Documentation/git.txt

   1 git(7)
   2 ======
   3
   4 NAME
   5 ----
   6 git - the stupid content tracker
   7
   8
   9 SYNOPSIS
  10 --------
  11 [verse]
  12 'git' [--version] [--exec-path[=GIT_EXEC_PATH]] [-p|--paginate]
  13     [--bare] [--git-dir=GIT_DIR] [--work-tree=GIT_WORK_TREE]
  14     [--help] COMMAND [ARGS]
  15
  16 DESCRIPTION
  17 -----------
  18 Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an
  19 unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations
  20 and full access to internals.
  21
  22 See this link:tutorial.html[tutorial] to get started, then see
  23 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git] for a useful minimum set of commands, and
  24 "man git-commandname" for documentation of each command.  CVS users may
  25 also want to read link:cvs-migration.html[CVS migration].  See
  26 link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] for a more in-depth
  27 introduction.
  28
  29 The COMMAND is either a name of a Git command (see below) or an alias
  30 as defined in the configuration file (see gitlink:git-config[1]).
  31
  32 Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest git
  33 documentation can be viewed at
  34 `http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/`.
  35
  36 ifdef::stalenotes[]
  37 [NOTE]
  38 ============
  39
  40 You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly
  41 unreleased) version of git, that is available from 'master'
  42 branch of the `git.git` repository.
  43 Documentation for older releases are available here:
  44
  45 * link:v1.5.2.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.4]
  46
  47 * release notes for
  48   link:RelNotes-1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
  49   link:RelNotes-1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
  50   link:RelNotes-1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
  51   link:RelNotes-1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
  52   link:RelNotes-1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
  53
  54 * link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
  55
  56 * release notes for
  57   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
  58   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
  59   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
  60   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
  61   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
  62   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
  63   link:RelNotes-1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
  64
  65 * link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
  66
  67 * release notes for
  68   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
  69   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
  70   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
  71   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
  72   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
  73   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
  74   link:RelNotes-1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
  75
  76 * documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
  77   link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
  78   link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
  79   link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
  80
  81 ============
  82
  83 endif::stalenotes[]
  84
  85 OPTIONS
  86 -------
  87 --version::
  88         Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
  89
  90 --help::
  91         Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
  92         commands.  If a git command is named this option will bring up
  93         the man-page for that command. If the option '--all' or '-a' is
  94         given then all available commands are printed.
  95
  96 --exec-path::
  97         Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
  98         This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
  99         environment variable. If no path is given 'git' will print
 100         the current setting and then exit.
 101
 102 -p|--paginate::
 103         Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER).
 104
 105 --git-dir=<path>::
 106         Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
 107         setting the GIT_DIR environment variable.
 108
 109 --work-tree=<path>::
 110         Set the path to the working tree.  The value will not be
 111         used in combination with repositories found automatically in
 112         a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
 113         This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
 114         environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
 115         variable.
 116
 117 --bare::
 118         Same as --git-dir=`pwd`.
 119
 120 FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
 121 ---------------------
 122
 123 See the references above to get started using git.  The following is
 124 probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
 125
 126 The <<Discussion,Discussion>> section below and the
 127 link:core-tutorial.html[Core tutorial] both provide introductions to the
 128 underlying git architecture.
 129
 130 See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
 131 examples.
 132
 133 GIT COMMANDS
 134 ------------
 135
 136 We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
 137 ("plumbing") commands.
 138
 139 High-level commands (porcelain)
 140 -------------------------------
 141
 142 We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
 143 ancillary user utilities.
 144
 145 Main porcelain commands
 146 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 147
 148 include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
 149
 150 Ancillary Commands
 151 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 152 Manipulators:
 153
 154 include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
 155
 156 Interrogators:
 157
 158 include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
 159
 160
 161 Interacting with Others
 162 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 163
 164 These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
 165 people via patch over e-mail.
 166
 167 include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
 168
 169
 170 Low-level commands (plumbing)
 171 -----------------------------
 172
 173 Although git includes its
 174 own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
 175 development of alternative porcelains.  Developers of such porcelains
 176 might start by reading about gitlink:git-update-index[1] and
 177 gitlink:git-read-tree[1].
 178
 179 The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
 180 to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
 181 than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
 182 primarily for scripted use.  The interface to Porcelain commands
 183 on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
 184 end user experience.
 185
 186 The following description divides
 187 the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
 188 the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
 189 compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
 190 repositories.
 191
 192
 193 Manipulation commands
 194 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 195
 196 include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
 197
 198
 199 Interrogation commands
 200 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 201
 202 include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
 203
 204 In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
 205 the working tree.
 206
 207
 208 Synching repositories
 209 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 210
 211 include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
 212
 213 The following are helper programs used by the above; end users
 214 typically do not use them directly.
 215
 216 include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
 217
 218
 219 Internal helper commands
 220 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 221
 222 These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
 223 users typically do not use them directly.
 224
 225 include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
 226
 227
 228 Configuration Mechanism
 229 -----------------------
 230
 231 Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
 232 is used to hold per-repository configuration options.  It is a
 233 simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
 234 people.  Here is an example:
 235
 236 ------------
 237 #
 238 # A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
 239 #
 240
 241 ; core variables
 242 [core]
 243         ; Don't trust file modes
 244         filemode = false
 245
 246 ; user identity
 247 [user]
 248         name = "Junio C Hamano"
 249         email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
 250
 251 ------------
 252
 253 Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
 254 their operation accordingly.
 255
 256
 257 Identifier Terminology
 258 ----------------------
 259 <object>::
 260         Indicates the object name for any type of object.
 261
 262 <blob>::
 263         Indicates a blob object name.
 264
 265 <tree>::
 266         Indicates a tree object name.
 267
 268 <commit>::
 269         Indicates a commit object name.
 270
 271 <tree-ish>::
 272         Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name.  A
 273         command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 274         operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
 275         <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
 276
 277 <commit-ish>::
 278         Indicates a commit or tag object name.  A
 279         command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
 280         operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
 281         <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
 282
 283 <type>::
 284         Indicates that an object type is required.
 285         Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
 286
 287 <file>::
 288         Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
 289         root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
 290
 291 Symbolic Identifiers
 292 --------------------
 293 Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
 294 symbolic notation:
 295
 296 HEAD::
 297         indicates the head of the current branch (i.e. the
 298         contents of `$GIT_DIR/HEAD`).
 299
 300 <tag>::
 301         a valid tag 'name'
 302         (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag>`).
 303
 304 <head>::
 305         a valid head 'name'
 306         (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head>`).
 307
 308 For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
 309 "SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in gitlink:git-rev-parse[1].
 310
 311
 312 File/Directory Structure
 313 ------------------------
 314
 315 Please see link:repository-layout.html[repository layout] document.
 316
 317 Read link:hooks.html[hooks] for more details about each hook.
 318
 319 Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
 320 `$GIT_DIR`.
 321
 322
 323 Terminology
 324 -----------
 325 Please see link:glossary.html[glossary] document.
 326
 327
 328 Environment Variables
 329 ---------------------
 330 Various git commands use the following environment variables:
 331
 332 The git Repository
 333 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 334 These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
 335 is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
 336 git so take care if using Cogito etc.
 337
 338 'GIT_INDEX_FILE'::
 339         This environment allows the specification of an alternate
 340         index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
 341         is used.
 342
 343 'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
 344         If the object storage directory is specified via this
 345         environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
 346         underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
 347         directory is used.
 348
 349 'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
 350         Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
 351         archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
 352         specifies a ":" separated list of git object directories which
 353         can be used to search for git objects. New objects will not be
 354         written to these directories.
 355
 356 'GIT_DIR'::
 357         If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
 358         specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
 359         for the base of the repository.
 360
 361 'GIT_WORK_TREE'::
 362         Set the path to the working tree.  The value will not be
 363         used in combination with repositories found automatically in
 364         a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
 365         This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
 366         option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
 367
 368 git Commits
 369 ~~~~~~~~~~~
 370 'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME'::
 371 'GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL'::
 372 'GIT_AUTHOR_DATE'::
 373 'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
 374 'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
 375 'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
 376 'EMAIL'::
 377         see gitlink:git-commit-tree[1]
 378
 379 git Diffs
 380 ~~~~~~~~~
 381 'GIT_DIFF_OPTS'::
 382         Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
 383         number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
 384         This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
 385         value passed on the git diff command line.
 386
 387 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
 388         When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
 389         program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
 390         described above.  For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
 391         'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
 392
 393         path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
 394 +
 395 where:
 396
 397         <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
 398                          contents of <old|new>,
 399         <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
 400         <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
 401
 402 +
 403 The file parameters can point at the user's working file
 404 (e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
 405 when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
 406 index).  'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
 407 temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
 408 +
 409 For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
 410 parameter, <path>.
 411
 412 other
 413 ~~~~~
 414 'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
 415         A number controlling the amount of output shown by
 416         the recursive merge strategy.  Overrides merge.verbosity.
 417         See gitlink:git-merge[1]
 418
 419 'GIT_PAGER'::
 420         This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
 421         to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
 422         a pager.
 423
 424 'GIT_SSH'::
 425         If this environment variable is set then gitlink:git-fetch[1]
 426         and gitlink:git-push[1] will use this command instead
 427         of `ssh` when they need to connect to a remote system.
 428         The 'GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
 429         the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
 430         shell command to execute on that remote system.
 431 +
 432 To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
 433 you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
 434 then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
 435 +
 436 Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
 437 personal `.ssh/config` file.  Please consult your ssh documentation
 438 for further details.
 439
 440 'GIT_FLUSH'::
 441         If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
 442         as git-blame (in incremental mode), git-rev-list, git-log,
 443         git-whatchanged, etc., will force a flush of the output stream
 444         after each commit-oriented record have been flushed.   If this
 445         variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
 446         using completely buffered I/O.   If this environment variable is
 447         not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
 448         based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
 449
 450 'GIT_TRACE'::
 451         If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
 452         is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
 453         stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
 454         execution and external command execution.
 455         If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
 456         and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
 457         value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
 458         trace messages into this file descriptor.
 459         Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
 460         (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
 461         as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
 462         into it.
 463
 464 Discussion[[Discussion]]
 465 ------------------------
 466 include::core-intro.txt[]
 467
 468 Authors
 469 -------
 470 * git's founding father is Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org>.
 471 * The current git nurse is Junio C Hamano <junkio@cox.net>.
 472 * The git potty was written by Andres Ericsson <ae@op5.se>.
 473 * General upbringing is handled by the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
 474
 475 Documentation
 476 --------------
 477 The documentation for git suite was started by David Greaves
 478 <david@dgreaves.com>, and later enhanced greatly by the
 479 contributors on the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
 480
 481 GIT
 482 ---
 483 Part of the gitlink:git[7] suite