1 git(1)
2 ======
4 NAME
5 ----
6 git - the stupid content tracker
9 SYNOPSIS
10 --------
11 [verse]
12 'git' [--version] [--exec-path[=<path>]] [--html-path]
13 [-p|--paginate|--no-pager] [--no-replace-objects]
14 [--bare] [--git-dir=<path>] [--work-tree=<path>]
15 [-c <name>=<value>]
16 [--help] <command> [<args>]
18 DESCRIPTION
19 -----------
20 Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an
21 unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations
22 and full access to internals.
24 See linkgit:gittutorial[7] to get started, then see
25 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git] for a useful minimum set of commands, and
26 "man git-commandname" for documentation of each command. CVS users may
27 also want to read linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7]. See
28 the link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] for a more in-depth
29 introduction.
31 The '<command>' is either a name of a Git command (see below) or an alias
32 as defined in the configuration file (see linkgit:git-config[1]).
34 Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest git
35 documentation can be viewed at
36 `http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/`.
38 ifdef::stalenotes[]
39 [NOTE]
40 ============
42 You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly
43 unreleased) version of git, that is available from 'master'
44 branch of the `git.git` repository.
45 Documentation for older releases are available here:
47 * link:v1.7.3.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.3.3]
49 * release notes for
50 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.3.txt[1.7.3.3],
51 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.2.txt[1.7.3.2],
52 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.1.txt[1.7.3.1],
53 link:RelNotes/1.7.3.txt[1.7.3].
55 * link:v1.7.2.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.2.4]
57 * release notes for
58 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.4.txt[1.7.2.4],
59 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.3.txt[1.7.2.3],
60 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.2.txt[1.7.2.2],
61 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.1.txt[1.7.2.1],
62 link:RelNotes/1.7.2.txt[1.7.2].
64 * link:v1.7.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.1.3]
66 * release notes for
67 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.3.txt[1.7.1.3],
68 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.2.txt[1.7.1.2],
69 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.1.txt[1.7.1.1],
70 link:RelNotes/1.7.1.txt[1.7.1].
72 * link:v1.7.0.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.7.0.8]
74 * release notes for
75 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.8.txt[1.7.0.8],
76 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.7.txt[1.7.0.7],
77 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.6.txt[1.7.0.6],
78 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.5.txt[1.7.0.5],
79 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.4.txt[1.7.0.4],
80 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.3.txt[1.7.0.3],
81 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.2.txt[1.7.0.2],
82 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.1.txt[1.7.0.1],
83 link:RelNotes/1.7.0.txt[1.7.0].
85 * link:v1.6.6.2/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.6.2]
87 * release notes for
88 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.2.txt[1.6.6.2],
89 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.1.txt[1.6.6.1],
90 link:RelNotes/1.6.6.txt[1.6.6].
92 * link:v1.6.5.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.5.8]
94 * release notes for
95 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.8.txt[1.6.5.8],
96 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.7.txt[1.6.5.7],
97 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.6.txt[1.6.5.6],
98 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.5.txt[1.6.5.5],
99 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.4.txt[1.6.5.4],
100 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.3.txt[1.6.5.3],
101 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.2.txt[1.6.5.2],
102 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.1.txt[1.6.5.1],
103 link:RelNotes/1.6.5.txt[1.6.5].
105 * link:v1.6.4.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.4.4]
107 * release notes for
108 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.4.txt[1.6.4.4],
109 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.3.txt[1.6.4.3],
110 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.2.txt[1.6.4.2],
111 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.1.txt[1.6.4.1],
112 link:RelNotes/1.6.4.txt[1.6.4].
114 * link:v1.6.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.3.4]
116 * release notes for
117 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.4.txt[1.6.3.4],
118 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.3.txt[1.6.3.3],
119 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.2.txt[1.6.3.2],
120 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.1.txt[1.6.3.1],
121 link:RelNotes/1.6.3.txt[1.6.3].
123 * release notes for
124 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.5.txt[1.6.2.5],
125 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.4.txt[1.6.2.4],
126 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.3.txt[1.6.2.3],
127 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.2.txt[1.6.2.2],
128 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.1.txt[1.6.2.1],
129 link:RelNotes/1.6.2.txt[1.6.2].
131 * link:v1.6.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.1.3]
133 * release notes for
134 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.3.txt[1.6.1.3],
135 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.2.txt[1.6.1.2],
136 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.1.txt[1.6.1.1],
137 link:RelNotes/1.6.1.txt[1.6.1].
139 * link:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6]
141 * release notes for
142 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6],
143 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5],
144 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4],
145 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3],
146 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2],
147 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1],
148 link:RelNotes/1.6.0.txt[1.6.0].
150 * link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6]
152 * release notes for
153 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6],
154 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5],
155 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4],
156 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3],
157 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2],
158 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1],
159 link:RelNotes/1.5.6.txt[1.5.6].
161 * link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6]
163 * release notes for
164 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6],
165 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5],
166 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4],
167 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3],
168 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2],
169 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1],
170 link:RelNotes/1.5.5.txt[1.5.5].
172 * link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7]
174 * release notes for
175 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7],
176 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6],
177 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5],
178 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4],
179 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3],
180 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2],
181 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1],
182 link:RelNotes/1.5.4.txt[1.5.4].
184 * link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8]
186 * release notes for
187 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8],
188 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7],
189 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6],
190 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5],
191 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4],
192 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3],
193 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2],
194 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1],
195 link:RelNotes/1.5.3.txt[1.5.3].
197 * link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5]
199 * release notes for
200 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5],
201 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
202 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
203 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
204 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
205 link:RelNotes/1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
207 * link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
209 * release notes for
210 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
211 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
212 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
213 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
214 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
215 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
216 link:RelNotes/1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
218 * link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
220 * release notes for
221 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
222 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
223 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
224 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
225 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
226 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
227 link:RelNotes/1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
229 * documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
230 link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
231 link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
232 link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
234 ============
236 endif::stalenotes[]
238 OPTIONS
239 -------
240 --version::
241 Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
243 --help::
244 Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
245 commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all
246 available commands are printed. If a git command is named this
247 option will bring up the manual page for that command.
248 +
249 Other options are available to control how the manual page is
250 displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information,
251 because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git
252 help ...`.
254 -c <name>=<value>::
255 Pass a configuration parameter to the command. The value
256 given will override values from configuration files.
257 The <name> is expected in the same format as listed by
258 'git config' (subkeys separated by dots).
260 --exec-path[=<path>]::
261 Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
262 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
263 environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print
264 the current setting and then exit.
266 --html-path::
267 Print the path to wherever your git HTML documentation is installed
268 and exit.
270 -p::
271 --paginate::
272 Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER) if standard
273 output is a terminal. This overrides the `pager.<cmd>`
274 configuration options (see the "Configuration Mechanism" section
275 below).
277 --no-pager::
278 Do not pipe git output into a pager.
280 --git-dir=<path>::
281 Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
282 setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute
283 path or relative path to current working directory.
285 --work-tree=<path>::
286 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
287 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
288 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
289 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
290 environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
291 variable. It can be an absolute path or relative path to
292 the directory specified by --git-dir or GIT_DIR.
293 Note: If --git-dir or GIT_DIR are specified but none of
294 --work-tree, GIT_WORK_TREE and core.worktree is specified,
295 the current working directory is regarded as the top directory
296 of your working tree.
298 --bare::
299 Treat the repository as a bare repository. If GIT_DIR
300 environment is not set, it is set to the current working
301 directory.
303 --no-replace-objects::
304 Do not use replacement refs to replace git objects. See
305 linkgit:git-replace[1] for more information.
308 FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
309 ---------------------
311 See the references above to get started using git. The following is
312 probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
314 The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
315 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide
316 introductions to the underlying git architecture.
318 See linkgit:gitworkflows[7] for an overview of recommended workflows.
320 See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
321 examples.
323 The internals are documented in the
324 link:technical/api-index.html[GIT API documentation].
326 GIT COMMANDS
327 ------------
329 We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
330 ("plumbing") commands.
332 High-level commands (porcelain)
333 -------------------------------
335 We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
336 ancillary user utilities.
338 Main porcelain commands
339 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
341 include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
343 Ancillary Commands
344 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
345 Manipulators:
347 include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
349 Interrogators:
351 include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
354 Interacting with Others
355 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
357 These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
358 people via patch over e-mail.
360 include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
363 Low-level commands (plumbing)
364 -----------------------------
366 Although git includes its
367 own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
368 development of alternative porcelains. Developers of such porcelains
369 might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and
370 linkgit:git-read-tree[1].
372 The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
373 to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
374 than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
375 primarily for scripted use. The interface to Porcelain commands
376 on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
377 end user experience.
379 The following description divides
380 the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
381 the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
382 compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
383 repositories.
386 Manipulation commands
387 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
389 include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
392 Interrogation commands
393 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
395 include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
397 In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
398 the working tree.
401 Synching repositories
402 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
404 include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
406 The following are helper commands used by the above; end users
407 typically do not use them directly.
409 include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
412 Internal helper commands
413 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
415 These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
416 users typically do not use them directly.
418 include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
421 Configuration Mechanism
422 -----------------------
424 Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
425 is used to hold per-repository configuration options. It is a
426 simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
427 people. Here is an example:
429 ------------
430 #
431 # A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
432 #
434 ; core variables
435 [core]
436 ; Don't trust file modes
437 filemode = false
439 ; user identity
440 [user]
441 name = "Junio C Hamano"
442 email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
444 ------------
446 Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
447 their operation accordingly. See linkgit:git-config[1] for a
448 list.
451 Identifier Terminology
452 ----------------------
453 <object>::
454 Indicates the object name for any type of object.
456 <blob>::
457 Indicates a blob object name.
459 <tree>::
460 Indicates a tree object name.
462 <commit>::
463 Indicates a commit object name.
465 <tree-ish>::
466 Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name. A
467 command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
468 operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
469 <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
471 <commit-ish>::
472 Indicates a commit or tag object name. A
473 command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
474 operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
475 <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
477 <type>::
478 Indicates that an object type is required.
479 Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
481 <file>::
482 Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
483 root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
485 Symbolic Identifiers
486 --------------------
487 Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
488 symbolic notation:
490 HEAD::
491 indicates the head of the current branch (i.e. the
492 contents of `$GIT_DIR/HEAD`).
494 <tag>::
495 a valid tag 'name'
496 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag>`).
498 <head>::
499 a valid head 'name'
500 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head>`).
502 For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
503 "SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:gitrevisions[7].
506 File/Directory Structure
507 ------------------------
509 Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document.
511 Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook.
513 Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
514 `$GIT_DIR`.
517 Terminology
518 -----------
519 Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7].
522 Environment Variables
523 ---------------------
524 Various git commands use the following environment variables:
526 The git Repository
527 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
528 These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
529 is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
530 git so take care if using Cogito etc.
532 'GIT_INDEX_FILE'::
533 This environment allows the specification of an alternate
534 index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
535 is used.
537 'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
538 If the object storage directory is specified via this
539 environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
540 underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
541 directory is used.
543 'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
544 Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
545 archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
546 specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list
547 of git object directories which can be used to search for git
548 objects. New objects will not be written to these directories.
550 'GIT_DIR'::
551 If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
552 specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
553 for the base of the repository.
555 'GIT_WORK_TREE'::
556 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
557 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
558 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
559 This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
560 option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
562 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES'::
563 This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths.
564 If set, it is a list of directories that git should not chdir
565 up into while looking for a repository directory.
566 It will not exclude the current working directory or
567 a GIT_DIR set on the command line or in the environment.
568 (Useful for excluding slow-loading network directories.)
570 'GIT_DISCOVERY_ACROSS_FILESYSTEM'::
571 When run in a directory that does not have ".git" repository
572 directory, git tries to find such a directory in the parent
573 directories to find the top of the working tree, but by default it
574 does not cross filesystem boundaries. This environment variable
575 can be set to true to tell git not to stop at filesystem
576 boundaries. Like 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES', this will not affect
577 an explicit repository directory set via 'GIT_DIR' or on the
578 command line.
580 git Commits
581 ~~~~~~~~~~~
582 'GIT_AUTHOR_NAME'::
583 'GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL'::
584 'GIT_AUTHOR_DATE'::
585 'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
586 'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
587 'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
588 'EMAIL'::
589 see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1]
591 git Diffs
592 ~~~~~~~~~
593 'GIT_DIFF_OPTS'::
594 Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
595 number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
596 This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
597 value passed on the git diff command line.
599 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
600 When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
601 program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
602 described above. For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
603 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
605 path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
606 +
607 where:
609 <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
610 contents of <old|new>,
611 <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
612 <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
614 +
615 The file parameters can point at the user's working file
616 (e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
617 when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
618 index). 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
619 temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
620 +
621 For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
622 parameter, <path>.
624 other
625 ~~~~~
626 'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
627 A number controlling the amount of output shown by
628 the recursive merge strategy. Overrides merge.verbosity.
629 See linkgit:git-merge[1]
631 'GIT_PAGER'::
632 This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
633 to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
634 a pager. See also the `core.pager` option in
635 linkgit:git-config[1].
637 'GIT_SSH'::
638 If this environment variable is set then 'git fetch'
639 and 'git push' will use this command instead
640 of 'ssh' when they need to connect to a remote system.
641 The '$GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
642 the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
643 shell command to execute on that remote system.
644 +
645 To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
646 you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
647 then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
648 +
649 Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
650 personal `.ssh/config` file. Please consult your ssh documentation
651 for further details.
653 'GIT_ASKPASS'::
654 If this environment variable is set, then git commands which need to
655 acquire passwords or passphrases (e.g. for HTTP or IMAP authentication)
656 will call this program with a suitable prompt as command line argument
657 and read the password from its STDOUT. See also the 'core.askpass'
658 option in linkgit:git-config[1].
660 'GIT_FLUSH'::
661 If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
662 as 'git blame' (in incremental mode), 'git rev-list', 'git log',
663 and 'git whatchanged' will force a flush of the output stream
664 after each commit-oriented record have been flushed. If this
665 variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
666 using completely buffered I/O. If this environment variable is
667 not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
668 based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
670 'GIT_TRACE'::
671 If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
672 is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
673 stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
674 execution and external command execution.
675 If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
676 and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
677 value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
678 trace messages into this file descriptor.
679 Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
680 (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
681 as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
682 into it.
684 Discussion[[Discussion]]
685 ------------------------
687 More detail on the following is available from the
688 link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
689 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].
691 A git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"
692 subdirectory at the top level. The .git directory contains, among other
693 things, a compressed object database representing the complete history
694 of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current
695 contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such
696 as tags and branch heads.
698 The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which
699 hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up
700 directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree
701 and some number of parent commits.
703 The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or
704 "version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent
705 represents an immediately preceding step. Commits with more than one
706 parent represent merges of independent lines of development.
708 All objects are named by the SHA1 hash of their contents, normally
709 written as a string of 40 hex digits. Such names are globally unique.
710 The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing
711 just that commit. A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this
712 purpose.
714 When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for
715 efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".
717 Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history. A ref
718 may contain the SHA1 name of an object or the name of another ref. Refs
719 with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA1 name of the most
720 recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development. SHA1 names of
721 tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`. A special ref named
722 `HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.
724 The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each
725 path, a blob object and a set of attributes. The blob object represents
726 the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch. The
727 attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the
728 corresponding file in the working tree. Subsequent changes to the
729 working tree can be found by comparing these attributes. The index may
730 be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the
731 content stored in the index.
733 The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")
734 for a given pathname. These stages are used to hold the various
735 unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.
737 Authors
738 -------
739 * git's founding father is Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org>.
740 * The current git nurse is Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>.
741 * The git potty was written by Andreas Ericsson <ae@op5.se>.
742 * General upbringing is handled by the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
744 Documentation
745 --------------
746 The documentation for git suite was started by David Greaves
747 <david@dgreaves.com>, and later enhanced greatly by the
748 contributors on the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
750 Reporting Bugs
751 --------------
753 Report bugs to the Git mailing list <git@vger.kernel.org> where the
754 development and maintenance is primarily done. You do not have to be
755 subscribed to the list to send a message there.
757 SEE ALSO
758 --------
759 linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],
760 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],
761 linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],
762 linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual],
763 linkgit:gitworkflows[7]
765 GIT
766 ---
767 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite