<repository>::
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>
+ or pull operation. See the section <<URLS,GIT URLS>> below.
<refspec>::
The canonical format of a <refspec> parameter is
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>
+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
[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`. The corollary is that
-a local branch should be introduced and named on a <refspec>
-right-hand-side if you intend to do development derived from
-that branch.
-This leads to the common `Pull: master:origin` mapping of a
-remote `master` branch to a local `origin` branch, which
-is then merged to a local development branch, again typically
-named `master`.
+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
+local 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>`.
+* `tag <tag>` means the same as `refs/tags/<tag>:refs/tags/<tag>`;
+ it requests fetching everything up to the given 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.
-
+ <ref>: when pulling/fetching, so it merges <ref> into the current
+ branch without storing the remote branch anywhere locally