6 git - the stupid content tracker
12 'git' [--version] [--exec-path[=GIT_EXEC_PATH]] [--html-path]
13 [-p|--paginate|--no-pager]
14 [--bare] [--git-dir=GIT_DIR] [--work-tree=GIT_WORK_TREE]
15 [--help] COMMAND [ARGS]
19 Git is a fast, scalable, distributed revision control system with an
20 unusually rich command set that provides both high-level operations
21 and full access to internals.
23 See linkgit:gittutorial[7] to get started, then see
24 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git] for a useful minimum set of commands, and
25 "man git-commandname" for documentation of each command. CVS users may
26 also want to read linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7]. See
27 the link:user-manual.html[Git User's Manual] for a more in-depth
30 The COMMAND is either a name of a Git command (see below) or an alias
31 as defined in the configuration file (see linkgit:git-config[1]).
33 Formatted and hyperlinked version of the latest git
34 documentation can be viewed at
35 `http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/`.
41 You are reading the documentation for the latest (possibly
42 unreleased) version of git, that is available from 'master'
43 branch of the `git.git` repository.
44 Documentation for older releases are available here:
46 * link:v1.6.5.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.5.3]
49 link:RelNotes-1.6.5.3.txt[1.6.5.3],
50 link:RelNotes-1.6.5.2.txt[1.6.5.2],
51 link:RelNotes-1.6.5.1.txt[1.6.5.1],
52 link:RelNotes-1.6.5.txt[1.6.5].
54 * link:v1.6.4.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.4.4]
57 link:RelNotes-1.6.4.4.txt[1.6.4.4],
58 link:RelNotes-1.6.4.3.txt[1.6.4.3],
59 link:RelNotes-1.6.4.2.txt[1.6.4.2],
60 link:RelNotes-1.6.4.1.txt[1.6.4.1],
61 link:RelNotes-1.6.4.txt[1.6.4].
63 * link:v1.6.3.4/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.3.4]
66 link:RelNotes-1.6.3.4.txt[1.6.3.4],
67 link:RelNotes-1.6.3.3.txt[1.6.3.3],
68 link:RelNotes-1.6.3.2.txt[1.6.3.2],
69 link:RelNotes-1.6.3.1.txt[1.6.3.1],
70 link:RelNotes-1.6.3.txt[1.6.3].
73 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.5.txt[1.6.2.5],
74 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.4.txt[1.6.2.4],
75 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.3.txt[1.6.2.3],
76 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.2.txt[1.6.2.2],
77 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.1.txt[1.6.2.1],
78 link:RelNotes-1.6.2.txt[1.6.2].
80 * link:v1.6.1.3/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.1.3]
83 link:RelNotes-1.6.1.3.txt[1.6.1.3],
84 link:RelNotes-1.6.1.2.txt[1.6.1.2],
85 link:RelNotes-1.6.1.1.txt[1.6.1.1],
86 link:RelNotes-1.6.1.txt[1.6.1].
88 * link:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6]
91 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6],
92 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5],
93 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4],
94 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3],
95 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2],
96 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1],
97 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.txt[1.6.0].
99 * link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6]
102 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6],
103 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5],
104 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4],
105 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3],
106 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2],
107 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1],
108 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.txt[1.5.6].
110 * link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6]
113 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6],
114 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5],
115 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4],
116 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3],
117 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2],
118 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1],
119 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.txt[1.5.5].
121 * link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7]
124 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7],
125 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6],
126 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5],
127 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4],
128 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3],
129 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2],
130 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1],
131 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.txt[1.5.4].
133 * link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8]
136 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8],
137 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7],
138 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6],
139 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5],
140 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4],
141 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3],
142 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2],
143 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1],
144 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.txt[1.5.3].
146 * link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5]
149 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5],
150 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
151 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
152 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
153 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
154 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
156 * link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
159 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
160 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
161 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
162 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
163 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
164 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
165 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
167 * link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
170 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
171 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
172 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
173 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
174 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
175 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
176 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
178 * documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
179 link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
180 link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
181 link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
190 Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
193 Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
194 commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all
195 available commands are printed. If a git command is named this
196 option will bring up the manual page for that command.
198 Other options are available to control how the manual page is
199 displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information,
200 because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git
204 Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
205 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
206 environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print
207 the current setting and then exit.
210 Print the path to wherever your git HTML documentation is installed
215 Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER).
218 Do not pipe git output into a pager.
221 Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
222 setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute
223 path or relative path to current working directory.
226 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
227 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
228 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
229 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
230 environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
231 variable. It can be an absolute path or relative path to
232 the directory specified by --git-dir or GIT_DIR.
233 Note: If --git-dir or GIT_DIR are specified but none of
234 --work-tree, GIT_WORK_TREE and core.worktree is specified,
235 the current working directory is regarded as the top directory
236 of your working tree.
239 Treat the repository as a bare repository. If GIT_DIR
240 environment is not set, it is set to the current working
244 FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
245 ---------------------
247 See the references above to get started using git. The following is
248 probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
250 The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
251 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide
252 introductions to the underlying git architecture.
254 See linkgit:gitworkflows[7] for an overview of recommended workflows.
256 See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
259 The internals are documented in the
260 link:technical/api-index.html[GIT API documentation].
265 We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
266 ("plumbing") commands.
268 High-level commands (porcelain)
269 -------------------------------
271 We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
272 ancillary user utilities.
274 Main porcelain commands
275 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
277 include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
283 include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
287 include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
290 Interacting with Others
291 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
293 These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
294 people via patch over e-mail.
296 include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
299 Low-level commands (plumbing)
300 -----------------------------
302 Although git includes its
303 own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
304 development of alternative porcelains. Developers of such porcelains
305 might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and
306 linkgit:git-read-tree[1].
308 The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
309 to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
310 than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
311 primarily for scripted use. The interface to Porcelain commands
312 on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
315 The following description divides
316 the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
317 the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
318 compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
322 Manipulation commands
323 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
325 include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
328 Interrogation commands
329 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
331 include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
333 In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
337 Synching repositories
338 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
340 include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
342 The following are helper commands used by the above; end users
343 typically do not use them directly.
345 include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
348 Internal helper commands
349 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
351 These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
352 users typically do not use them directly.
354 include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
357 Configuration Mechanism
358 -----------------------
360 Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
361 is used to hold per-repository configuration options. It is a
362 simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
363 people. Here is an example:
367 # A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
372 ; Don't trust file modes
377 name = "Junio C Hamano"
378 email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
382 Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
383 their operation accordingly.
386 Identifier Terminology
387 ----------------------
389 Indicates the object name for any type of object.
392 Indicates a blob object name.
395 Indicates a tree object name.
398 Indicates a commit object name.
401 Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name. A
402 command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
403 operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
404 <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
407 Indicates a commit or tag object name. A
408 command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
409 operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
410 <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
413 Indicates that an object type is required.
414 Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
417 Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
418 root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
422 Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
426 indicates the head of the current branch (i.e. the
427 contents of `$GIT_DIR/HEAD`).
431 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag>`).
435 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head>`).
437 For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
438 "SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:git-rev-parse[1].
441 File/Directory Structure
442 ------------------------
444 Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document.
446 Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook.
448 Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
454 Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7].
457 Environment Variables
458 ---------------------
459 Various git commands use the following environment variables:
463 These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
464 is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
465 git so take care if using Cogito etc.
468 This environment allows the specification of an alternate
469 index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
472 'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
473 If the object storage directory is specified via this
474 environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
475 underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
478 'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
479 Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
480 archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
481 specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list
482 of git object directories which can be used to search for git
483 objects. New objects will not be written to these directories.
486 If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
487 specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
488 for the base of the repository.
491 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
492 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
493 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
494 This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
495 option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
497 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES'::
498 This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths.
499 If set, it is a list of directories that git should not chdir
500 up into while looking for a repository directory.
501 It will not exclude the current working directory or
502 a GIT_DIR set on the command line or in the environment.
503 (Useful for excluding slow-loading network directories.)
510 'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
511 'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
512 'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
514 see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1]
519 Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
520 number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
521 This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
522 value passed on the git diff command line.
524 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
525 When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
526 program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
527 described above. For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
528 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
530 path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
534 <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
535 contents of <old|new>,
536 <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
537 <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
540 The file parameters can point at the user's working file
541 (e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
542 when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
543 index). 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
544 temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
546 For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
551 'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
552 A number controlling the amount of output shown by
553 the recursive merge strategy. Overrides merge.verbosity.
554 See linkgit:git-merge[1]
557 This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
558 to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
559 a pager. See also the `core.pager` option in
560 linkgit:git-config[1].
563 If this environment variable is set then 'git-fetch'
564 and 'git-push' will use this command instead
565 of 'ssh' when they need to connect to a remote system.
566 The '$GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
567 the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
568 shell command to execute on that remote system.
570 To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
571 you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
572 then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
574 Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
575 personal `.ssh/config` file. Please consult your ssh documentation
579 If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
580 as 'git-blame' (in incremental mode), 'git-rev-list', 'git-log',
581 and 'git-whatchanged' will force a flush of the output stream
582 after each commit-oriented record have been flushed. If this
583 variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
584 using completely buffered I/O. If this environment variable is
585 not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
586 based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
589 If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
590 is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
591 stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
592 execution and external command execution.
593 If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
594 and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
595 value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
596 trace messages into this file descriptor.
597 Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
598 (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
599 as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
602 Discussion[[Discussion]]
603 ------------------------
605 More detail on the following is available from the
606 link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
607 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].
609 A git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"
610 subdirectory at the top level. The .git directory contains, among other
611 things, a compressed object database representing the complete history
612 of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current
613 contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such
614 as tags and branch heads.
616 The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which
617 hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up
618 directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree
619 and some number of parent commits.
621 The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or
622 "version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent
623 represents an immediately preceding step. Commits with more than one
624 parent represent merges of independent lines of development.
626 All objects are named by the SHA1 hash of their contents, normally
627 written as a string of 40 hex digits. Such names are globally unique.
628 The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing
629 just that commit. A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this
632 When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for
633 efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".
635 Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history. A ref
636 may contain the SHA1 name of an object or the name of another ref. Refs
637 with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA1 name of the most
638 recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development. SHA1 names of
639 tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`. A special ref named
640 `HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.
642 The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each
643 path, a blob object and a set of attributes. The blob object represents
644 the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch. The
645 attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the
646 corresponding file in the working tree. Subsequent changes to the
647 working tree can be found by comparing these attributes. The index may
648 be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the
649 content stored in the index.
651 The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")
652 for a given pathname. These stages are used to hold the various
653 unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.
657 * git's founding father is Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org>.
658 * The current git nurse is Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>.
659 * The git potty was written by Andreas Ericsson <ae@op5.se>.
660 * General upbringing is handled by the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
664 The documentation for git suite was started by David Greaves
665 <david@dgreaves.com>, and later enhanced greatly by the
666 contributors on the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
670 linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],
671 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],
672 linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],
673 linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual],
674 linkgit:gitworkflows[7]
678 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite