Documentation / git-push.txton commit push: teach --recurse-submodules the on-demand option (eb21c73)
   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
 165--recurse-submodules=check|on-demand::
 166        Make sure all submodule commits used by the revisions to be
 167        pushed are available on a remote tracking branch. If 'check' is
 168        used git will verify that all submodule commits that changed in
 169        the revisions to be pushed are available on at least one remote
 170        of the submodule. If any commits are missing the push will be
 171        aborted and exit with non-zero status. If 'on-demand' is used
 172        all submodules that changed in the revisions to be pushed will
 173        be pushed. If on-demand was not able to push all necessary
 174        revisions it will also be aborted and exit with non-zero status.
 175
 176
 177include::urls-remotes.txt[]
 178
 179OUTPUT
 180------
 181
 182The output of "git push" depends on the transport method used; this
 183section describes the output when pushing over the git protocol (either
 184locally or via ssh).
 185
 186The status of the push is output in tabular form, with each line
 187representing the status of a single ref. Each line is of the form:
 188
 189-------------------------------
 190 <flag> <summary> <from> -> <to> (<reason>)
 191-------------------------------
 192
 193If --porcelain is used, then each line of the output is of the form:
 194
 195-------------------------------
 196 <flag> \t <from>:<to> \t <summary> (<reason>)
 197-------------------------------
 198
 199The status of up-to-date refs is shown only if --porcelain or --verbose
 200option is used.
 201
 202flag::
 203        A single character indicating the status of the ref:
 204(space);; for a successfully pushed fast-forward;
 205`{plus}`;; for a successful forced update;
 206`-`;; for a successfully deleted ref;
 207`*`;; for a successfully pushed new ref;
 208`!`;; for a ref that was rejected or failed to push; and
 209`=`;; for a ref that was up to date and did not need pushing.
 210
 211summary::
 212        For a successfully pushed ref, the summary shows the old and new
 213        values of the ref in a form suitable for using as an argument to
 214        `git log` (this is `<old>..<new>` in most cases, and
 215        `<old>\...<new>` for forced non-fast-forward updates).
 216+
 217For a failed update, more details are given:
 218+
 219--
 220rejected::
 221        Git did not try to send the ref at all, typically because it
 222        is not a fast-forward and you did not force the update.
 223
 224remote rejected::
 225        The remote end refused the update.  Usually caused by a hook
 226        on the remote side, or because the remote repository has one
 227        of the following safety options in effect:
 228        `receive.denyCurrentBranch` (for pushes to the checked out
 229        branch), `receive.denyNonFastForwards` (for forced
 230        non-fast-forward updates), `receive.denyDeletes` or
 231        `receive.denyDeleteCurrent`.  See linkgit:git-config[1].
 232
 233remote failure::
 234        The remote end did not report the successful update of the ref,
 235        perhaps because of a temporary error on the remote side, a
 236        break in the network connection, or other transient error.
 237--
 238
 239from::
 240        The name of the local ref being pushed, minus its
 241        `refs/<type>/` prefix. In the case of deletion, the
 242        name of the local ref is omitted.
 243
 244to::
 245        The name of the remote ref being updated, minus its
 246        `refs/<type>/` prefix.
 247
 248reason::
 249        A human-readable explanation. In the case of successfully pushed
 250        refs, no explanation is needed. For a failed ref, the reason for
 251        failure is described.
 252
 253Note about fast-forwards
 254------------------------
 255
 256When an update changes a branch (or more in general, a ref) that used to
 257point at commit A to point at another commit B, it is called a
 258fast-forward update if and only if B is a descendant of A.
 259
 260In a fast-forward update from A to B, the set of commits that the original
 261commit A built on top of is a subset of the commits the new commit B
 262builds on top of.  Hence, it does not lose any history.
 263
 264In contrast, a non-fast-forward update will lose history.  For example,
 265suppose you and somebody else started at the same commit X, and you built
 266a history leading to commit B while the other person built a history
 267leading to commit A.  The history looks like this:
 268
 269----------------
 270
 271      B
 272     /
 273 ---X---A
 274
 275----------------
 276
 277Further suppose that the other person already pushed changes leading to A
 278back to the original repository you two obtained the original commit X.
 279
 280The push done by the other person updated the branch that used to point at
 281commit X to point at commit A.  It is a fast-forward.
 282
 283But if you try to push, you will attempt to update the branch (that
 284now points at A) with commit B.  This does _not_ fast-forward.  If you did
 285so, the changes introduced by commit A will be lost, because everybody
 286will now start building on top of B.
 287
 288The command by default does not allow an update that is not a fast-forward
 289to prevent such loss of history.
 290
 291If you do not want to lose your work (history from X to B) nor the work by
 292the other person (history from X to A), you would need to first fetch the
 293history from the repository, create a history that contains changes done
 294by both parties, and push the result back.
 295
 296You can perform "git pull", resolve potential conflicts, and "git push"
 297the result.  A "git pull" will create a merge commit C between commits A
 298and B.
 299
 300----------------
 301
 302      B---C
 303     /   /
 304 ---X---A
 305
 306----------------
 307
 308Updating A with the resulting merge commit will fast-forward and your
 309push will be accepted.
 310
 311Alternatively, you can rebase your change between X and B on top of A,
 312with "git pull --rebase", and push the result back.  The rebase will
 313create a new commit D that builds the change between X and B on top of
 314A.
 315
 316----------------
 317
 318      B   D
 319     /   /
 320 ---X---A
 321
 322----------------
 323
 324Again, updating A with this commit will fast-forward and your push will be
 325accepted.
 326
 327There is another common situation where you may encounter non-fast-forward
 328rejection when you try to push, and it is possible even when you are
 329pushing into a repository nobody else pushes into. After you push commit
 330A yourself (in the first picture in this section), replace it with "git
 331commit --amend" to produce commit B, and you try to push it out, because
 332forgot that you have pushed A out already. In such a case, and only if
 333you are certain that nobody in the meantime fetched your earlier commit A
 334(and started building on top of it), you can run "git push --force" to
 335overwrite it. In other words, "git push --force" is a method reserved for
 336a case where you do mean to lose history.
 337
 338
 339Examples
 340--------
 341
 342`git push`::
 343        Works like `git push <remote>`, where <remote> is the
 344        current branch's remote (or `origin`, if no remote is
 345        configured for the current branch).
 346
 347`git push origin`::
 348        Without additional configuration, works like
 349        `git push origin :`.
 350+
 351The default behavior of this command when no <refspec> is given can be
 352configured by setting the `push` option of the remote.
 353+
 354For example, to default to pushing only the current branch to `origin`
 355use `git config remote.origin.push HEAD`.  Any valid <refspec> (like
 356the ones in the examples below) can be configured as the default for
 357`git push origin`.
 358
 359`git push origin :`::
 360        Push "matching" branches to `origin`. See
 361        <refspec> in the <<OPTIONS,OPTIONS>> section above for a
 362        description of "matching" branches.
 363
 364`git push origin master`::
 365        Find a ref that matches `master` in the source repository
 366        (most likely, it would find `refs/heads/master`), and update
 367        the same ref (e.g. `refs/heads/master`) in `origin` repository
 368        with it.  If `master` did not exist remotely, it would be
 369        created.
 370
 371`git push origin HEAD`::
 372        A handy way to push the current branch to the same name on the
 373        remote.
 374
 375`git push origin master:satellite/master dev:satellite/dev`::
 376        Use the source ref that matches `master` (e.g. `refs/heads/master`)
 377        to update the ref that matches `satellite/master` (most probably
 378        `refs/remotes/satellite/master`) in the `origin` repository, then
 379        do the same for `dev` and `satellite/dev`.
 380
 381`git push origin HEAD:master`::
 382        Push the current branch to the remote ref matching `master` in the
 383        `origin` repository. This form is convenient to push the current
 384        branch without thinking about its local name.
 385
 386`git push origin master:refs/heads/experimental`::
 387        Create the branch `experimental` in the `origin` repository
 388        by copying the current `master` branch.  This form is only
 389        needed to create a new branch or tag in the remote repository when
 390        the local name and the remote name are different; otherwise,
 391        the ref name on its own will work.
 392
 393`git push origin :experimental`::
 394        Find a ref that matches `experimental` in the `origin` repository
 395        (e.g. `refs/heads/experimental`), and delete it.
 396
 397`git push origin {plus}dev:master`::
 398        Update the origin repository's master branch with the dev branch,
 399        allowing non-fast-forward updates.  *This can leave unreferenced
 400        commits dangling in the origin repository.*  Consider the
 401        following situation, where a fast-forward is not possible:
 402+
 403----
 404            o---o---o---A---B  origin/master
 405                     \
 406                      X---Y---Z  dev
 407----
 408+
 409The above command would change the origin repository to
 410+
 411----
 412                      A---B  (unnamed branch)
 413                     /
 414            o---o---o---X---Y---Z  master
 415----
 416+
 417Commits A and B would no longer belong to a branch with a symbolic name,
 418and so would be unreachable.  As such, these commits would be removed by
 419a `git gc` command on the origin repository.
 420
 421GIT
 422---
 423Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite