Documentation / git-push.txton commit git-p4: replace each tab with 8 spaces for consistency (c3f6163)
   1git-push(1)
   2===========
   3
   4NAME
   5----
   6git-push - Update remote refs along with associated objects
   7
   8
   9SYNOPSIS
  10--------
  11[verse]
  12'git push' [--all | --mirror | --tags] [-n | --dry-run] [--receive-pack=<git-receive-pack>]
  13           [--repo=<repository>] [-f | --force] [-v | --verbose] [-u | --set-upstream]
  14           [<repository> [<refspec>...]]
  15
  16DESCRIPTION
  17-----------
  18
  19Updates remote refs using local refs, while sending objects
  20necessary to complete the given refs.
  21
  22You can make interesting things happen to a repository
  23every time you push into it, by setting up 'hooks' there.  See
  24documentation for linkgit:git-receive-pack[1].
  25
  26
  27OPTIONS[[OPTIONS]]
  28------------------
  29<repository>::
  30        The "remote" repository that is destination of a push
  31        operation.  This parameter can be either a URL
  32        (see the section <<URLS,GIT URLS>> below) or the name
  33        of a remote (see the section <<REMOTES,REMOTES>> below).
  34
  35<refspec>...::
  36        The format of a <refspec> parameter is an optional plus
  37        `{plus}`, followed by the source ref <src>, followed
  38        by a colon `:`, followed by the destination ref <dst>.
  39        It is used to specify with what <src> object the <dst> ref
  40        in the remote repository is to be updated.
  41+
  42The <src> is often the name of the branch you would want to push, but
  43it can be any arbitrary "SHA-1 expression", such as `master~4` or
  44`HEAD` (see linkgit:gitrevisions[7]).
  45+
  46The <dst> tells which ref on the remote side is updated with this
  47push. Arbitrary expressions cannot be used here, an actual ref must
  48be named. If `:`<dst> is omitted, the same ref as <src> will be
  49updated.
  50+
  51The object referenced by <src> is used to update the <dst> reference
  52on the remote side, but by default this is only allowed if the
  53update can fast-forward <dst>.  By having the optional leading `{plus}`,
  54you can tell git to update the <dst> ref even when the update is not a
  55fast-forward.  This does *not* attempt to merge <src> into <dst>.  See
  56EXAMPLES below for details.
  57+
  58`tag <tag>` means the same as `refs/tags/<tag>:refs/tags/<tag>`.
  59+
  60Pushing an empty <src> allows you to delete the <dst> ref from
  61the remote repository.
  62+
  63The special refspec `:` (or `{plus}:` to allow non-fast-forward updates)
  64directs git to push "matching" branches: for every branch that exists on
  65the local side, the remote side is updated if a branch of the same name
  66already exists on the remote side.  This is the default operation mode
  67if no explicit refspec is found (that is neither on the command line
  68nor in any Push line of the corresponding remotes file---see below).
  69
  70--all::
  71        Instead of naming each ref to push, specifies that all
  72        refs under `refs/heads/` be pushed.
  73
  74--mirror::
  75        Instead of naming each ref to push, specifies that all
  76        refs under `refs/` (which includes but is not
  77        limited to `refs/heads/`, `refs/remotes/`, and `refs/tags/`)
  78        be mirrored to the remote repository.  Newly created local
  79        refs will be pushed to the remote end, locally updated refs
  80        will be force updated on the remote end, and deleted refs
  81        will be removed from the remote end.  This is the default
  82        if the configuration option `remote.<remote>.mirror` is
  83        set.
  84
  85-n::
  86--dry-run::
  87        Do everything except actually send the updates.
  88
  89--porcelain::
  90        Produce machine-readable output.  The output status line for each ref
  91        will be tab-separated and sent to stdout instead of stderr.  The full
  92        symbolic names of the refs will be given.
  93
  94--delete::
  95        All listed refs are deleted from the remote repository. This is
  96        the same as prefixing all refs with a colon.
  97
  98--tags::
  99        All refs under `refs/tags` are pushed, in
 100        addition to refspecs explicitly listed on the command
 101        line.
 102
 103--receive-pack=<git-receive-pack>::
 104--exec=<git-receive-pack>::
 105        Path to the 'git-receive-pack' program on the remote
 106        end.  Sometimes useful when pushing to a remote
 107        repository over ssh, and you do not have the program in
 108        a directory on the default $PATH.
 109
 110-f::
 111--force::
 112        Usually, the command refuses to update a remote ref that is
 113        not an ancestor of the local ref used to overwrite it.
 114        This flag disables the check.  This can cause the
 115        remote repository to lose commits; use it with care.
 116
 117--repo=<repository>::
 118        This option is only relevant if no <repository> argument is
 119        passed in the invocation. In this case, 'git push' derives the
 120        remote name from the current branch: If it tracks a remote
 121        branch, then that remote repository is pushed to. Otherwise,
 122        the name "origin" is used. For this latter case, this option
 123        can be used to override the name "origin". In other words,
 124        the difference between these two commands
 125+
 126--------------------------
 127git push public         #1
 128git push --repo=public  #2
 129--------------------------
 130+
 131is that #1 always pushes to "public" whereas #2 pushes to "public"
 132only if the current branch does not track a remote branch. This is
 133useful if you write an alias or script around 'git push'.
 134
 135-u::
 136--set-upstream::
 137        For every branch that is up to date or successfully pushed, add
 138        upstream (tracking) reference, used by argument-less
 139        linkgit:git-pull[1] and other commands. For more information,
 140        see 'branch.<name>.merge' in linkgit:git-config[1].
 141
 142--thin::
 143--no-thin::
 144        These options are passed to linkgit:git-send-pack[1]. A thin transfer
 145        significantly reduces the amount of sent data when the sender and
 146        receiver share many of the same objects in common. The default is
 147        \--thin.
 148
 149-q::
 150--quiet::
 151        Suppress all output, including the listing of updated refs,
 152        unless an error occurs. Progress is not reported to the standard
 153        error stream.
 154
 155-v::
 156--verbose::
 157        Run verbosely.
 158
 159--progress::
 160        Progress status is reported on the standard error stream
 161        by default when it is attached to a terminal, unless -q
 162        is specified. This flag forces progress status even if the
 163        standard error stream is not directed to a terminal.
 164
 165include::urls-remotes.txt[]
 166
 167OUTPUT
 168------
 169
 170The output of "git push" depends on the transport method used; this
 171section describes the output when pushing over the git protocol (either
 172locally or via ssh).
 173
 174The status of the push is output in tabular form, with each line
 175representing the status of a single ref. Each line is of the form:
 176
 177-------------------------------
 178 <flag> <summary> <from> -> <to> (<reason>)
 179-------------------------------
 180
 181If --porcelain is used, then each line of the output is of the form:
 182
 183-------------------------------
 184 <flag> \t <from>:<to> \t <summary> (<reason>)
 185-------------------------------
 186
 187The status of up-to-date refs is shown only if --porcelain or --verbose
 188option is used.
 189
 190flag::
 191        A single character indicating the status of the ref:
 192(space);; for a successfully pushed fast-forward;
 193`{plus}`;; for a successful forced update;
 194`-`;; for a successfully deleted ref;
 195`*`;; for a successfully pushed new ref;
 196`!`;; for a ref that was rejected or failed to push; and
 197`=`;; for a ref that was up to date and did not need pushing.
 198
 199summary::
 200        For a successfully pushed ref, the summary shows the old and new
 201        values of the ref in a form suitable for using as an argument to
 202        `git log` (this is `<old>..<new>` in most cases, and
 203        `<old>\...<new>` for forced non-fast-forward updates).
 204+
 205For a failed update, more details are given:
 206+
 207--
 208rejected::
 209        Git did not try to send the ref at all, typically because it
 210        is not a fast-forward and you did not force the update.
 211
 212remote rejected::
 213        The remote end refused the update.  Usually caused by a hook
 214        on the remote side, or because the remote repository has one
 215        of the following safety options in effect:
 216        `receive.denyCurrentBranch` (for pushes to the checked out
 217        branch), `receive.denyNonFastForwards` (for forced
 218        non-fast-forward updates), `receive.denyDeletes` or
 219        `receive.denyDeleteCurrent`.  See linkgit:git-config[1].
 220
 221remote failure::
 222        The remote end did not report the successful update of the ref,
 223        perhaps because of a temporary error on the remote side, a
 224        break in the network connection, or other transient error.
 225--
 226
 227from::
 228        The name of the local ref being pushed, minus its
 229        `refs/<type>/` prefix. In the case of deletion, the
 230        name of the local ref is omitted.
 231
 232to::
 233        The name of the remote ref being updated, minus its
 234        `refs/<type>/` prefix.
 235
 236reason::
 237        A human-readable explanation. In the case of successfully pushed
 238        refs, no explanation is needed. For a failed ref, the reason for
 239        failure is described.
 240
 241Note about fast-forwards
 242------------------------
 243
 244When an update changes a branch (or more in general, a ref) that used to
 245point at commit A to point at another commit B, it is called a
 246fast-forward update if and only if B is a descendant of A.
 247
 248In a fast-forward update from A to B, the set of commits that the original
 249commit A built on top of is a subset of the commits the new commit B
 250builds on top of.  Hence, it does not lose any history.
 251
 252In contrast, a non-fast-forward update will lose history.  For example,
 253suppose you and somebody else started at the same commit X, and you built
 254a history leading to commit B while the other person built a history
 255leading to commit A.  The history looks like this:
 256
 257----------------
 258
 259      B
 260     /
 261 ---X---A
 262
 263----------------
 264
 265Further suppose that the other person already pushed changes leading to A
 266back to the original repository you two obtained the original commit X.
 267
 268The push done by the other person updated the branch that used to point at
 269commit X to point at commit A.  It is a fast-forward.
 270
 271But if you try to push, you will attempt to update the branch (that
 272now points at A) with commit B.  This does _not_ fast-forward.  If you did
 273so, the changes introduced by commit A will be lost, because everybody
 274will now start building on top of B.
 275
 276The command by default does not allow an update that is not a fast-forward
 277to prevent such loss of history.
 278
 279If you do not want to lose your work (history from X to B) nor the work by
 280the other person (history from X to A), you would need to first fetch the
 281history from the repository, create a history that contains changes done
 282by both parties, and push the result back.
 283
 284You can perform "git pull", resolve potential conflicts, and "git push"
 285the result.  A "git pull" will create a merge commit C between commits A
 286and B.
 287
 288----------------
 289
 290      B---C
 291     /   /
 292 ---X---A
 293
 294----------------
 295
 296Updating A with the resulting merge commit will fast-forward and your
 297push will be accepted.
 298
 299Alternatively, you can rebase your change between X and B on top of A,
 300with "git pull --rebase", and push the result back.  The rebase will
 301create a new commit D that builds the change between X and B on top of
 302A.
 303
 304----------------
 305
 306      B   D
 307     /   /
 308 ---X---A
 309
 310----------------
 311
 312Again, updating A with this commit will fast-forward and your push will be
 313accepted.
 314
 315There is another common situation where you may encounter non-fast-forward
 316rejection when you try to push, and it is possible even when you are
 317pushing into a repository nobody else pushes into. After you push commit
 318A yourself (in the first picture in this section), replace it with "git
 319commit --amend" to produce commit B, and you try to push it out, because
 320forgot that you have pushed A out already. In such a case, and only if
 321you are certain that nobody in the meantime fetched your earlier commit A
 322(and started building on top of it), you can run "git push --force" to
 323overwrite it. In other words, "git push --force" is a method reserved for
 324a case where you do mean to lose history.
 325
 326
 327Examples
 328--------
 329
 330git push::
 331        Works like `git push <remote>`, where <remote> is the
 332        current branch's remote (or `origin`, if no remote is
 333        configured for the current branch).
 334
 335git push origin::
 336        Without additional configuration, works like
 337        `git push origin :`.
 338+
 339The default behavior of this command when no <refspec> is given can be
 340configured by setting the `push` option of the remote.
 341+
 342For example, to default to pushing only the current branch to `origin`
 343use `git config remote.origin.push HEAD`.  Any valid <refspec> (like
 344the ones in the examples below) can be configured as the default for
 345`git push origin`.
 346
 347git push origin :::
 348        Push "matching" branches to `origin`. See
 349        <refspec> in the <<OPTIONS,OPTIONS>> section above for a
 350        description of "matching" branches.
 351
 352git push origin master::
 353        Find a ref that matches `master` in the source repository
 354        (most likely, it would find `refs/heads/master`), and update
 355        the same ref (e.g. `refs/heads/master`) in `origin` repository
 356        with it.  If `master` did not exist remotely, it would be
 357        created.
 358
 359git push origin HEAD::
 360        A handy way to push the current branch to the same name on the
 361        remote.
 362
 363git push origin master:satellite/master dev:satellite/dev::
 364        Use the source ref that matches `master` (e.g. `refs/heads/master`)
 365        to update the ref that matches `satellite/master` (most probably
 366        `refs/remotes/satellite/master`) in the `origin` repository, then
 367        do the same for `dev` and `satellite/dev`.
 368
 369git push origin HEAD:master::
 370        Push the current branch to the remote ref matching `master` in the
 371        `origin` repository. This form is convenient to push the current
 372        branch without thinking about its local name.
 373
 374git push origin master:refs/heads/experimental::
 375        Create the branch `experimental` in the `origin` repository
 376        by copying the current `master` branch.  This form is only
 377        needed to create a new branch or tag in the remote repository when
 378        the local name and the remote name are different; otherwise,
 379        the ref name on its own will work.
 380
 381git push origin :experimental::
 382        Find a ref that matches `experimental` in the `origin` repository
 383        (e.g. `refs/heads/experimental`), and delete it.
 384
 385git push origin {plus}dev:master::
 386        Update the origin repository's master branch with the dev branch,
 387        allowing non-fast-forward updates.  *This can leave unreferenced
 388        commits dangling in the origin repository.*  Consider the
 389        following situation, where a fast-forward is not possible:
 390+
 391----
 392            o---o---o---A---B  origin/master
 393                     \
 394                      X---Y---Z  dev
 395----
 396+
 397The above command would change the origin repository to
 398+
 399----
 400                      A---B  (unnamed branch)
 401                     /
 402            o---o---o---X---Y---Z  master
 403----
 404+
 405Commits A and B would no longer belong to a branch with a symbolic name,
 406and so would be unreachable.  As such, these commits would be removed by
 407a `git gc` command on the origin repository.
 408
 409GIT
 410---
 411Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite