<repository>::
- The "remote" repository to pull from. One of the
- following notations can be used to name the repository
- to pull from:
+ The "remote" repository that is the source of a fetch
+ or pull operation, or the destination of a push operation.
+ One of the following notations can be used
+ to name the remote repository:
++
+===============================================================
+- Rsync URL: rsync://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
+- HTTP(s) URL: http://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
+- git URL: git://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
+ or remote.machine:/path/to/repo.git/
+- Local directory: /path/to/repo.git/
+===============================================================
++
+In addition to the above, as a short-hand, the name of a
+file in `$GIT_DIR/remotes` directory can be given; the
+named file should be in the following format:
++
+ URL: one of the above URL format
+ Push: <refspec>
+ Pull: <refspec>
++
+When such a short-hand is specified in place of
+<repository> without <refspec> parameters on the command
+line, <refspec> specified on `Push:` lines or `Pull:`
+lines are used for `git-push` and `git-fetch`/`git-pull`,
+respectively. Multiple `Push:` and and `Pull:` lines may
+be specified for additional branch mappings.
++
+The name of a file in `$GIT_DIR/branches` directory can be
+specified as an older notation short-hand; the named
+file should contain a single line, a URL in one of the
+above formats, optionally followed by a hash `#` and the
+name of remote head (URL fragment notation).
+`$GIT_DIR/branches/<remote>` file that stores a <url>
+without the fragment is equivalent to have this in the
+corresponding file in the `$GIT_DIR/remotes/` directory.
++
+ URL: <url>
+ Pull: refs/heads/master:<remote>
++
+while having `<url>#<head>` is equivalent to
++
+ URL: <url>
+ Pull: refs/heads/<head>:<remote>
- Rsync URL
- rsync://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
-
- HTTP(s) URL
- http://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
-
- GIT URL
- git://remote.machine/path/to/repo.git/
- remote.machine:/path/to/repo.git/
-
- Local directory
- /path/to/repo.git/
-
- In addition to that, as a short-hand, the name of a file
- in $GIT_DIR/branches directory can be specified; the
- named file should contain a single line, a URL in one of
- the above formats, optionally followed by a hash '#' and
- the name of remote head.
-
-<head>::
- The remote head name to fetch from. That is, make the
- objects reachable from the commit recorded in
- $GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head> in the remote repository
- available locally.
-
-tag <tag>::
- The remote head tag to fetch from. That is, make the
- objects reachable from the commit recorded in
- $GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag> in the remote repository
- available locally.
+<refspec>::
+ The canonical format of a <refspec> parameter is
+ `+?<src>:<dst>`; that is, an optional plus `+`, followed
+ by the source ref, followed by a colon `:`, followed by
+ the destination ref.
++
+When used in `git-push`, the <src> side can be an
+arbitrary "SHA1 expression" that can be used as an
+argument to `git-cat-file -t`. E.g. `master~4` (push
+four parents before the current master head).
++
+For `git-push`, the local ref that matches <src> is used
+to fast forward the remote ref that matches <dst>. If
+the optional plus `+` is used, the remote ref is updated
+even if it does not result in a fast forward update.
++
+For `git-fetch` and `git-pull`, the remote ref that matches <src>
+is fetched, and if <dst> is not empty string, the local
+ref that matches it is fast forwarded using <src>.
+Again, if the optional plus `+` is used, the local ref
+is updated even if it does not result in a fast forward
+update.
++
+[NOTE]
+If the remote branch from which you want to pull is
+modified in non-linear ways such as being rewound and
+rebased frequently, then a pull will attempt a merge with
+an older version of itself, likely conflict, and fail.
+It is under these conditions that you would want to use
+the `+` sign to indicate non-fast-forward updates will
+be needed. There is currently no easy way to determine
+or declare that a branch will be made available in a
+repository with this behavior; the pulling user simply
+must know this is the expected usage pattern for a branch.
++
+[NOTE]
+You never do your own development on branches that appear
+on the right hand side of a <refspec> colon on `Pull:` lines;
+they are to be updated by `git-fetch`. If you intend to do
+development derived from a remote branch `B`, have a `Pull:`
+line to track it (i.e. `Pull: B:remote-B`), and have a separate
+branch `my-B` to do your development on top of it. The latter
+is created by `git branch my-B remote-B` (or its equivalent `git
+checkout -b my-B remote-B`). Run `git fetch` to keep track of
+the progress of the remote side, and when you see something new
+on the remote branch, merge it into your development branch with
+`git pull . remote-B`, while you are on `my-B` branch.
+The common `Pull: master:origin` mapping of a remote `master`
+branch to a local `origin` branch, which is then merged to a
+ocal development branch, again typically named `master`, is made
+when you run `git clone` for you to follow this pattern.
++
+[NOTE]
+There is a difference between listing multiple <refspec>
+directly on `git-pull` command line and having multiple
+`Pull:` <refspec> lines for a <repository> and running
+`git-pull` command without any explicit <refspec> parameters.
+<refspec> listed explicitly on the command line are always
+merged into the current branch after fetching. In other words,
+if you list more than one remote refs, you would be making
+an Octopus. While `git-pull` run without any explicit <refspec>
+parameter takes default <refspec>s from `Pull:` lines, it
+merges only the first <refspec> found into the current branch,
+after fetching all the remote refs. This is because making an
+Octopus from remote refs is rarely done, while keeping track
+of multiple remote heads in one-go by fetching more than one
+is often useful.
++
+Some short-cut notations are also supported.
++
+* For backward compatibility, `tag` is almost ignored;
+ it just makes the following parameter <tag> to mean a
+ refspec `refs/tags/<tag>:refs/tags/<tag>`.
+* A parameter <ref> without a colon is equivalent to
+ <ref>: when pulling/fetching, and <ref>`:`<ref> when
+ pushing. That is, do not store it locally if
+ fetching, and update the same name if pushing.