few hundred changesets or so.
--auto::
- With this option, `git gc` checks if there are too many
- loose objects in the repository and runs
- gitlink:git-repack[1] with `-d -l` option to pack them.
- The threshold for loose objects is set with `gc.auto` configuration
- variable, and can be disabled by setting it to 0. Some
- Porcelain commands use this after they perform operation
- that could create many loose objects automatically.
- Additionally, when there are too many packs are present,
- they are consolidated into one larger pack by running
- the `git-repack` command with `-A` option. The
- threshold for number of packs is set with
- `gc.autopacklimit` configuration variable.
+ With this option, `git gc` checks whether any housekeeping is
+ required; if not, it exits without performing any work.
+ Some git commands run `git gc --auto` after performing
+ operations that could create many loose objects.
++
+Housekeeping is required if there are too many loose objects or
+too many packs in the repository. If the number of loose objects
+exceeds the value of the `gc.auto` configuration variable, then
+all loose objects are combined into a single pack using
+`git-repack -d -l`. Setting the value of `gc.auto` to 0
+disables automatic packing of loose objects.
++
+If the number of packs exceeds the value of `gc.autopacklimit`,
+then existing packs (except those marked with a `.keep` file)
+are consolidated into a single pack by using the `-A` option of
+`git-repack`. Setting `gc.autopacklimit` to 0 disables
+automatic consolidation of packs.
Configuration
-------------