Documentation/git-notes.txt

   1 git-notes(1)
   2 ============
   3
   4 NAME
   5 ----
   6 git-notes - Add or inspect object notes
   7
   8 SYNOPSIS
   9 --------
  10 [verse]
  11 'git notes' [list [<object>]]
  12 'git notes' add [-f] [--allow-empty] [-F <file> | -m <msg> | (-c | -C) <object>] [<object>]
  13 'git notes' copy [-f] ( --stdin | <from-object> [<to-object>] )
  14 'git notes' append [--allow-empty] [-F <file> | -m <msg> | (-c | -C) <object>] [<object>]
  15 'git notes' edit [--allow-empty] [<object>]
  16 'git notes' show [<object>]
  17 'git notes' merge [-v | -q] [-s <strategy> ] <notes-ref>
  18 'git notes' merge --commit [-v | -q]
  19 'git notes' merge --abort [-v | -q]
  20 'git notes' remove [--ignore-missing] [--stdin] [<object>...]
  21 'git notes' prune [-n] [-v]
  22 'git notes' get-ref
  23
  24
  25 DESCRIPTION
  26 -----------
  27 Adds, removes, or reads notes attached to objects, without touching
  28 the objects themselves.
  29
  30 By default, notes are saved to and read from `refs/notes/commits`, but
  31 this default can be overridden.  See the OPTIONS, CONFIGURATION, and
  32 ENVIRONMENT sections below.  If this ref does not exist, it will be
  33 quietly created when it is first needed to store a note.
  34
  35 A typical use of notes is to supplement a commit message without
  36 changing the commit itself. Notes can be shown by 'git log' along with
  37 the original commit message. To distinguish these notes from the
  38 message stored in the commit object, the notes are indented like the
  39 message, after an unindented line saying "Notes (<refname>):" (or
  40 "Notes:" for `refs/notes/commits`).
  41
  42 Notes can also be added to patches prepared with `git format-patch` by
  43 using the `--notes` option. Such notes are added as a patch commentary
  44 after a three dash separator line.
  45
  46 To change which notes are shown by 'git log', see the
  47 "notes.displayRef" discussion in <<CONFIGURATION>>.
  48
  49 See the "notes.rewrite.<command>" configuration for a way to carry
  50 notes across commands that rewrite commits.
  51
  52
  53 SUBCOMMANDS
  54 -----------
  55
  56 list::
  57         List the notes object for a given object. If no object is
  58         given, show a list of all note objects and the objects they
  59         annotate (in the format "<note object> <annotated object>").
  60         This is the default subcommand if no subcommand is given.
  61
  62 add::
  63         Add notes for a given object (defaults to HEAD). Abort if the
  64         object already has notes (use `-f` to overwrite existing notes).
  65         However, if you're using `add` interactively (using an editor
  66         to supply the notes contents), then - instead of aborting -
  67         the existing notes will be opened in the editor (like the `edit`
  68         subcommand).
  69
  70 copy::
  71         Copy the notes for the first object onto the second object (defaults to
  72         HEAD). Abort if the second object already has notes, or if the first
  73         object has none (use -f to overwrite existing notes to the
  74         second object). This subcommand is equivalent to:
  75         `git notes add [-f] -C $(git notes list <from-object>) <to-object>`
  76 +
  77 In `--stdin` mode, take lines in the format
  78 +
  79 ----------
  80 <from-object> SP <to-object> [ SP <rest> ] LF
  81 ----------
  82 +
  83 on standard input, and copy the notes from each <from-object> to its
  84 corresponding <to-object>.  (The optional `<rest>` is ignored so that
  85 the command can read the input given to the `post-rewrite` hook.)
  86
  87 append::
  88         Append to the notes of an existing object (defaults to HEAD).
  89         Creates a new notes object if needed.
  90
  91 edit::
  92         Edit the notes for a given object (defaults to HEAD).
  93
  94 show::
  95         Show the notes for a given object (defaults to HEAD).
  96
  97 merge::
  98         Merge the given notes ref into the current notes ref.
  99         This will try to merge the changes made by the given
 100         notes ref (called "remote") since the merge-base (if
 101         any) into the current notes ref (called "local").
 102 +
 103 If conflicts arise and a strategy for automatically resolving
 104 conflicting notes (see the "NOTES MERGE STRATEGIES" section) is not given,
 105 the "manual" resolver is used. This resolver checks out the
 106 conflicting notes in a special worktree (`.git/NOTES_MERGE_WORKTREE`),
 107 and instructs the user to manually resolve the conflicts there.
 108 When done, the user can either finalize the merge with
 109 'git notes merge --commit', or abort the merge with
 110 'git notes merge --abort'.
 111
 112 remove::
 113         Remove the notes for given objects (defaults to HEAD). When
 114         giving zero or one object from the command line, this is
 115         equivalent to specifying an empty note message to
 116         the `edit` subcommand.
 117
 118 prune::
 119         Remove all notes for non-existing/unreachable objects.
 120
 121 get-ref::
 122         Print the current notes ref. This provides an easy way to
 123         retrieve the current notes ref (e.g. from scripts).
 124
 125 OPTIONS
 126 -------
 127 -f::
 128 --force::
 129         When adding notes to an object that already has notes,
 130         overwrite the existing notes (instead of aborting).
 131
 132 -m <msg>::
 133 --message=<msg>::
 134         Use the given note message (instead of prompting).
 135         If multiple `-m` options are given, their values
 136         are concatenated as separate paragraphs.
 137         Lines starting with `#` and empty lines other than a
 138         single line between paragraphs will be stripped out.
 139
 140 -F <file>::
 141 --file=<file>::
 142         Take the note message from the given file.  Use '-' to
 143         read the note message from the standard input.
 144         Lines starting with `#` and empty lines other than a
 145         single line between paragraphs will be stripped out.
 146
 147 -C <object>::
 148 --reuse-message=<object>::
 149         Take the given blob object (for example, another note) as the
 150         note message. (Use `git notes copy <object>` instead to
 151         copy notes between objects.)
 152
 153 -c <object>::
 154 --reedit-message=<object>::
 155         Like '-C', but with `-c` the editor is invoked, so that
 156         the user can further edit the note message.
 157
 158 --allow-empty::
 159         Allow an empty note object to be stored. The default behavior is
 160         to automatically remove empty notes.
 161
 162 --ref <ref>::
 163         Manipulate the notes tree in <ref>.  This overrides
 164         `GIT_NOTES_REF` and the "core.notesRef" configuration.  The ref
 165         specifies the full refname when it begins with `refs/notes/`; when it
 166         begins with `notes/`, `refs/` and otherwise `refs/notes/` is prefixed
 167         to form a full name of the ref.
 168
 169 --ignore-missing::
 170         Do not consider it an error to request removing notes from an
 171         object that does not have notes attached to it.
 172
 173 --stdin::
 174         Also read the object names to remove notes from the standard
 175         input (there is no reason you cannot combine this with object
 176         names from the command line).
 177
 178 -n::
 179 --dry-run::
 180         Do not remove anything; just report the object names whose notes
 181         would be removed.
 182
 183 -s <strategy>::
 184 --strategy=<strategy>::
 185         When merging notes, resolve notes conflicts using the given
 186         strategy. The following strategies are recognized: "manual"
 187         (default), "ours", "theirs", "union" and "cat_sort_uniq".
 188         This option overrides the "notes.mergeStrategy" configuration setting.
 189         See the "NOTES MERGE STRATEGIES" section below for more
 190         information on each notes merge strategy.
 191
 192 --commit::
 193         Finalize an in-progress 'git notes merge'. Use this option
 194         when you have resolved the conflicts that 'git notes merge'
 195         stored in .git/NOTES_MERGE_WORKTREE. This amends the partial
 196         merge commit created by 'git notes merge' (stored in
 197         .git/NOTES_MERGE_PARTIAL) by adding the notes in
 198         .git/NOTES_MERGE_WORKTREE. The notes ref stored in the
 199         .git/NOTES_MERGE_REF symref is updated to the resulting commit.
 200
 201 --abort::
 202         Abort/reset an in-progress 'git notes merge', i.e. a notes merge
 203         with conflicts. This simply removes all files related to the
 204         notes merge.
 205
 206 -q::
 207 --quiet::
 208         When merging notes, operate quietly.
 209
 210 -v::
 211 --verbose::
 212         When merging notes, be more verbose.
 213         When pruning notes, report all object names whose notes are
 214         removed.
 215
 216
 217 DISCUSSION
 218 ----------
 219
 220 Commit notes are blobs containing extra information about an object
 221 (usually information to supplement a commit's message).  These blobs
 222 are taken from notes refs.  A notes ref is usually a branch which
 223 contains "files" whose paths are the object names for the objects
 224 they describe, with some directory separators included for performance
 225 reasons footnote:[Permitted pathnames have the form
 226 'bf'`/`'fe'`/`'30'`/`'...'`/`'680d5a...': a sequence of directory
 227 names of two hexadecimal digits each followed by a filename with the
 228 rest of the object ID.].
 229
 230 Every notes change creates a new commit at the specified notes ref.
 231 You can therefore inspect the history of the notes by invoking, e.g.,
 232 `git log -p notes/commits`.  Currently the commit message only records
 233 which operation triggered the update, and the commit authorship is
 234 determined according to the usual rules (see linkgit:git-commit[1]).
 235 These details may change in the future.
 236
 237 It is also permitted for a notes ref to point directly to a tree
 238 object, in which case the history of the notes can be read with
 239 `git log -p -g <refname>`.
 240
 241
 242 NOTES MERGE STRATEGIES
 243 ----------------------
 244
 245 The default notes merge strategy is "manual", which checks out
 246 conflicting notes in a special work tree for resolving notes conflicts
 247 (`.git/NOTES_MERGE_WORKTREE`), and instructs the user to resolve the
 248 conflicts in that work tree.
 249 When done, the user can either finalize the merge with
 250 'git notes merge --commit', or abort the merge with
 251 'git notes merge --abort'.
 252
 253 Users may select an automated merge strategy from among the following using
 254 either -s/--strategy option or configuring notes.mergeStrategy accordingly:
 255
 256 "ours" automatically resolves conflicting notes in favor of the local
 257 version (i.e. the current notes ref).
 258
 259 "theirs" automatically resolves notes conflicts in favor of the remote
 260 version (i.e. the given notes ref being merged into the current notes
 261 ref).
 262
 263 "union" automatically resolves notes conflicts by concatenating the
 264 local and remote versions.
 265
 266 "cat_sort_uniq" is similar to "union", but in addition to concatenating
 267 the local and remote versions, this strategy also sorts the resulting
 268 lines, and removes duplicate lines from the result. This is equivalent
 269 to applying the "cat | sort | uniq" shell pipeline to the local and
 270 remote versions. This strategy is useful if the notes follow a line-based
 271 format where one wants to avoid duplicated lines in the merge result.
 272 Note that if either the local or remote version contain duplicate lines
 273 prior to the merge, these will also be removed by this notes merge
 274 strategy.
 275
 276
 277 EXAMPLES
 278 --------
 279
 280 You can use notes to add annotations with information that was not
 281 available at the time a commit was written.
 282
 283 ------------
 284 $ git notes add -m 'Tested-by: Johannes Sixt <j6t@kdbg.org>' 72a144e2
 285 $ git show -s 72a144e
 286 [...]
 287     Signed-off-by: Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>
 288
 289 Notes:
 290     Tested-by: Johannes Sixt <j6t@kdbg.org>
 291 ------------
 292
 293 In principle, a note is a regular Git blob, and any kind of
 294 (non-)format is accepted.  You can binary-safely create notes from
 295 arbitrary files using 'git hash-object':
 296
 297 ------------
 298 $ cc *.c
 299 $ blob=$(git hash-object -w a.out)
 300 $ git notes --ref=built add --allow-empty -C "$blob" HEAD
 301 ------------
 302
 303 (You cannot simply use `git notes --ref=built add -F a.out HEAD`
 304 because that is not binary-safe.)
 305 Of course, it doesn't make much sense to display non-text-format notes
 306 with 'git log', so if you use such notes, you'll probably need to write
 307 some special-purpose tools to do something useful with them.
 308
 309
 310 [[CONFIGURATION]]
 311 CONFIGURATION
 312 -------------
 313
 314 core.notesRef::
 315         Notes ref to read and manipulate instead of
 316         `refs/notes/commits`.  Must be an unabbreviated ref name.
 317         This setting can be overridden through the environment and
 318         command line.
 319
 320 include::includes/cmd-config-section-rest.txt[]
 321
 322 include::config/notes.txt[]
 323
 324
 325 ENVIRONMENT
 326 -----------
 327
 328 `GIT_NOTES_REF`::
 329         Which ref to manipulate notes from, instead of `refs/notes/commits`.
 330         This overrides the `core.notesRef` setting.
 331
 332 `GIT_NOTES_DISPLAY_REF`::
 333         Colon-delimited list of refs or globs indicating which refs,
 334         in addition to the default from `core.notesRef` or
 335         `GIT_NOTES_REF`, to read notes from when showing commit
 336         messages.
 337         This overrides the `notes.displayRef` setting.
 338 +
 339 A warning will be issued for refs that do not exist, but a glob that
 340 does not match any refs is silently ignored.
 341
 342 `GIT_NOTES_REWRITE_MODE`::
 343         When copying notes during a rewrite, what to do if the target
 344         commit already has a note.
 345         Must be one of `overwrite`, `concatenate`, `cat_sort_uniq`, or `ignore`.
 346         This overrides the `core.rewriteMode` setting.
 347
 348 `GIT_NOTES_REWRITE_REF`::
 349         When rewriting commits, which notes to copy from the original
 350         to the rewritten commit.  Must be a colon-delimited list of
 351         refs or globs.
 352 +
 353 If not set in the environment, the list of notes to copy depends
 354 on the `notes.rewrite.<command>` and `notes.rewriteRef` settings.
 355
 356 GIT
 357 ---
 358 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite