SYNOPSIS
--------
[verse]
-'git format-patch' [-k] [-o <dir> | --stdout] [--thread]
- [--attach[=<boundary>] | --inline[=<boundary>]]
- [-s | --signoff] [<common diff options>]
+'git format-patch' [-k] [(-o|--output-directory) <dir> | --stdout]
+ [--no-thread | --thread[=<style>]]
+ [(--attach|--inline)[=<boundary>] | --no-attach]
+ [-s | --signoff]
[-n | --numbered | -N | --no-numbered]
[--start-number <n>] [--numbered-files]
[--in-reply-to=Message-Id] [--suffix=.<sfx>]
[--subject-prefix=Subject-Prefix]
[--cc=<email>]
[--cover-letter]
+ [<common diff options>]
[ <since> | <revision range> ]
DESCRIPTION
--numbered-files::
Output file names will be a simple number sequence
without the default first line of the commit appended.
- Mutually exclusive with the --stdout option.
-k::
--keep-subject::
which is the commit message and the patch itself in the
second part, with "Content-Disposition: attachment".
+--no-attach::
+ Disable the creation of an attachment, overriding the
+ configuration setting.
+
--inline[=<boundary>]::
Create multipart/mixed attachment, the first part of
which is the commit message and the patch itself in the
second part, with "Content-Disposition: inline".
---thread::
- Add In-Reply-To and References headers to make the second and
- subsequent mails appear as replies to the first. Also generates
- the Message-Id header to reference.
+--thread[=<style>]::
+--no-thread::
+ Controls addition of In-Reply-To and References headers to
+ make the second and subsequent mails appear as replies to the
+ first. Also controls generation of the Message-Id header to
+ reference.
++
+The optional <style> argument can be either `shallow` or `deep`.
+'shallow' threading makes every mail a reply to the head of the
+series, where the head is chosen from the cover letter, the
+`\--in-reply-to`, and the first patch mail, in this order. 'deep'
+threading makes every mail a reply to the previous one.
++
+The default is --no-thread, unless the 'format.thread' configuration
+is set. If --thread is specified without a style, it defaults to the
+style specified by 'format.thread' if any, or else `shallow`.
++
+Beware that the default for 'git send-email' is to thread emails
+itself. If you want 'git format-patch' to take care of hreading, you
+will want to ensure that threading is disabled for 'git send-email'.
--in-reply-to=Message-Id::
Make the first mail (or all the mails with --no-thread) appear as a
Add a "Cc:" header to the email headers. This is in addition
to any configured headers, and may be used multiple times.
+--add-header=<header>::
+ Add an arbitrary header to the email headers. This is in addition
+ to any configured headers, and may be used multiple times.
+ For example, --add-header="Organization: git-foo"
+
--cover-letter::
In addition to the patches, generate a cover letter file
containing the shortlog and the overall diffstat. You can
--suffix=.<sfx>::
Instead of using `.patch` as the suffix for generated
filenames, use specified suffix. A common alternative is
- `--suffix=.txt`.
+ `--suffix=.txt`. Leaving this empty will remove the `.patch`
+ suffix.
+
-Note that you would need to include the leading dot `.` if you
-want a filename like `0001-description-of-my-change.patch`, and
-the first letter does not have to be a dot. Leaving it empty would
-not add any suffix.
+Note that the leading character does not have to be a dot; for example,
+you can use `--suffix=-patch` to get `0001-description-of-my-change-patch`.
--no-binary::
- Don't output contents of changes in binary files, just take note
- that they differ. Note that this disable the patch to be properly
- applied. By default the contents of changes in those files are
- encoded in the patch.
+ Do not output contents of changes in binary files, instead
+ display a notice that those files changed. Patches generated
+ using this option cannot be applied properly, but they are
+ still useful for code review.
--root::
Treat the revision argument as a <revision range>, even if it
CONFIGURATION
-------------
-You can specify extra mail header lines to be added to each message
-in the repository configuration, new defaults for the subject prefix
-and file suffix, and number patches when outputting more than one.
+You can specify extra mail header lines to be added to each message,
+defaults for the subject prefix and file suffix, number patches when
+outputting more than one patch, add "Cc:" headers, configure attachments,
+and sign off patches with configuration variables.
------------
[format]
suffix = .txt
numbered = auto
cc = <email>
+ attach [ = mime-boundary-string ]
+ signoff = true
------------
+
Additionally, it detects and handles renames and complete rewrites
intelligently to produce a renaming patch. A renaming patch reduces
-the amount of text output, and generally makes it easier to review it.
-Note that the "patch" program does not understand renaming patches, so
+the amount of text output, and generally makes it easier to review.
+Note that non-git "patch" programs won't understand renaming patches, so
use it only when you know the recipient uses git to apply your patch.
* Extract three topmost commits from the current branch and format them