path expansion (see '--path' below). If no type specifier is passed, no
checks or transformations are performed on the value.
-The file-option can be one of '--system', '--global' or '--file'
-which specify where the values will be read from or written to.
-The default is to assume the config file of the current repository,
-.git/config unless defined otherwise with GIT_DIR and GIT_CONFIG
-(see <<FILES>>).
+When reading, the values are read from the system, global and
+repository local configuration files by default, and options
+'--system', '--global', '--local' and '--file <filename>' can be
+used to tell the command to read from only that location (see <<FILES>>).
+
+When writing, the new value is written to the repository local
+configuration file by default, and options '--system', '--global',
+'--file <filename>' can be used to tell the command to write to
+that location (you can say '--local' but that is the default).
This command will fail (with exit code ret) if:
--global::
For writing options: write to global ~/.gitconfig file rather than
- the repository .git/config.
+ the repository .git/config, write to $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config file
+ if this file exists and the ~/.gitconfig file doesn't.
+
-For reading options: read only from global ~/.gitconfig rather than
-from all available files.
+For reading options: read only from global ~/.gitconfig and from
+$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config rather than from all available files.
+
See also <<FILES>>.
FILES
-----
-If not set explicitly with '--file', there are three files where
+If not set explicitly with '--file', there are four files where
'git config' will search for configuration options:
$GIT_DIR/config::
- Repository specific configuration file. (The filename is
- of course relative to the repository root, not the working
- directory.)
+ Repository specific configuration file.
~/.gitconfig::
User-specific configuration file. Also called "global"
configuration file.
+$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config::
+ Second user-specific configuration file. If $XDG_CONFIG_HOME is not set
+ or empty, $HOME/.config/git/config will be used. Any single-valued
+ variable set in this file will be overwritten by whatever is in
+ ~/.gitconfig. It is a good idea not to create this file if
+ you sometimes use older versions of Git, as support for this
+ file was added fairly recently.
+
$(prefix)/etc/gitconfig::
System-wide configuration file.