 227 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.6.txt[1.7.11.6], 228 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.5.txt[1.7.11.5], 229 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.4.txt[1.7.11.4], 230 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.3.txt[1.7.11.3], 231 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.2.txt[1.7.11.2], 232 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.1.txt[1.7.11.1], 233 link:RelNotes/1.7.11.txt[1.7.11]. 234 235* link:v1.7.10.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.10.5] 236 237* release notes for 238 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.5.txt[1.7.10.5], 239 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.4.txt[1.7.10.4], 240 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.3.txt[1.7.10.3], 241 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.2.txt[1.7.10.2], 242 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.1.txt[1.7.10.1], 243 link:RelNotes/1.7.10.txt[1.7.10]. 244 245* link:v1.7.9.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.9.7] 246 247* release notes for 248 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.7.txt[1.7.9.7], 249 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.6.txt[1.7.9.6], 250 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.5.txt[1.7.9.5], 251 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.4.txt[1.7.9.4], 252 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.3.txt[1.7.9.3], 253 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.2.txt[1.7.9.2], 254 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.1.txt[1.7.9.1], 255 link:RelNotes/1.7.9.txt[1.7.9]. 256 257* link:v1.7.8.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.8.6] 258 259* release notes for 260 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.6.txt[1.7.8.6], 261 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.5.txt[1.7.8.5], 262 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.4.txt[1.7.8.4], 263 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.3.txt[1.7.8.3], 264 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.2.txt[1.7.8.2], 265 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.1.txt[1.7.8.1], 266 link:RelNotes/1.7.8.txt[1.7.8]. 267 268* link:v1.7.7.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.7.7] 269 270* release notes for 271 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.7.txt[1.7.7.7], 272 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.6.txt[1.7.7.6], 273 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.5.txt[1.7.7.5], 274 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.4.txt[1.7.7.4], 275 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.3.txt[1.7.7.3], 276 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.2.txt[1.7.7.2], 277 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.1.txt[1.7.7.1], 278 link:RelNotes/1.7.7.txt[1.7.7]. 279 280* link:v1.7.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.6.6] 281 282* release notes for 283 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.6.txt[1.7.6.6], 284 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.5.txt[1.7.6.5], 285 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.4.txt[1.7.6.4], 286 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.3.txt[1.7.6.3], 287 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.2.txt[1.7.6.2], 288 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.1.txt[1.7.6.1], 289 link:RelNotes/1.7.6.txt[1.7.6]. 290 291* link:v1.7.5.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.5.4] 292 293* release notes for 294 link:RelNotes/1.7.5.4.txt[1.7.5.4], 295 link:RelNotes/1.7.5.3.txt[1.7.5.3], 296 link:RelNotes/1.7.5.2.txt[1.7.5.2], 297 link:RelNotes/1.7.5.1.txt[1.7.5.1], 298 link:RelNotes/1.7.5.txt[1.7.5]. 299 300* link:v1.7.4.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.4.5] 301 302* release notes for 303 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.5.txt[1.7.4.5], 304 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.4.txt[1.7.4.4], 305 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.3.txt[1.7.4.3], 306 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.2.txt[1.7.4.2], 307 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.1.txt[1.7.4.1], 308 link:RelNotes/1.7.4.txt[1.7.4]. 309 310* link:v1.7.3.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.3.5] 311 312* release notes for 313 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.5.txt[1.7.3.5], 314 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.4.txt[1.7.3.4], 315 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.3.txt[1.7.3.3], 316 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.2.txt[1.7.3.2], 317 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.1.txt[1.7.3.1], 318 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.txt[1.7.3]. 319 320* link:v1.7.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.2.5] 321 322* release notes for 323 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.5.txt[1.7.2.5], 324 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.4.txt[1.7.2.4], 325 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.3.txt[1.7.2.3], 326 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.2.txt[1.7.2.2], 327 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.1.txt[1.7.2.1], 328 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.txt[1.7.2]. 329 330* link:v1.7.1.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.1.4] 331 332* release notes for 333 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.4.txt[1.7.1.4], 334 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.3.txt[1.7.1.3], 335 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.2.txt[1.7.1.2], 336 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.1.txt[1.7.1.1], 337 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.txt[1.7.1]. 338 339* link:v1.7.0.9/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.0.9] 340 341* release notes for 342 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.9.txt[1.7.0.9], 343 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.8.txt[1.7.0.8], 344 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.7.txt[1.7.0.7], 345 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.6.txt[1.7.0.6], 346 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.5.txt[1.7.0.5], 347 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.4.txt[1.7.0.4], 348 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.3.txt[1.7.0.3], 349 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.2.txt[1.7.0.2], 350 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.1.txt[1.7.0.1], 351 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.txt[1.7.0]. 352 353* link:v1.6.6.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.6.3] 354 355* release notes for 356 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.3.txt[1.6.6.3], 357 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.2.txt[1.6.6.2], 358 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.1.txt[1.6.6.1], 359 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.txt[1.6.6]. 360 361* link:v1.6.5.9/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.5.9] 362 363* release notes for 364 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.9.txt[1.6.5.9], 365 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.8.txt[1.6.5.8], 366 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.7.txt[1.6.5.7], 367 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.6.txt[1.6.5.6], 368 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.5.txt[1.6.5.5], 369 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.4.txt[1.6.5.4], 370 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.3.txt[1.6.5.3], 371 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.2.txt[1.6.5.2], 372 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.1.txt[1.6.5.1], 373 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.txt[1.6.5]. 374 375* link:v1.6.4.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.4.5] 376 377* release notes for 378 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.5.txt[1.6.4.5], 379 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.4.txt[1.6.4.4], 380 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.3.txt[1.6.4.3], 381 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.2.txt[1.6.4.2], 382 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.1.txt[1.6.4.1], 383 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.txt[1.6.4]. 384 385* link:v1.6.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.3.4] 386 387* release notes for 388 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.4.txt[1.6.3.4], 389 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.3.txt[1.6.3.3], 390 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.2.txt[1.6.3.2], 391 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.1.txt[1.6.3.1], 392 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.txt[1.6.3]. 393 394* release notes for 395 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.5.txt[1.6.2.5], 396 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.4.txt[1.6.2.4], 397 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.3.txt[1.6.2.3], 398 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.2.txt[1.6.2.2], 399 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.1.txt[1.6.2.1], 400 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.txt[1.6.2]. 401 402* link:v1.6.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.1.3] 403 404* release notes for 405 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.3.txt[1.6.1.3], 406 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.2.txt[1.6.1.2], 407 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.1.txt[1.6.1.1], 408 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.txt[1.6.1]. 409 410* link:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6] 411 412* release notes for 413 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6], 414 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5], 415 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4], 416 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3], 417 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2], 418 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1], 419 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.txt[1.6.0]. 420 421* link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6] 422 423* release notes for 424 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6], 425 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5], 426 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4], 427 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3], 428 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2], 429 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1], 430 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.txt[1.5.6]. 431 432* link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6] 433 434* release notes for 435 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6], 436 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5], 437 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4], 438 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3], 439 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2], 440 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1], 441 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.txt[1.5.5]. 442 443* link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7] 444 445* release notes for 446 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7], 447 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6], 448 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5], 449 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4], 450 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3], 451 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2], 452 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1], 453 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.txt[1.5.4]. 454 455* link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8] 456 457* release notes for 458 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8], 459 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7], 460 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6], 461 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5], 462 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4], 463 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3], 464 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2], 465 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1], 466 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.txt[1.5.3]. 467 468* link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5] 469 470* release notes for 471 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5], 472 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4], 473 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3], 474 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2], 475 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1], 476 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.txt[1.5.2]. 477 478* link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6] 479 480* release notes for 481 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6], 482 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5], 483 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4], 484 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3], 485 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2], 486 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1], 487 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.txt[1.5.1]. 488 489* link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7] 490 491* release notes for 492 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7], 493 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6], 494 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5], 495 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3], 496 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2], 497 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1], 498 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.txt[1.5.0]. 499 500* documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4], 501 link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3], 502 link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6], 503 link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13]. 504 505============ 506 507endif::stalenotes[] 508 509OPTIONS 510------- 511--version:: 512 Prints the Git suite version that the 'git' program came from. 513 514--help:: 515 Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used 516 commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all 517 available commands are printed. If a Git command is named this 518 option will bring up the manual page for that command. 519+ 520Other options are available to control how the manual page is 521displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information, 522because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git 523help ...`. 524 525-C <path>:: 526 Run as if git was started in '<path>' instead of the current working 527 directory. When multiple `-C` options are given, each subsequent 528 non-absolute `-C <path>` is interpreted relative to the preceding `-C 529 <path>`. 530+ 531This option affects options that expect path name like `--git-dir` and 532`--work-tree` in that their interpretations of the path names would be 533made relative to the working directory caused by the `-C` option. For 534example the following invocations are equivalent: 535 536 git --git-dir=a.git --work-tree=b -C c status 537 git --git-dir=c/a.git --work-tree=c/b status 538 539-c <name>=<value>:: 540 Pass a configuration parameter to the command. The value 541 given will override values from configuration files. 542 The <name> is expected in the same format as listed by 543 'git config' (subkeys separated by dots). 544+ 545Note that omitting the `=` in `git -c foo.bar ...` is allowed and sets 546`foo.bar` to the boolean true value (just like `[foo]bar` would in a 547config file). Including the equals but with an empty value (like `git -c 548foo.bar= ...`) sets `foo.bar` to the empty string. 549 550--exec-path[=<path>]:: 551 Path to wherever your core Git programs are installed. 552 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH 553 environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print 554 the current setting and then exit. 555 556--html-path:: 557 Print the path, without trailing slash, where Git's HTML 558 documentation is installed and exit. 559 560--man-path:: 561 Print the manpath (see `man(1)`) for the man pages for 562 this version of Git and exit. 563 564--info-path:: 565 Print the path where the Info files documenting this 566 version of Git are installed and exit. 567 568-p:: 569--paginate:: 570 Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER) if standard 571 output is a terminal. This overrides the `pager.<cmd>` 572 configuration options (see the "Configuration Mechanism" section 573 below). 574 575--no-pager:: 576 Do not pipe Git output into a pager. 577 578--git-dir=<path>:: 579 Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by 580 setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute 581 path or relative path to current working directory. 582 583--work-tree=<path>:: 584 Set the path to the working tree. It can be an absolute path 585 or a path relative to the current working directory. 586 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE 587 environment variable and the core.worktree configuration 588 variable (see core.worktree in linkgit:git-config[1] for a 589 more detailed discussion). 590 591--namespace=<path>:: 592 Set the Git namespace. See linkgit:gitnamespaces[7] for more 593 details. Equivalent to setting the `GIT_NAMESPACE` environment 594 variable. 595 596--bare:: 597 Treat the repository as a bare repository. If GIT_DIR 598 environment is not set, it is set to the current working 599 directory. 600 601--no-replace-objects:: 602 Do not use replacement refs to replace Git objects. See 603 linkgit:git-replace[1] for more information. 604 605--literal-pathspecs:: 606 Treat pathspecs literally (i.e. no globbing, no pathspec magic). 607 This is equivalent to setting the `GIT_LITERAL_PATHSPECS` environment 608 variable to `1`. 609 610--glob-pathspecs:: 611 Add "glob" magic to all pathspec. This is equivalent to setting 612 the `GIT_GLOB_PATHSPECS` environment variable to `1`. Disabling 613 globbing on individual pathspecs can be done using pathspec 614 magic ":(literal)" 615 616--noglob-pathspecs:: 617 Add "literal" magic to all pathspec. This is equivalent to setting 618 the `GIT_NOGLOB_PATHSPECS` environment variable to `1`. Enabling 619 globbing on individual pathspecs can be done using pathspec 620 magic ":(glob)" 621 622--icase-pathspecs:: 623 Add "icase" magic to all pathspec. This is equivalent to setting 624 the `GIT_ICASE_PATHSPECS` environment variable to `1`. 625 626GIT COMMANDS 627------------ 628 629We divide Git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level 630("plumbing") commands. 631 632High-level commands (porcelain) 633------------------------------- 634 635We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some 636ancillary user utilities. 637 638Main porcelain commands 639~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 640 641include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[] 642 643Ancillary Commands 644~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 645Manipulators: 646 647include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[] 648 649Interrogators: 650 651include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[] 652 653 654Interacting with Others 655~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 656 657These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other 658people via patch over e-mail. 659 660include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[] 661 662 663Low-level commands (plumbing) 664----------------------------- 665 666Although Git includes its 667own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support 668development of alternative porcelains. Developers of such porcelains 669might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and 670linkgit:git-read-tree[1]. 671 672The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics) 673to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable 674than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are 675primarily for scripted use. The interface to Porcelain commands 676on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the 677end user experience. 678 679The following description divides 680the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in 681the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and 682compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between 683repositories. 684 685 686Manipulation commands 687~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 688 689include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[] 690 691 692Interrogation commands 693~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 694 695include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[] 696 697In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in 698the working tree. 699 700 701Synching repositories 702~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 703 704include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[] 705 706The following are helper commands used by the above; end users 707typically do not use them directly. 708 709include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[] 710 711 712Internal helper commands 713~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 714 715These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end 716users typically do not use them directly. 717 718include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[] 719 720 721Configuration Mechanism 722----------------------- 723 724Git uses a simple text format to store customizations that are per 725repository and are per user. Such a configuration file may look 726like this: 727 728------------ 729# 730# A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment. 731# 732 733; core variables 734[core] 735 ; Don't trust file modes 736 filemode = false 737 738; user identity 739[user] 740 name = "Junio C Hamano" 741 email = "gitster@pobox.com" 742 743------------ 744 745Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust 746their operation accordingly. See linkgit:git-config[1] for a 747list and more details about the configuration mechanism. 748 749 750Identifier Terminology 751---------------------- 752<object>:: 753 Indicates the object name for any type of object. 754 755<blob>:: 756 Indicates a blob object name. 757 758<tree>:: 759 Indicates a tree object name. 760 761<commit>:: 762 Indicates a commit object name. 763 764<tree-ish>:: 765 Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name. A 766 command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to 767 operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences 768 <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>. 769 770<commit-ish>:: 771 Indicates a commit or tag object name. A 772 command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to 773 operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences 774 <tag> objects that point at a <commit>. 775 776<type>:: 777 Indicates that an object type is required. 778 Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`. 779 780<file>:: 781 Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the 782 root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes. 783 784Symbolic Identifiers 785-------------------- 786Any Git command accepting any <object> can also use the following 787symbolic notation: 788 789HEAD:: 790 indicates the head of the current branch. 791 792<tag>:: 793 a valid tag 'name' 794 (i.e. a `refs/tags/<tag>` reference). 795 796<head>:: 797 a valid head 'name' 798 (i.e. a `refs/heads/<head>` reference). 799 800For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see 801"SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:gitrevisions[7]. 802 803 804File/Directory Structure 805------------------------ 806 807Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document. 808 809Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook. 810 811Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the 812`$GIT_DIR`. 813 814 815Terminology 816----------- 817Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7]. 818 819 820Environment Variables 821--------------------- 822Various Git commands use the following environment variables: 823 824The Git Repository 825~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 826These environment variables apply to 'all' core Git commands. Nb: it 827is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above 828Git so take care if using a foreign front-end. 829 830'GIT_INDEX_FILE':: 831 This environment allows the specification of an alternate 832 index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index` 833 is used. 834 835'GIT_INDEX_VERSION':: 836 This environment variable allows the specification of an index 837 version for new repositories. It won't affect existing index 838 files. By default index file version 2 or 3 is used. See 839 linkgit:git-update-index[1] for more information. 840 841'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY':: 842 If the object storage directory is specified via this 843 environment variable then the sha1 directories are created 844 underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects` 845 directory is used. 846 847'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES':: 848 Due to the immutable nature of Git objects, old objects can be 849 archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable 850 specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list 851 of Git object directories which can be used to search for Git 852 objects. New objects will not be written to these directories. 853 854'GIT_DIR':: 855 If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it 856 specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git` 857 for the base of the repository. 858 The '--git-dir' command-line option also sets this value. 859 860'GIT_WORK_TREE':: 861 Set the path to the root of the working tree. 862 This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command-line 863 option and the core.worktree configuration variable. 864 865'GIT_NAMESPACE':: 866 Set the Git namespace; see linkgit:gitnamespaces[7] for details. 867 The '--namespace' command-line option also sets this value. 868 869'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES':: 870 This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths. If 871 set, it is a list of directories that Git should not chdir up 872 into while looking for a repository directory (useful for 873 excluding slow-loading network directories). It will not 874 exclude the current working directory or a GIT_DIR set on the 875 command line or in the environment. Normally, Git has to read 876 the entries in this list and resolve any symlink that 877 might be present in order to compare them with the current 878 directory. However, if even this access is slow, you 879 can add an empty entry to the list to tell Git that the 880 subsequent entries are not symlinks and needn't be resolved; 881 e.g., 882 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES=/maybe/symlink::/very/slow/non/symlink'. 883 884'GIT_DISCOVERY_ACROSS_FILESYSTEM':: 885 When run in a directory that does not have ".git" repository 886 directory, Git tries to find such a directory in the parent 887 directories to find the top of the working tree, but by default it 888 does not cross filesystem boundaries. This environment variable 889 can be set to true to tell Git not to stop at filesystem 890 boundaries. Like 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES', this will not affect 891 an explicit repository directory set via 'GIT_DIR' or on the 892 command line. 893 894'GIT_COMMON_DIR':: 895 If this variable is set to a path, non-worktree files that are 896 normally in $GIT_DIR will be taken from this path 897 instead. Worktree-specific files such as HEAD or index are 898 taken from $GIT_DIR. See linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] and 899 linkgit:git-worktree[1] for 900 details. This variable has lower precedence than other path 901 variables such as GIT_INDEX_FILE, GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY... 902 903Git Commits 904~~~~~~~~~~~ 905'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME':: 906'GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL':: 907'GIT_AUTHOR_DATE':: 908'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME':: 909'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL':: 910'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE':: 911'EMAIL':: 912 see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1] 913 914Git Diffs 915~~~~~~~~~ 916'GIT_DIFF_OPTS':: 917 Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the 918 number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created. 919 This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option 920 value passed on the Git diff command line. 921 922'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF':: 923 When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the 924 program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation 925 described above. For a path that is added, removed, or modified, 926 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters: 927 928 path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode 929+ 930where: 931 932 <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the 933 contents of <old|new>, 934 <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA-1 hashes, 935 <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes. 936+ 937The file parameters can point at the user's working file 938(e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file` 939when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the 940index). 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the 941temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits. 942+ 943For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1 944parameter, <path>. 945+ 946For each path 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called, two environment variables, 947'GIT_DIFF_PATH_COUNTER' and 'GIT_DIFF_PATH_TOTAL' are set. 948 949'GIT_DIFF_PATH_COUNTER':: 950 A 1-based counter incremented by one for every path. 951 952'GIT_DIFF_PATH_TOTAL':: 953 The total number of paths. 954 955other 956~~~~~ 957'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY':: 958 A number controlling the amount of output shown by 959 the recursive merge strategy. Overrides merge.verbosity. 960 See linkgit:git-merge[1] 961 962'GIT_PAGER':: 963 This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set 964 to an empty string or to the value "cat", Git will not launch 965 a pager. See also the `core.pager` option in 966 linkgit:git-config[1]. 967 968'GIT_EDITOR':: 969 This environment variable overrides `$EDITOR` and `$VISUAL`. 970 It is used by several Git commands when, on interactive mode, 971 an editor is to be launched. See also linkgit:git-var[1] 972 and the `core.editor` option in linkgit:git-config[1]. 973 974'GIT_SSH':: 975'GIT_SSH_COMMAND':: 976 If either of these environment variables is set then 'git fetch' 977 and 'git push' will use the specified command instead of 'ssh' 978 when they need to connect to a remote system. 979 The command will be given exactly two or four arguments: the 980 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the shell 981 command to execute on that remote system, optionally preceded by 982 '-p' (literally) and the 'port' from the URL when it specifies 983 something other than the default SSH port. 984+ 985`$GIT_SSH_COMMAND` takes precedence over `$GIT_SSH`, and is interpreted 986by the shell, which allows additional arguments to be included. 987`$GIT_SSH` on the other hand must be just the path to a program 988(which can be a wrapper shell script, if additional arguments are 989needed). 990+ 991Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your 992personal `.ssh/config` file. Please consult your ssh documentation 993for further details. 994 995'GIT_ASKPASS':: 996 If this environment variable is set, then Git commands which need to 997 acquire passwords or passphrases (e.g. for HTTP or IMAP authentication) 998 will call this program with a suitable prompt as command-line argument 999 and read the password from its STDOUT. See also the 'core.askPass'1000 option in linkgit:git-config[1].10011002'GIT_TERMINAL_PROMPT'::1003 If this environment variable is set to `0`, git will not prompt1004 on the terminal (e.g., when asking for HTTP authentication).10051006'GIT_CONFIG_NOSYSTEM'::1007 Whether to skip reading settings from the system-wide1008 `$(prefix)/etc/gitconfig` file. This environment variable can1009 be used along with `$HOME` and `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME` to create a1010 predictable environment for a picky script, or you can set it1011 temporarily to avoid using a buggy `/etc/gitconfig` file while1012 waiting for someone with sufficient permissions to fix it.10131014'GIT_FLUSH'::1015 If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such1016 as 'git blame' (in incremental mode), 'git rev-list', 'git log',1017 'git check-attr' and 'git check-ignore' will1018 force a flush of the output stream after each record have been1019 flushed. If this1020 variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done1021 using completely buffered I/O. If this environment variable is1022 not set, Git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing1023 based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.10241025'GIT_TRACE'::1026 Enables general trace messages, e.g. alias expansion, built-in1027 command execution and external command execution.1028+1029If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison1030is case insensitive), trace messages will be printed to1031stderr.1032+1033If the variable is set to an integer value greater than 21034and lower than 10 (strictly) then Git will interpret this1035value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the1036trace messages into this file descriptor.1037+1038Alternatively, if the variable is set to an absolute path1039(starting with a '/' character), Git will interpret this1040as a file path and will try to write the trace messages1041into it.1042+1043Unsetting the variable, or setting it to empty, "0" or1044"false" (case insensitive) disables trace messages.10451046'GIT_TRACE_PACK_ACCESS'::1047 Enables trace messages for all accesses to any packs. For each1048 access, the pack file name and an offset in the pack is1049 recorded. This may be helpful for troubleshooting some1050 pack-related performance problems.1051 See 'GIT_TRACE' for available trace output options.10521053'GIT_TRACE_PACKET'::1054 Enables trace messages for all packets coming in or out of a1055 given program. This can help with debugging object negotiation1056 or other protocol issues. Tracing is turned off at a packet1057 starting with "PACK" (but see 'GIT_TRACE_PACKFILE' below).1058 See 'GIT_TRACE' for available trace output options.10591060'GIT_TRACE_PACKFILE'::1061 Enables tracing of packfiles sent or received by a1062 given program. Unlike other trace output, this trace is1063 verbatim: no headers, and no quoting of binary data. You almost1064 certainly want to direct into a file (e.g.,1065 `GIT_TRACE_PACKFILE=/tmp/my.pack`) rather than displaying it on1066 the terminal or mixing it with other trace output.1067+1068Note that this is currently only implemented for the client side1069of clones and fetches.10701071'GIT_TRACE_PERFORMANCE'::1072 Enables performance related trace messages, e.g. total execution1073 time of each Git command.1074 See 'GIT_TRACE' for available trace output options.10751076'GIT_TRACE_SETUP'::1077 Enables trace messages printing the .git, working tree and current1078 working directory after Git has completed its setup phase.1079 See 'GIT_TRACE' for available trace output options.10801081'GIT_TRACE_SHALLOW'::1082 Enables trace messages that can help debugging fetching /1083 cloning of shallow repositories.1084 See 'GIT_TRACE' for available trace output options.10851086'GIT_LITERAL_PATHSPECS'::1087 Setting this variable to `1` will cause Git to treat all1088 pathspecs literally, rather than as glob patterns. For example,1089 running `GIT_LITERAL_PATHSPECS=1 git log -- '*.c'` will search1090 for commits that touch the path `*.c`, not any paths that the1091 glob `*.c` matches. You might want this if you are feeding1092 literal paths to Git (e.g., paths previously given to you by1093 `git ls-tree`, `--raw` diff output, etc).10941095'GIT_GLOB_PATHSPECS'::1096 Setting this variable to `1` will cause Git to treat all1097 pathspecs as glob patterns (aka "glob" magic).10981099'GIT_NOGLOB_PATHSPECS'::1100 Setting this variable to `1` will cause Git to treat all1101 pathspecs as literal (aka "literal" magic).11021103'GIT_ICASE_PATHSPECS'::1104 Setting this variable to `1` will cause Git to treat all1105 pathspecs as case-insensitive.11061107'GIT_REFLOG_ACTION'::1108 When a ref is updated, reflog entries are created to keep1109 track of the reason why the ref was updated (which is1110 typically the name of the high-level command that updated1111 the ref), in addition to the old and new values of the ref.1112 A scripted Porcelain command can use set_reflog_action1113 helper function in `git-sh-setup` to set its name to this1114 variable when it is invoked as the top level command by the1115 end user, to be recorded in the body of the reflog.11161117'GIT_REF_PARANOIA'::1118 If set to `1`, include broken or badly named refs when iterating1119 over lists of refs. In a normal, non-corrupted repository, this1120 does nothing. However, enabling it may help git to detect and1121 abort some operations in the presence of broken refs. Git sets1122 this variable automatically when performing destructive1123 operations like linkgit:git-prune[1]. You should not need to set1124 it yourself unless you want to be paranoid about making sure1125 an operation has touched every ref (e.g., because you are1126 cloning a repository to make a backup).11271128'GIT_ALLOW_PROTOCOL'::1129 If set, provide a colon-separated list of protocols which are1130 allowed to be used with fetch/push/clone. This is useful to1131 restrict recursive submodule initialization from an untrusted1132 repository. Any protocol not mentioned will be disallowed (i.e.,1133 this is a whitelist, not a blacklist). If the variable is not1134 set at all, all protocols are enabled. The protocol names1135 currently used by git are:11361137 - `file`: any local file-based path (including `file://` URLs,1138 or local paths)11391140 - `git`: the anonymous git protocol over a direct TCP1141 connection (or proxy, if configured)11421143 - `ssh`: git over ssh (including `host:path` syntax,1144 `ssh://`, etc).11451146 - `http`: git over http, both "smart http" and "dumb http".1147 Note that this does _not_ include `https`; if you want both,1148 you should specify both as `http:https`.11491150 - any external helpers are named by their protocol (e.g., use1151 `hg` to allow the `git-remote-hg` helper)115211531154Discussion[[Discussion]]1155------------------------11561157More detail on the following is available from the1158link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[Git concepts chapter of the1159user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].11601161A Git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"1162subdirectory at the top level. The .git directory contains, among other1163things, a compressed object database representing the complete history1164of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current1165contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such1166as tags and branch heads.11671168The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which1169hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up1170directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree1171and some number of parent commits.11721173The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or1174"version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent1175represents an immediately preceding step. Commits with more than one1176parent represent merges of independent lines of development.11771178All objects are named by the SHA-1 hash of their contents, normally1179written as a string of 40 hex digits. Such names are globally unique.1180The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing1181just that commit. A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this1182purpose.11831184When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for1185efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".11861187Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history. A ref1188may contain the SHA-1 name of an object or the name of another ref. Refs1189with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA-1 name of the most1190recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development. SHA-1 names of1191tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`. A special ref named1192`HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.11931194The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each1195path, a blob object and a set of attributes. The blob object represents1196the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch. The1197attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the1198corresponding file in the working tree. Subsequent changes to the1199working tree can be found by comparing these attributes. The index may1200be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the1201content stored in the index.12021203The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")1204for a given pathname. These stages are used to hold the various1205unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.12061207FURTHER DOCUMENTATION1208---------------------12091210See the references in the "description" section to get started1211using Git. The following is probably more detail than necessary1212for a first-time user.12131214The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[Git concepts chapter of the1215user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide1216introductions to the underlying Git architecture.12171218See linkgit:gitworkflows[7] for an overview of recommended workflows.12191220See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful1221examples.12221223The internals are documented in the1224link:technical/api-index.html[Git API documentation].12251226Users migrating from CVS may also want to1227read linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7].122812291230Authors1231-------1232Git was started by Linus Torvalds, and is currently maintained by Junio1233C Hamano. Numerous contributions have come from the Git mailing list1234<git@vger.kernel.org>. http://www.openhub.net/p/git/contributors/summary1235gives you a more complete list of contributors.12361237If you have a clone of git.git itself, the1238output of linkgit:git-shortlog[1] and linkgit:git-blame[1] can show you1239the authors for specific parts of the project.12401241Reporting Bugs1242--------------12431244Report bugs to the Git mailing list <git@vger.kernel.org> where the1245development and maintenance is primarily done. You do not have to be1246subscribed to the list to send a message there.12471248SEE ALSO1249--------1250linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],1251linkgit:giteveryday[7], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],1252linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],1253linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual],1254linkgit:gitworkflows[7]12551256GIT1257---1258Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite