After the clone, a plain `git fetch` without arguments will update
all the remote-tracking branches, and a `git pull` without
arguments will in addition merge the remote master branch into the
-current master branch, if any.
+current master branch, if any (this is untrue when "--single-branch"
+is given; see below).
This default configuration is achieved by creating references to
the remote branch heads under `refs/remotes/origin` and
mechanism and clones the repository by making a copy of
HEAD and everything under objects and refs directories.
The files under `.git/objects/` directory are hardlinked
- to save space when possible. This is now the default when
- the source repository is specified with `/path/to/repo`
- syntax, so it essentially is a no-op option. To force
- copying instead of hardlinking (which may be desirable
- if you are trying to make a back-up of your repository),
- but still avoid the usual "git aware" transport
- mechanism, `--no-hardlinks` can be used.
+ to save space when possible.
++
+If the repository is specified as a local path (e.g., `/path/to/repo`),
+this is the default, and --local is essentially a no-op. If the
+repository is specified as a URL, then this flag is ignored (and we
+never use the local optimizations). Specifying `--no-local` will
+override the default when `/path/to/repo` is given, using the regular
+git transport instead.
++
+To force copying instead of hardlinking (which may be desirable if you
+are trying to make a back-up of your repository), but still avoid the
+usual "git aware" transport mechanism, `--no-hardlinks` can be used.
--no-hardlinks::
Optimize the cloning process from a repository on a
-b <name>::
Instead of pointing the newly created HEAD to the branch pointed
to by the cloned repository's HEAD, point to `<name>` branch
- instead. `--branch` can also take tags and treat them like
- detached HEAD. In a non-bare repository, this is the branch
- that will be checked out.
+ instead. In a non-bare repository, this is the branch that will
+ be checked out.
+ `--branch` can also take tags and detaches the HEAD at that commit
+ in the resulting repository.
--upload-pack <upload-pack>::
-u <upload-pack>::
clone with the `--depth` option, this is the default, unless
`--no-single-branch` is given to fetch the histories near the
tips of all branches.
+ Further fetches into the resulting repository will only update the
+ remote-tracking branch for the branch this option was used for the
+ initial cloning. If the HEAD at the remote did not point at any
+ branch when `--single-branch` clone was made, no remote-tracking
+ branch is created.
--recursive::
--recurse-submodules::