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1git-rev-parse(1)
2================
3
4NAME
5----
7bd7f280 6git-rev-parse - Pick out and massage parameters
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7
8
9SYNOPSIS
10--------
7791a1d9 11[verse]
b1889c36 12'git rev-parse' [ --option ] <args>...
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13
14DESCRIPTION
15-----------
5077fa9c 16
2de9b711 17Many Git porcelainish commands take mixture of flags
5077fa9c 18(i.e. parameters that begin with a dash '-') and parameters
0b444cdb 19meant for the underlying 'git rev-list' command they use internally
483bc4f0 20and flags and parameters for the other commands they use
0b444cdb 21downstream of 'git rev-list'. This command is used to
5077fa9c 22distinguish between them.
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23
24
25OPTIONS
26-------
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27
28Operation Modes
29~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
30
31Each of these options must appear first on the command line.
32
21d47835 33--parseopt::
0b444cdb 34 Use 'git rev-parse' in option parsing mode (see PARSEOPT section below).
21d47835 35
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36--sq-quote::
37 Use 'git rev-parse' in shell quoting mode (see SQ-QUOTE
38 section below). In contrast to the `--sq` option below, this
39 mode does only quoting. Nothing else is done to command input.
40
41Options for --parseopt
42~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
43
2163e3f7 44--keep-dashdash::
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45 Only meaningful in `--parseopt` mode. Tells the option parser to echo
46 out the first `--` met instead of skipping it.
47
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48--stop-at-non-option::
49 Only meaningful in `--parseopt` mode. Lets the option parser stop at
50 the first non-option argument. This can be used to parse sub-commands
6a5d0b0a 51 that take options themselves.
6e0800ef 52
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53--stuck-long::
54 Only meaningful in `--parseopt` mode. Output the options in their
55 long form if available, and with their arguments stuck.
56
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57Options for Filtering
58~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
50325377 59
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60--revs-only::
61 Do not output flags and parameters not meant for
0b444cdb 62 'git rev-list' command.
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63
64--no-revs::
65 Do not output flags and parameters meant for
0b444cdb 66 'git rev-list' command.
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67
68--flags::
69 Do not output non-flag parameters.
70
71--no-flags::
72 Do not output flag parameters.
73
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74Options for Output
75~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
76
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77--default <arg>::
78 If there is no parameter given by the user, use `<arg>`
79 instead.
80
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81--prefix <arg>::
82 Behave as if 'git rev-parse' was invoked from the `<arg>`
83 subdirectory of the working tree. Any relative filenames are
84 resolved as if they are prefixed by `<arg>` and will be printed
85 in that form.
86+
87This can be used to convert arguments to a command run in a subdirectory
88so that they can still be used after moving to the top-level of the
89repository. For example:
90+
91----
92prefix=$(git rev-parse --show-prefix)
93cd "$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel)"
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94# rev-parse provides the -- needed for 'set'
95eval "set $(git rev-parse --sq --prefix "$prefix" -- "$@")"
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96----
97
5077fa9c 98--verify::
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99 Verify that exactly one parameter is provided, and that it
100 can be turned into a raw 20-byte SHA-1 that can be used to
101 access the object database. If so, emit it to the standard
102 output; otherwise, error out.
103+
104If you want to make sure that the output actually names an object in
105your object database and/or can be used as a specific type of object
b50bfb8f 106you require, you can add the `^{type}` peeling operator to the parameter.
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107For example, `git rev-parse "$VAR^{commit}"` will make sure `$VAR`
108names an existing object that is a commit-ish (i.e. a commit, or an
109annotated tag that points at a commit). To make sure that `$VAR`
110names an existing object of any type, `git rev-parse "$VAR^{object}"`
111can be used.
5077fa9c 112
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113-q::
114--quiet::
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115 Only meaningful in `--verify` mode. Do not output an error
116 message if the first argument is not a valid object name;
117 instead exit with non-zero status silently.
56625df7 118 SHA-1s for valid object names are printed to stdout on success.
b1b35969 119
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120--sq::
121 Usually the output is made one line per flag and
122 parameter. This option makes output a single line,
123 properly quoted for consumption by shell. Useful when
124 you expect your parameter to contain whitespaces and
125 newlines (e.g. when using pickaxe `-S` with
4cacbf67 126 'git diff-{asterisk}'). In contrast to the `--sq-quote` option,
50325377 127 the command input is still interpreted as usual.
5077fa9c 128
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129--short[=length]::
130 Same as `--verify` but shortens the object name to a unique
131 prefix with at least `length` characters. The minimum length
132 is 4, the default is the effective value of the `core.abbrev`
133 configuration variable (see linkgit:git-config[1]).
134
5077fa9c 135--not::
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136 When showing object names, prefix them with '{caret}' and
137 strip '{caret}' prefix from the object names that already have
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138 one.
139
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140--abbrev-ref[=(strict|loose)]::
141 A non-ambiguous short name of the objects name.
142 The option core.warnAmbiguousRefs is used to select the strict
143 abbreviation mode.
144
5077fa9c 145--symbolic::
d5fa1f1a 146 Usually the object names are output in SHA-1 form (with
babfaba2 147 possible '{caret}' prefix); this option makes them output in a
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148 form as close to the original input as possible.
149
a6d97d49 150--symbolic-full-name::
1c262bb7 151 This is similar to --symbolic, but it omits input that
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152 are not refs (i.e. branch or tag names; or more
153 explicitly disambiguating "heads/master" form, when you
154 want to name the "master" branch when there is an
155 unfortunately named tag "master"), and show them as full
156 refnames (e.g. "refs/heads/master").
5077fa9c 157
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158Options for Objects
159~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
957d7406 160
5077fa9c 161--all::
cc1b8d8b 162 Show all refs found in `refs/`.
5077fa9c 163
b09fe971 164--branches[=pattern]::
b09fe971 165--tags[=pattern]::
b09fe971 166--remotes[=pattern]::
e2b53e58 167 Show all branches, tags, or remote-tracking branches,
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168 respectively (i.e., refs found in `refs/heads`,
169 `refs/tags`, or `refs/remotes`, respectively).
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170+
171If a `pattern` is given, only refs matching the given shell glob are
172shown. If the pattern does not contain a globbing character (`?`,
6cf378f0 173`*`, or `[`), it is turned into a prefix match by appending `/*`.
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174
175--glob=pattern::
176 Show all refs matching the shell glob pattern `pattern`. If
177 the pattern does not start with `refs/`, this is automatically
178 prepended. If the pattern does not contain a globbing
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179 character (`?`, `*`, or `[`), it is turned into a prefix
180 match by appending `/*`.
a62be77f 181
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182--exclude=<glob-pattern>::
183 Do not include refs matching '<glob-pattern>' that the next `--all`,
184 `--branches`, `--tags`, `--remotes`, or `--glob` would otherwise
185 consider. Repetitions of this option accumulate exclusion patterns
186 up to the next `--all`, `--branches`, `--tags`, `--remotes`, or
187 `--glob` option (other options or arguments do not clear
f745acb0 188 accumulated patterns).
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189+
190The patterns given should not begin with `refs/heads`, `refs/tags`, or
191`refs/remotes` when applied to `--branches`, `--tags`, or `--remotes`,
192respectively, and they must begin with `refs/` when applied to `--glob`
193or `--all`. If a trailing '/{asterisk}' is intended, it must be given
194explicitly.
195
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196--disambiguate=<prefix>::
197 Show every object whose name begins with the given prefix.
198 The <prefix> must be at least 4 hexadecimal digits long to
199 avoid listing each and every object in the repository by
200 mistake.
7cceca5c 201
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202Options for Files
203~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
7fc9d69f 204
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205--local-env-vars::
206 List the GIT_* environment variables that are local to the
207 repository (e.g. GIT_DIR or GIT_WORK_TREE, but not GIT_EDITOR).
208 Only the names of the variables are listed, not their value,
209 even if they are set.
5f94c730 210
735d80b3 211--git-dir::
80d868b0 212 Show `$GIT_DIR` if defined. Otherwise show the path to
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213 the .git directory. The path shown, when relative, is
214 relative to the current working directory.
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215+
216If `$GIT_DIR` is not defined and the current directory
2de9b711 217is not detected to lie in a Git repository or work tree
80d868b0 218print a message to stderr and exit with nonzero status.
735d80b3 219
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220--absolute-git-dir::
221 Like `--git-dir`, but its output is always the canonicalized
222 absolute path.
223
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224--git-common-dir::
225 Show `$GIT_COMMON_DIR` if defined, else `$GIT_DIR`.
226
c9bf7be2 227--is-inside-git-dir::
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228 When the current working directory is below the repository
229 directory print "true", otherwise "false".
230
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231--is-inside-work-tree::
232 When the current working directory is inside the work tree of the
233 repository print "true", otherwise "false".
234
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235--is-bare-repository::
236 When the repository is bare print "true", otherwise "false".
c9bf7be2 237
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238--resolve-git-dir <path>::
239 Check if <path> is a valid repository or a gitfile that
240 points at a valid repository, and print the location of the
241 repository. If <path> is a gitfile then the resolved path
242 to the real repository is printed.
94c8ccaa 243
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244--git-path <path>::
245 Resolve "$GIT_DIR/<path>" and takes other path relocation
246 variables such as $GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY,
247 $GIT_INDEX_FILE... into account. For example, if
248 $GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY is set to /foo/bar then "git rev-parse
249 --git-path objects/abc" returns /foo/bar/abc.
250
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251--show-cdup::
252 When the command is invoked from a subdirectory, show the
253 path of the top-level directory relative to the current
254 directory (typically a sequence of "../", or an empty string).
255
256--show-prefix::
257 When the command is invoked from a subdirectory, show the
258 path of the current directory relative to the top-level
259 directory.
260
261--show-toplevel::
262 Show the absolute path of the top-level directory.
263
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264--show-superproject-working-tree
265 Show the absolute path of the root of the superproject's
266 working tree (if exists) that uses the current repository as
267 its submodule. Outputs nothing if the current repository is
268 not used as a submodule by any project.
269
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270--shared-index-path::
271 Show the path to the shared index file in split index mode, or
272 empty if not in split-index mode.
273
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274Other Options
275~~~~~~~~~~~~~
735d80b3 276
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277--since=datestring::
278--after=datestring::
483bc4f0 279 Parse the date string, and output the corresponding
0b444cdb 280 --max-age= parameter for 'git rev-list'.
a3114b34 281
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282--until=datestring::
283--before=datestring::
483bc4f0 284 Parse the date string, and output the corresponding
0b444cdb 285 --min-age= parameter for 'git rev-list'.
a3114b34 286
7fc9d69f 287<args>...::
5077fa9c 288 Flags and parameters to be parsed.
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289
290
5a8f3117 291include::revisions.txt[]
be4c7014 292
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293PARSEOPT
294--------
295
0b444cdb 296In `--parseopt` mode, 'git rev-parse' helps massaging options to bring to shell
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297scripts the same facilities C builtins have. It works as an option normalizer
298(e.g. splits single switches aggregate values), a bit like `getopt(1)` does.
299
300It takes on the standard input the specification of the options to parse and
ac2e1e63 301understand, and echoes on the standard output a string suitable for `sh(1)` `eval`
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302to replace the arguments with normalized ones. In case of error, it outputs
303usage on the standard error stream, and exits with code 129.
304
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305Note: Make sure you quote the result when passing it to `eval`. See
306below for an example.
307
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308Input Format
309~~~~~~~~~~~~
310
0b444cdb 311'git rev-parse --parseopt' input format is fully text based. It has two parts,
21d47835 312separated by a line that contains only `--`. The lines before the separator
9bab5b60 313(should be one or more) are used for the usage.
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314The lines after the separator describe the options.
315
316Each line of options has this format:
317
318------------
e703d711 319<opt-spec><flags>*<arg-hint>? SP+ help LF
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320------------
321
e703d711 322`<opt-spec>`::
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323 its format is the short option character, then the long option name
324 separated by a comma. Both parts are not required, though at least one
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325 is necessary. May not contain any of the `<flags>` characters.
326 `h,help`, `dry-run` and `f` are examples of correct `<opt-spec>`.
21d47835 327
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328`<flags>`::
329 `<flags>` are of `*`, `=`, `?` or `!`.
330 * Use `=` if the option takes an argument.
331
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332 * Use `?` to mean that the option takes an optional argument. You
333 probably want to use the `--stuck-long` mode to be able to
334 unambiguously parse the optional argument.
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335
336 * Use `*` to mean that this option should not be listed in the usage
337 generated for the `-h` argument. It's shown for `--help-all` as
a5af0e2c 338 documented in linkgit:gitcli[7].
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339
340 * Use `!` to not make the corresponding negated long option available.
21d47835 341
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342`<arg-hint>`::
343 `<arg-hint>`, if specified, is used as a name of the argument in the
344 help output, for options that take arguments. `<arg-hint>` is
345 terminated by the first whitespace. It is customary to use a
346 dash to separate words in a multi-word argument hint.
9bab5b60 347
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348The remainder of the line, after stripping the spaces, is used
349as the help associated to the option.
350
351Blank lines are ignored, and lines that don't match this specification are used
352as option group headers (start the line with a space to create such
353lines on purpose).
354
355Example
356~~~~~~~
357
358------------
359OPTS_SPEC="\
360some-command [options] <args>...
361
362some-command does foo and bar!
363--
364h,help show the help
365
366foo some nifty option --foo
367bar= some cool option --bar with an argument
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368baz=arg another cool option --baz with a named argument
369qux?path qux may take a path argument but has meaning by itself
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370
371 An option group Header
372C? option C with an optional argument"
373
ac2e1e63 374eval "$(echo "$OPTS_SPEC" | git rev-parse --parseopt -- "$@" || echo exit $?)"
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375------------
376
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377
378Usage text
379~~~~~~~~~~
380
381When `"$@"` is `-h` or `--help` in the above example, the following
382usage text would be shown:
383
384------------
385usage: some-command [options] <args>...
386
387 some-command does foo and bar!
388
389 -h, --help show the help
390 --foo some nifty option --foo
391 --bar ... some cool option --bar with an argument
a2df5211 392 --baz <arg> another cool option --baz with a named argument
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393 --qux[=<path>] qux may take a path argument but has meaning by itself
394
395An option group Header
396 -C[...] option C with an optional argument
397------------
398
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399SQ-QUOTE
400--------
401
0b444cdb 402In `--sq-quote` mode, 'git rev-parse' echoes on the standard output a
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403single line suitable for `sh(1)` `eval`. This line is made by
404normalizing the arguments following `--sq-quote`. Nothing other than
405quoting the arguments is done.
406
407If you want command input to still be interpreted as usual by
0b444cdb 408'git rev-parse' before the output is shell quoted, see the `--sq`
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409option.
410
411Example
412~~~~~~~
413
414------------
415$ cat >your-git-script.sh <<\EOF
416#!/bin/sh
417args=$(git rev-parse --sq-quote "$@") # quote user-supplied arguments
418command="git frotz -n24 $args" # and use it inside a handcrafted
419 # command line
420eval "$command"
421EOF
422
423$ sh your-git-script.sh "a b'c"
424------------
425
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426EXAMPLES
427--------
428
429* Print the object name of the current commit:
430+
431------------
432$ git rev-parse --verify HEAD
433------------
434
435* Print the commit object name from the revision in the $REV shell variable:
436+
437------------
2db60670 438$ git rev-parse --verify $REV^{commit}
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439------------
440+
441This will error out if $REV is empty or not a valid revision.
442
2db60670 443* Similar to above:
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444+
445------------
446$ git rev-parse --default master --verify $REV
447------------
448+
449but if $REV is empty, the commit object name from master will be printed.
450
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451GIT
452---
9e1f0a85 453Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite