ae34e8a7f6b34d81550f0adf60098b075e8b7757
   1git(1)
   2======
   3
   4NAME
   5----
   6git - the stupid content tracker
   7
   8
   9SYNOPSIS
  10--------
  11[verse]
  12'git' [--version] [--help] [-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
  25link:everyday.html[Everyday Git] for a useful minimum set of commands, and
  26"man git-commandname" for documentation of each command.  CVS users may
  27also want to read linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7].  See
  28the link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] for a more in-depth
  29introduction.
  30
  31The '<command>' is either a name of a Git command (see below) or an alias
  32as defined in the configuration file (see linkgit:git-config[1]).
  33
  34Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest git
  35documentation can be viewed at
  36`http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/`.
  37
  38ifdef::stalenotes[]
  39[NOTE]
  40============
  41
  42You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly
  43unreleased) version of git, that is available from 'master'
  44branch of the `git.git` repository.
  45Documentation for older releases are available here:
  46
  47* link:v1.7.9.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.9.6]
  48
  49* release notes for
  50  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.6.txt[1.7.9.6],
  51  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.5.txt[1.7.9.5],
  52  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.4.txt[1.7.9.4],
  53  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.3.txt[1.7.9.3],
  54  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.2.txt[1.7.9.2],
  55  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.1.txt[1.7.9.1],
  56  link:RelNotes/1.7.9.txt[1.7.9].
  57
  58* link:v1.7.8.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.8.5]
  59
  60* release notes for
  61  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.5.txt[1.7.8.5],
  62  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.4.txt[1.7.8.4],
  63  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.3.txt[1.7.8.3],
  64  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.2.txt[1.7.8.2],
  65  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.1.txt[1.7.8.1],
  66  link:RelNotes/1.7.8.txt[1.7.8].
  67
  68* link:v1.7.7.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.7.6]
  69
  70* release notes for
  71  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.6.txt[1.7.7.6],
  72  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.5.txt[1.7.7.5],
  73  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.4.txt[1.7.7.4],
  74  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.3.txt[1.7.7.3],
  75  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.2.txt[1.7.7.2],
  76  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.1.txt[1.7.7.1],
  77  link:RelNotes/1.7.7.txt[1.7.7].
  78
  79* link:v1.7.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.6.6]
  80
  81* release notes for
  82  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.6.txt[1.7.6.6],
  83  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.5.txt[1.7.6.5],
  84  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.4.txt[1.7.6.4],
  85  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.3.txt[1.7.6.3],
  86  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.2.txt[1.7.6.2],
  87  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.1.txt[1.7.6.1],
  88  link:RelNotes/1.7.6.txt[1.7.6].
  89
  90* link:v1.7.5.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.5.4]
  91
  92* release notes for
  93  link:RelNotes/1.7.5.4.txt[1.7.5.4],
  94  link:RelNotes/1.7.5.3.txt[1.7.5.3],
  95  link:RelNotes/1.7.5.2.txt[1.7.5.2],
  96  link:RelNotes/1.7.5.1.txt[1.7.5.1],
  97  link:RelNotes/1.7.5.txt[1.7.5].
  98
  99* link:v1.7.4.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.4.5]
 100
 101* release notes for
 102  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.5.txt[1.7.4.5],
 103  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.4.txt[1.7.4.4],
 104  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.3.txt[1.7.4.3],
 105  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.2.txt[1.7.4.2],
 106  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.1.txt[1.7.4.1],
 107  link:RelNotes/1.7.4.txt[1.7.4].
 108
 109* link:v1.7.3.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.3.5]
 110
 111* release notes for
 112  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.5.txt[1.7.3.5],
 113  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.4.txt[1.7.3.4],
 114  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.3.txt[1.7.3.3],
 115  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.2.txt[1.7.3.2],
 116  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.1.txt[1.7.3.1],
 117  link:RelNotes/1.7.3.txt[1.7.3].
 118
 119* link:v1.7.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.2.5]
 120
 121* release notes for
 122  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.5.txt[1.7.2.5],
 123  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.4.txt[1.7.2.4],
 124  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.3.txt[1.7.2.3],
 125  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.2.txt[1.7.2.2],
 126  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.1.txt[1.7.2.1],
 127  link:RelNotes/1.7.2.txt[1.7.2].
 128
 129* link:v1.7.1.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.1.4]
 130
 131* release notes for
 132  link:RelNotes/1.7.1.4.txt[1.7.1.4],
 133  link:RelNotes/1.7.1.3.txt[1.7.1.3],
 134  link:RelNotes/1.7.1.2.txt[1.7.1.2],
 135  link:RelNotes/1.7.1.1.txt[1.7.1.1],
 136  link:RelNotes/1.7.1.txt[1.7.1].
 137
 138* link:v1.7.0.9/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.0.9]
 139
 140* release notes for
 141  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.9.txt[1.7.0.9],
 142  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.8.txt[1.7.0.8],
 143  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.7.txt[1.7.0.7],
 144  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.6.txt[1.7.0.6],
 145  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.5.txt[1.7.0.5],
 146  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.4.txt[1.7.0.4],
 147  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.3.txt[1.7.0.3],
 148  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.2.txt[1.7.0.2],
 149  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.1.txt[1.7.0.1],
 150  link:RelNotes/1.7.0.txt[1.7.0].
 151
 152* link:v1.6.6.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.6.3]
 153
 154* release notes for
 155  link:RelNotes/1.6.6.3.txt[1.6.6.3],
 156  link:RelNotes/1.6.6.2.txt[1.6.6.2],
 157  link:RelNotes/1.6.6.1.txt[1.6.6.1],
 158  link:RelNotes/1.6.6.txt[1.6.6].
 159
 160* link:v1.6.5.9/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.5.9]
 161
 162* release notes for
 163  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.9.txt[1.6.5.9],
 164  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.8.txt[1.6.5.8],
 165  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.7.txt[1.6.5.7],
 166  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.6.txt[1.6.5.6],
 167  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.5.txt[1.6.5.5],
 168  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.4.txt[1.6.5.4],
 169  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.3.txt[1.6.5.3],
 170  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.2.txt[1.6.5.2],
 171  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.1.txt[1.6.5.1],
 172  link:RelNotes/1.6.5.txt[1.6.5].
 173
 174* link:v1.6.4.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.4.5]
 175
 176* release notes for
 177  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.5.txt[1.6.4.5],
 178  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.4.txt[1.6.4.4],
 179  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.3.txt[1.6.4.3],
 180  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.2.txt[1.6.4.2],
 181  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.1.txt[1.6.4.1],
 182  link:RelNotes/1.6.4.txt[1.6.4].
 183
 184* link:v1.6.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.3.4]
 185
 186* release notes for
 187  link:RelNotes/1.6.3.4.txt[1.6.3.4],
 188  link:RelNotes/1.6.3.3.txt[1.6.3.3],
 189  link:RelNotes/1.6.3.2.txt[1.6.3.2],
 190  link:RelNotes/1.6.3.1.txt[1.6.3.1],
 191  link:RelNotes/1.6.3.txt[1.6.3].
 192
 193* release notes for
 194  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.5.txt[1.6.2.5],
 195  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.4.txt[1.6.2.4],
 196  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.3.txt[1.6.2.3],
 197  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.2.txt[1.6.2.2],
 198  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.1.txt[1.6.2.1],
 199  link:RelNotes/1.6.2.txt[1.6.2].
 200
 201* link:v1.6.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.1.3]
 202
 203* release notes for
 204  link:RelNotes/1.6.1.3.txt[1.6.1.3],
 205  link:RelNotes/1.6.1.2.txt[1.6.1.2],
 206  link:RelNotes/1.6.1.1.txt[1.6.1.1],
 207  link:RelNotes/1.6.1.txt[1.6.1].
 208
 209* link:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6]
 210
 211* release notes for
 212  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6],
 213  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5],
 214  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4],
 215  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3],
 216  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2],
 217  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1],
 218  link:RelNotes/1.6.0.txt[1.6.0].
 219
 220* link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6]
 221
 222* release notes for
 223  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6],
 224  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5],
 225  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4],
 226  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3],
 227  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2],
 228  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1],
 229  link:RelNotes/1.5.6.txt[1.5.6].
 230
 231* link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6]
 232
 233* release notes for
 234  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6],
 235  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5],
 236  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4],
 237  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3],
 238  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2],
 239  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1],
 240  link:RelNotes/1.5.5.txt[1.5.5].
 241
 242* link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7]
 243
 244* release notes for
 245  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7],
 246  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6],
 247  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5],
 248  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4],
 249  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3],
 250  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2],
 251  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1],
 252  link:RelNotes/1.5.4.txt[1.5.4].
 253
 254* link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8]
 255
 256* release notes for
 257  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8],
 258  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7],
 259  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6],
 260  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5],
 261  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4],
 262  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3],
 263  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2],
 264  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1],
 265  link:RelNotes/1.5.3.txt[1.5.3].
 266
 267* link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5]
 268
 269* release notes for
 270  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5],
 271  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
 272  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
 273  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
 274  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
 275  link:RelNotes/1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
 276
 277* link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
 278
 279* release notes for
 280  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
 281  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
 282  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
 283  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
 284  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
 285  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
 286  link:RelNotes/1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
 287
 288* link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
 289
 290* release notes for
 291  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
 292  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
 293  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
 294  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
 295  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
 296  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
 297  link:RelNotes/1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
 298
 299* documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
 300  link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
 301  link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
 302  link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
 303
 304============
 305
 306endif::stalenotes[]
 307
 308OPTIONS
 309-------
 310--version::
 311        Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
 312
 313--help::
 314        Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
 315        commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all
 316        available commands are printed. If a git command is named this
 317        option will bring up the manual page for that command.
 318+
 319Other options are available to control how the manual page is
 320displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information,
 321because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git
 322help ...`.
 323
 324-c <name>=<value>::
 325        Pass a configuration parameter to the command. The value
 326        given will override values from configuration files.
 327        The <name> is expected in the same format as listed by
 328        'git config' (subkeys separated by dots).
 329
 330--exec-path[=<path>]::
 331        Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
 332        This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
 333        environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print
 334        the current setting and then exit.
 335
 336--html-path::
 337        Print the path, without trailing slash, where git's HTML
 338        documentation is installed and exit.
 339
 340--man-path::
 341        Print the manpath (see `man(1)`) for the man pages for
 342        this version of git and exit.
 343
 344--info-path::
 345        Print the path where the Info files documenting this
 346        version of git are installed and exit.
 347
 348-p::
 349--paginate::
 350        Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER) if standard
 351        output is a terminal.  This overrides the `pager.<cmd>`
 352        configuration options (see the "Configuration Mechanism" section
 353        below).
 354
 355--no-pager::
 356        Do not pipe git output into a pager.
 357
 358--git-dir=<path>::
 359        Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
 360        setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute
 361        path or relative path to current working directory.
 362
 363--work-tree=<path>::
 364        Set the path to the working tree. It can be an absolute path
 365        or a path relative to the current working directory.
 366        This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
 367        environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
 368        variable (see core.worktree in linkgit:git-config[1] for a
 369        more detailed discussion).
 370
 371--namespace=<path>::
 372        Set the git namespace.  See linkgit:gitnamespaces[7] for more
 373        details.  Equivalent to setting the `GIT_NAMESPACE` environment
 374        variable.
 375
 376--bare::
 377        Treat the repository as a bare repository.  If GIT_DIR
 378        environment is not set, it is set to the current working
 379        directory.
 380
 381--no-replace-objects::
 382        Do not use replacement refs to replace git objects. See
 383        linkgit:git-replace[1] for more information.
 384
 385
 386FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
 387---------------------
 388
 389See the references above to get started using git.  The following is
 390probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
 391
 392The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
 393user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide
 394introductions to the underlying git architecture.
 395
 396See linkgit:gitworkflows[7] for an overview of recommended workflows.
 397
 398See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
 399examples.
 400
 401The internals are documented in the
 402link:technical/api-index.html[GIT API documentation].
 403
 404GIT COMMANDS
 405------------
 406
 407We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
 408("plumbing") commands.
 409
 410High-level commands (porcelain)
 411-------------------------------
 412
 413We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
 414ancillary user utilities.
 415
 416Main porcelain commands
 417~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 418
 419include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
 420
 421Ancillary Commands
 422~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 423Manipulators:
 424
 425include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
 426
 427Interrogators:
 428
 429include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
 430
 431
 432Interacting with Others
 433~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 434
 435These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
 436people via patch over e-mail.
 437
 438include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
 439
 440
 441Low-level commands (plumbing)
 442-----------------------------
 443
 444Although git includes its
 445own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
 446development of alternative porcelains.  Developers of such porcelains
 447might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and
 448linkgit:git-read-tree[1].
 449
 450The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
 451to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
 452than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
 453primarily for scripted use.  The interface to Porcelain commands
 454on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
 455end user experience.
 456
 457The following description divides
 458the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
 459the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
 460compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
 461repositories.
 462
 463
 464Manipulation commands
 465~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 466
 467include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
 468
 469
 470Interrogation commands
 471~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 472
 473include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
 474
 475In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
 476the working tree.
 477
 478
 479Synching repositories
 480~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 481
 482include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
 483
 484The following are helper commands used by the above; end users
 485typically do not use them directly.
 486
 487include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
 488
 489
 490Internal helper commands
 491~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 492
 493These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
 494users typically do not use them directly.
 495
 496include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
 497
 498
 499Configuration Mechanism
 500-----------------------
 501
 502Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
 503is used to hold per-repository configuration options.  It is a
 504simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
 505people.  Here is an example:
 506
 507------------
 508#
 509# A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
 510#
 511
 512; core variables
 513[core]
 514        ; Don't trust file modes
 515        filemode = false
 516
 517; user identity
 518[user]
 519        name = "Junio C Hamano"
 520        email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
 521
 522------------
 523
 524Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
 525their operation accordingly.  See linkgit:git-config[1] for a
 526list.
 527
 528
 529Identifier Terminology
 530----------------------
 531<object>::
 532        Indicates the object name for any type of object.
 533
 534<blob>::
 535        Indicates a blob object name.
 536
 537<tree>::
 538        Indicates a tree object name.
 539
 540<commit>::
 541        Indicates a commit object name.
 542
 543<tree-ish>::
 544        Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name.  A
 545        command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 546        operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
 547        <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
 548
 549<commit-ish>::
 550        Indicates a commit or tag object name.  A
 551        command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 552        operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
 553        <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
 554
 555<type>::
 556        Indicates that an object type is required.
 557        Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
 558
 559<file>::
 560        Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
 561        root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
 562
 563Symbolic Identifiers
 564--------------------
 565Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
 566symbolic notation:
 567
 568HEAD::
 569        indicates the head of the current branch.
 570
 571<tag>::
 572        a valid tag 'name'
 573        (i.e. a `refs/tags/<tag>` reference).
 574
 575<head>::
 576        a valid head 'name'
 577        (i.e. a `refs/heads/<head>` reference).
 578
 579For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
 580"SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:gitrevisions[7].
 581
 582
 583File/Directory Structure
 584------------------------
 585
 586Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document.
 587
 588Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook.
 589
 590Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
 591`$GIT_DIR`.
 592
 593
 594Terminology
 595-----------
 596Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7].
 597
 598
 599Environment Variables
 600---------------------
 601Various git commands use the following environment variables:
 602
 603The git Repository
 604~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 605These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
 606is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
 607git so take care if using Cogito etc.
 608
 609'GIT_INDEX_FILE'::
 610        This environment allows the specification of an alternate
 611        index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
 612        is used.
 613
 614'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
 615        If the object storage directory is specified via this
 616        environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
 617        underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
 618        directory is used.
 619
 620'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
 621        Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
 622        archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
 623        specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list
 624        of git object directories which can be used to search for git
 625        objects. New objects will not be written to these directories.
 626
 627'GIT_DIR'::
 628        If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
 629        specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
 630        for the base of the repository.
 631
 632'GIT_WORK_TREE'::
 633        Set the path to the working tree.  The value will not be
 634        used in combination with repositories found automatically in
 635        a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
 636        This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
 637        option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
 638
 639'GIT_NAMESPACE'::
 640        Set the git namespace; see linkgit:gitnamespaces[7] for details.
 641        The '--namespace' command-line option also sets this value.
 642
 643'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES'::
 644        This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths.
 645        If set, it is a list of directories that git should not chdir
 646        up into while looking for a repository directory.
 647        It will not exclude the current working directory or
 648        a GIT_DIR set on the command line or in the environment.
 649        (Useful for excluding slow-loading network directories.)
 650
 651'GIT_DISCOVERY_ACROSS_FILESYSTEM'::
 652        When run in a directory that does not have ".git" repository
 653        directory, git tries to find such a directory in the parent
 654        directories to find the top of the working tree, but by default it
 655        does not cross filesystem boundaries.  This environment variable
 656        can be set to true to tell git not to stop at filesystem
 657        boundaries.  Like 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES', this will not affect
 658        an explicit repository directory set via 'GIT_DIR' or on the
 659        command line.
 660
 661git Commits
 662~~~~~~~~~~~
 663'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME'::
 664'GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL'::
 665'GIT_AUTHOR_DATE'::
 666'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
 667'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
 668'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
 669'EMAIL'::
 670        see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1]
 671
 672git Diffs
 673~~~~~~~~~
 674'GIT_DIFF_OPTS'::
 675        Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
 676        number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
 677        This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
 678        value passed on the git diff command line.
 679
 680'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
 681        When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
 682        program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
 683        described above.  For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
 684        'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
 685
 686        path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
 687+
 688where:
 689
 690        <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
 691                         contents of <old|new>,
 692        <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
 693        <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
 694+
 695The file parameters can point at the user's working file
 696(e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
 697when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
 698index).  'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
 699temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
 700+
 701For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
 702parameter, <path>.
 703
 704other
 705~~~~~
 706'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
 707        A number controlling the amount of output shown by
 708        the recursive merge strategy.  Overrides merge.verbosity.
 709        See linkgit:git-merge[1]
 710
 711'GIT_PAGER'::
 712        This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
 713        to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
 714        a pager.  See also the `core.pager` option in
 715        linkgit:git-config[1].
 716
 717'GIT_EDITOR'::
 718        This environment variable overrides `$EDITOR` and `$VISUAL`.
 719        It is used by several git comands when, on interactive mode,
 720        an editor is to be launched. See also linkgit:git-var[1]
 721        and the `core.editor` option in linkgit:git-config[1].
 722
 723'GIT_SSH'::
 724        If this environment variable is set then 'git fetch'
 725        and 'git push' will use this command instead
 726        of 'ssh' when they need to connect to a remote system.
 727        The '$GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
 728        the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
 729        shell command to execute on that remote system.
 730+
 731To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
 732you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
 733then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
 734+
 735Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
 736personal `.ssh/config` file.  Please consult your ssh documentation
 737for further details.
 738
 739'GIT_ASKPASS'::
 740        If this environment variable is set, then git commands which need to
 741        acquire passwords or passphrases (e.g. for HTTP or IMAP authentication)
 742        will call this program with a suitable prompt as command line argument
 743        and read the password from its STDOUT. See also the 'core.askpass'
 744        option in linkgit:git-config[1].
 745
 746'GIT_FLUSH'::
 747        If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
 748        as 'git blame' (in incremental mode), 'git rev-list', 'git log',
 749        and 'git whatchanged' will force a flush of the output stream
 750        after each commit-oriented record have been flushed.   If this
 751        variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
 752        using completely buffered I/O.   If this environment variable is
 753        not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
 754        based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
 755
 756'GIT_TRACE'::
 757        If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
 758        is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
 759        stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
 760        execution and external command execution.
 761        If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
 762        and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
 763        value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
 764        trace messages into this file descriptor.
 765        Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
 766        (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
 767        as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
 768        into it.
 769
 770Discussion[[Discussion]]
 771------------------------
 772
 773More detail on the following is available from the
 774link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
 775user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].
 776
 777A git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"
 778subdirectory at the top level.  The .git directory contains, among other
 779things, a compressed object database representing the complete history
 780of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current
 781contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such
 782as tags and branch heads.
 783
 784The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which
 785hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up
 786directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree
 787and some number of parent commits.
 788
 789The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or
 790"version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent
 791represents an immediately preceding step.  Commits with more than one
 792parent represent merges of independent lines of development.
 793
 794All objects are named by the SHA1 hash of their contents, normally
 795written as a string of 40 hex digits.  Such names are globally unique.
 796The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing
 797just that commit.  A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this
 798purpose.
 799
 800When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for
 801efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".
 802
 803Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history.  A ref
 804may contain the SHA1 name of an object or the name of another ref.  Refs
 805with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA1 name of the most
 806recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development.  SHA1 names of
 807tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`.  A special ref named
 808`HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.
 809
 810The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each
 811path, a blob object and a set of attributes.  The blob object represents
 812the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch.  The
 813attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the
 814corresponding file in the working tree.  Subsequent changes to the
 815working tree can be found by comparing these attributes.  The index may
 816be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the
 817content stored in the index.
 818
 819The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")
 820for a given pathname.  These stages are used to hold the various
 821unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.
 822
 823Authors
 824-------
 825Git was started by Linus Torvalds, and is currently maintained by Junio
 826C Hamano. Numerous contributions have come from the git mailing list
 827<git@vger.kernel.org>. For a more complete list of contributors, see
 828http://git-scm.com/about. If you have a clone of git.git itself, the
 829output of linkgit:git-shortlog[1] and linkgit:git-blame[1] can show you
 830the authors for specific parts of the project.
 831
 832Reporting Bugs
 833--------------
 834
 835Report bugs to the Git mailing list <git@vger.kernel.org> where the
 836development and maintenance is primarily done.  You do not have to be
 837subscribed to the list to send a message there.
 838
 839SEE ALSO
 840--------
 841linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],
 842link:everyday.html[Everyday Git], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],
 843linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],
 844linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual],
 845linkgit:gitworkflows[7]
 846
 847GIT
 848---
 849Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite