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 403 <body>
 404 <div id="header">
 405 <h1>
 406 gitglossary(7) Manual Page
 407 </h1>
 408 <h2>NAME</h2>
 409 <div class="sectionbody">
 410 <p>gitglossary -
 411    A GIT Glossary
 412 </p>
 413 </div>
 414 </div>
 415 <h2 id="_synopsis">SYNOPSIS</h2>
 416 <div class="sectionbody">
 417 <div class="paragraph"><p>*</p></div>
 418 </div>
 419 <h2 id="_description">DESCRIPTION</h2>
 420 <div class="sectionbody">
 421 <div class="dlist"><dl>
 422 <dt class="hdlist1">
 423 <a id="def_alternate_object_database"></a>alternate object database
 424 </dt>
 425 <dd>
 426 <p>
 427         Via the alternates mechanism, a <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>
 428         can inherit part of its <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a>
 429         from another object database, which is called "alternate".
 430 </p>
 431 </dd>
 432 <dt class="hdlist1">
 433 <a id="def_bare_repository"></a>bare repository
 434 </dt>
 435 <dd>
 436 <p>
 437         A bare repository is normally an appropriately
 438         named <a href="#def_directory">directory</a> with a <tt>.git</tt> suffix that does not
 439         have a locally checked-out copy of any of the files under
 440         revision control. That is, all of the <tt>git</tt>
 441         administrative and control files that would normally be present in the
 442         hidden <tt>.git</tt> sub-directory are directly present in the
 443         <tt>repository.git</tt> directory instead,
 444         and no other files are present and checked out. Usually publishers of
 445         public repositories make bare repositories available.
 446 </p>
 447 </dd>
 448 <dt class="hdlist1">
 449 <a id="def_blob_object"></a>blob object
 450 </dt>
 451 <dd>
 452 <p>
 453         Untyped <a href="#def_object">object</a>, e.g. the contents of a file.
 454 </p>
 455 </dd>
 456 <dt class="hdlist1">
 457 <a id="def_branch"></a>branch
 458 </dt>
 459 <dd>
 460 <p>
 461         A "branch" is an active line of development.  The most recent
 462         <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> on a branch is referred to as the tip of
 463         that branch.  The tip of the branch is referenced by a branch
 464         <a href="#def_head">head</a>, which moves forward as additional development
 465         is done on the branch.  A single git
 466         <a href="#def_repository">repository</a> can track an arbitrary number of
 467         branches, but your <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a> is
 468         associated with just one of them (the "current" or "checked out"
 469         branch), and <a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a> points to that branch.
 470 </p>
 471 </dd>
 472 <dt class="hdlist1">
 473 <a id="def_cache"></a>cache
 474 </dt>
 475 <dd>
 476 <p>
 477         Obsolete for: <a href="#def_index">index</a>.
 478 </p>
 479 </dd>
 480 <dt class="hdlist1">
 481 <a id="def_chain"></a>chain
 482 </dt>
 483 <dd>
 484 <p>
 485         A list of objects, where each <a href="#def_object">object</a> in the list contains
 486         a reference to its successor (for example, the successor of a
 487         <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> could be one of its <a href="#def_parent">parents</a>).
 488 </p>
 489 </dd>
 490 <dt class="hdlist1">
 491 <a id="def_changeset"></a>changeset
 492 </dt>
 493 <dd>
 494 <p>
 495         BitKeeper/cvsps speak for "<a href="#def_commit">commit</a>". Since git does not
 496         store changes, but states, it really does not make sense to use the term
 497         "changesets" with git.
 498 </p>
 499 </dd>
 500 <dt class="hdlist1">
 501 <a id="def_checkout"></a>checkout
 502 </dt>
 503 <dd>
 504 <p>
 505         The action of updating all or part of the
 506         <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a> with a <a href="#def_tree_object">tree object</a>
 507         or <a href="#def_blob_object">blob</a> from the
 508         <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a>, and updating the
 509         <a href="#def_index">index</a> and <a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a> if the whole working tree has
 510         been pointed at a new <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>.
 511 </p>
 512 </dd>
 513 <dt class="hdlist1">
 514 <a id="def_cherry-picking"></a>cherry-picking
 515 </dt>
 516 <dd>
 517 <p>
 518         In <a href="#def_SCM">SCM</a> jargon, "cherry pick" means to choose a subset of
 519         changes out of a series of changes (typically commits) and record them
 520         as a new series of changes on top of a different codebase. In GIT, this is
 521         performed by the "git cherry-pick" command to extract the change introduced
 522         by an existing <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> and to record it based on the tip
 523         of the current <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> as a new commit.
 524 </p>
 525 </dd>
 526 <dt class="hdlist1">
 527 <a id="def_clean"></a>clean
 528 </dt>
 529 <dd>
 530 <p>
 531         A <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a> is clean, if it
 532         corresponds to the <a href="#def_revision">revision</a> referenced by the current
 533         <a href="#def_head">head</a>. Also see "<a href="#def_dirty">dirty</a>".
 534 </p>
 535 </dd>
 536 <dt class="hdlist1">
 537 <a id="def_commit"></a>commit
 538 </dt>
 539 <dd>
 540 <p>
 541         As a noun: A single point in the
 542         git history; the entire history of a project is represented as a
 543         set of interrelated commits.  The word "commit" is often
 544         used by git in the same places other revision control systems
 545         use the words "revision" or "version".  Also used as a short
 546         hand for <a href="#def_commit_object">commit object</a>.
 547 </p>
 548 <div class="paragraph"><p>As a verb: The action of storing a new snapshot of the project&#8217;s
 549 state in the git history, by creating a new commit representing the current
 550 state of the <a href="#def_index">index</a> and advancing <a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a>
 551 to point at the new commit.</p></div>
 552 </dd>
 553 <dt class="hdlist1">
 554 <a id="def_commit_object"></a>commit object
 555 </dt>
 556 <dd>
 557 <p>
 558         An <a href="#def_object">object</a> which contains the information about a
 559         particular <a href="#def_revision">revision</a>, such as <a href="#def_parent">parents</a>, committer,
 560         author, date and the <a href="#def_tree_object">tree object</a> which corresponds
 561         to the top <a href="#def_directory">directory</a> of the stored
 562         revision.
 563 </p>
 564 </dd>
 565 <dt class="hdlist1">
 566 <a id="def_core_git"></a>core git
 567 </dt>
 568 <dd>
 569 <p>
 570         Fundamental data structures and utilities of git. Exposes only limited
 571         source code management tools.
 572 </p>
 573 </dd>
 574 <dt class="hdlist1">
 575 <a id="def_DAG"></a>DAG
 576 </dt>
 577 <dd>
 578 <p>
 579         Directed acyclic graph. The <a href="#def_commit_object">commit objects</a> form a
 580         directed acyclic graph, because they have parents (directed), and the
 581         graph of commit objects is acyclic (there is no <a href="#def_chain">chain</a>
 582         which begins and ends with the same <a href="#def_object">object</a>).
 583 </p>
 584 </dd>
 585 <dt class="hdlist1">
 586 <a id="def_dangling_object"></a>dangling object
 587 </dt>
 588 <dd>
 589 <p>
 590         An <a href="#def_unreachable_object">unreachable object</a> which is not
 591         <a href="#def_reachable">reachable</a> even from other unreachable objects; a
 592         dangling object has no references to it from any
 593         reference or <a href="#def_object">object</a> in the <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>.
 594 </p>
 595 </dd>
 596 <dt class="hdlist1">
 597 <a id="def_detached_HEAD"></a>detached HEAD
 598 </dt>
 599 <dd>
 600 <p>
 601         Normally the <a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a> stores the name of a
 602         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>.  However, git also allows you to <a href="#def_checkout">check out</a>
 603         an arbitrary <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> that isn&#8217;t necessarily the tip of any
 604         particular branch.  In this case HEAD is said to be "detached".
 605 </p>
 606 </dd>
 607 <dt class="hdlist1">
 608 <a id="def_dircache"></a>dircache
 609 </dt>
 610 <dd>
 611 <p>
 612         You are <strong>waaaaay</strong> behind. See <a href="#def_index">index</a>.
 613 </p>
 614 </dd>
 615 <dt class="hdlist1">
 616 <a id="def_directory"></a>directory
 617 </dt>
 618 <dd>
 619 <p>
 620         The list you get with "ls" :-)
 621 </p>
 622 </dd>
 623 <dt class="hdlist1">
 624 <a id="def_dirty"></a>dirty
 625 </dt>
 626 <dd>
 627 <p>
 628         A <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a> is said to be "dirty" if
 629         it contains modifications which have not been <a href="#def_commit">committed</a> to the current
 630         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>.
 631 </p>
 632 </dd>
 633 <dt class="hdlist1">
 634 <a id="def_ent"></a>ent
 635 </dt>
 636 <dd>
 637 <p>
 638         Favorite synonym to "<a href="#def_tree-ish">tree-ish</a>" by some total geeks. See
 639         <tt>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ent_(Middle-earth)</tt> for an in-depth
 640         explanation. Avoid this term, not to confuse people.
 641 </p>
 642 </dd>
 643 <dt class="hdlist1">
 644 <a id="def_evil_merge"></a>evil merge
 645 </dt>
 646 <dd>
 647 <p>
 648         An evil merge is a <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> that introduces changes that
 649         do not appear in any <a href="#def_parent">parent</a>.
 650 </p>
 651 </dd>
 652 <dt class="hdlist1">
 653 <a id="def_fast_forward"></a>fast-forward
 654 </dt>
 655 <dd>
 656 <p>
 657         A fast-forward is a special type of <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> where you have a
 658         <a href="#def_revision">revision</a> and you are "merging" another
 659         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>'s changes that happen to be a descendant of what
 660         you have. In such these cases, you do not make a new <a href="#def_merge">merge</a>
 661         <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> but instead just update to his
 662         revision. This will happen frequently on a
 663         <a href="#def_remote_tracking_branch">remote-tracking branch</a> of a remote
 664         <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>.
 665 </p>
 666 </dd>
 667 <dt class="hdlist1">
 668 <a id="def_fetch"></a>fetch
 669 </dt>
 670 <dd>
 671 <p>
 672         Fetching a <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> means to get the
 673         branch&#8217;s <a href="#def_head_ref">head ref</a> from a remote
 674         <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>, to find out which objects are
 675         missing from the local <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a>,
 676         and to get them, too.  See also <a href="git-fetch.html">git-fetch(1)</a>.
 677 </p>
 678 </dd>
 679 <dt class="hdlist1">
 680 <a id="def_file_system"></a>file system
 681 </dt>
 682 <dd>
 683 <p>
 684         Linus Torvalds originally designed git to be a user space file system,
 685         i.e. the infrastructure to hold files and directories. That ensured the
 686         efficiency and speed of git.
 687 </p>
 688 </dd>
 689 <dt class="hdlist1">
 690 <a id="def_git_archive"></a>git archive
 691 </dt>
 692 <dd>
 693 <p>
 694         Synonym for <a href="#def_repository">repository</a> (for arch people).
 695 </p>
 696 </dd>
 697 <dt class="hdlist1">
 698 <a id="def_grafts"></a>grafts
 699 </dt>
 700 <dd>
 701 <p>
 702         Grafts enables two otherwise different lines of development to be joined
 703         together by recording fake ancestry information for commits. This way
 704         you can make git pretend the set of <a href="#def_parent">parents</a> a <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> has
 705         is different from what was recorded when the commit was
 706         created. Configured via the <tt>.git/info/grafts</tt> file.
 707 </p>
 708 </dd>
 709 <dt class="hdlist1">
 710 <a id="def_hash"></a>hash
 711 </dt>
 712 <dd>
 713 <p>
 714         In git&#8217;s context, synonym to <a href="#def_object_name">object name</a>.
 715 </p>
 716 </dd>
 717 <dt class="hdlist1">
 718 <a id="def_head"></a>head
 719 </dt>
 720 <dd>
 721 <p>
 722         A <a href="#def_ref">named reference</a> to the <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> at the tip of a
 723         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>.  Heads are stored in
 724         <tt>$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/</tt>, except when using packed refs. (See
 725         <a href="git-pack-refs.html">git-pack-refs(1)</a>.)
 726 </p>
 727 </dd>
 728 <dt class="hdlist1">
 729 <a id="def_HEAD"></a>HEAD
 730 </dt>
 731 <dd>
 732 <p>
 733         The current <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>.  In more detail: Your <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a> is normally derived from the state of the tree
 734         referred to by HEAD.  HEAD is a reference to one of the
 735         <a href="#def_head">heads</a> in your repository, except when using a
 736         <a href="#def_detached_HEAD">detached HEAD</a>, in which case it may
 737         reference an arbitrary commit.
 738 </p>
 739 </dd>
 740 <dt class="hdlist1">
 741 <a id="def_head_ref"></a>head ref
 742 </dt>
 743 <dd>
 744 <p>
 745         A synonym for <a href="#def_head">head</a>.
 746 </p>
 747 </dd>
 748 <dt class="hdlist1">
 749 <a id="def_hook"></a>hook
 750 </dt>
 751 <dd>
 752 <p>
 753         During the normal execution of several git commands, call-outs are made
 754         to optional scripts that allow a developer to add functionality or
 755         checking. Typically, the hooks allow for a command to be pre-verified
 756         and potentially aborted, and allow for a post-notification after the
 757         operation is done. The hook scripts are found in the
 758         <tt>$GIT_DIR/hooks/</tt> directory, and are enabled by simply
 759         removing the <tt>.sample</tt> suffix from the filename. In earlier versions
 760         of git you had to make them executable.
 761 </p>
 762 </dd>
 763 <dt class="hdlist1">
 764 <a id="def_index"></a>index
 765 </dt>
 766 <dd>
 767 <p>
 768         A collection of files with stat information, whose contents are stored
 769         as objects. The index is a stored version of your
 770         <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a>. Truth be told, it can also contain a second, and even
 771         a third version of a working tree, which are used
 772         when <a href="#def_merge">merging</a>.
 773 </p>
 774 </dd>
 775 <dt class="hdlist1">
 776 <a id="def_index_entry"></a>index entry
 777 </dt>
 778 <dd>
 779 <p>
 780         The information regarding a particular file, stored in the
 781         <a href="#def_index">index</a>. An index entry can be unmerged, if a
 782         <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> was started, but not yet finished (i.e. if
 783         the index contains multiple versions of that file).
 784 </p>
 785 </dd>
 786 <dt class="hdlist1">
 787 <a id="def_master"></a>master
 788 </dt>
 789 <dd>
 790 <p>
 791         The default development <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>. Whenever you
 792         create a git <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>, a branch named
 793         "master" is created, and becomes the active branch. In most
 794         cases, this contains the local development, though that is
 795         purely by convention and is not required.
 796 </p>
 797 </dd>
 798 <dt class="hdlist1">
 799 <a id="def_merge"></a>merge
 800 </dt>
 801 <dd>
 802 <p>
 803         As a verb: To bring the contents of another
 804         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> (possibly from an external
 805         <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>) into the current branch.  In the
 806         case where the merged-in branch is from a different repository,
 807         this is done by first <a href="#def_fetch">fetching</a> the remote branch
 808         and then merging the result into the current branch.  This
 809         combination of fetch and merge operations is called a
 810         <a href="#def_pull">pull</a>.  Merging is performed by an automatic process
 811         that identifies changes made since the branches diverged, and
 812         then applies all those changes together.  In cases where changes
 813         conflict, manual intervention may be required to complete the
 814         merge.
 815 </p>
 816 <div class="paragraph"><p>As a noun: unless it is a <a href="#def_fast_forward">fast-forward</a>, a
 817 successful merge results in the creation of a new <a href="#def_commit">commit</a>
 818 representing the result of the merge, and having as
 819 <a href="#def_parent">parents</a> the tips of the merged <a href="#def_branch">branches</a>.
 820 This commit is referred to as a "merge commit", or sometimes just a
 821 "merge".</p></div>
 822 </dd>
 823 <dt class="hdlist1">
 824 <a id="def_object"></a>object
 825 </dt>
 826 <dd>
 827 <p>
 828         The unit of storage in git. It is uniquely identified by the
 829         <a href="#def_SHA1">SHA1</a> of its contents. Consequently, an
 830         object can not be changed.
 831 </p>
 832 </dd>
 833 <dt class="hdlist1">
 834 <a id="def_object_database"></a>object database
 835 </dt>
 836 <dd>
 837 <p>
 838         Stores a set of "objects", and an individual <a href="#def_object">object</a> is
 839         identified by its <a href="#def_object_name">object name</a>. The objects usually
 840         live in <tt>$GIT_DIR/objects/</tt>.
 841 </p>
 842 </dd>
 843 <dt class="hdlist1">
 844 <a id="def_object_identifier"></a>object identifier
 845 </dt>
 846 <dd>
 847 <p>
 848         Synonym for <a href="#def_object_name">object name</a>.
 849 </p>
 850 </dd>
 851 <dt class="hdlist1">
 852 <a id="def_object_name"></a>object name
 853 </dt>
 854 <dd>
 855 <p>
 856         The unique identifier of an <a href="#def_object">object</a>. The <a href="#def_hash">hash</a>
 857         of the object&#8217;s contents using the Secure Hash Algorithm
 858         1 and usually represented by the 40 character hexadecimal encoding of
 859         the <a href="#def_hash">hash</a> of the object.
 860 </p>
 861 </dd>
 862 <dt class="hdlist1">
 863 <a id="def_object_type"></a>object type
 864 </dt>
 865 <dd>
 866 <p>
 867         One of the identifiers "<a href="#def_commit_object">commit</a>",
 868         "<a href="#def_tree_object">tree</a>", "<a href="#def_tag_object">tag</a>" or
 869         "<a href="#def_blob_object">blob</a>" describing the type of an
 870         <a href="#def_object">object</a>.
 871 </p>
 872 </dd>
 873 <dt class="hdlist1">
 874 <a id="def_octopus"></a>octopus
 875 </dt>
 876 <dd>
 877 <p>
 878         To <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> more than two <a href="#def_branch">branches</a>. Also denotes an
 879         intelligent predator.
 880 </p>
 881 </dd>
 882 <dt class="hdlist1">
 883 <a id="def_origin"></a>origin
 884 </dt>
 885 <dd>
 886 <p>
 887         The default upstream <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>. Most projects have
 888         at least one upstream project which they track. By default
 889         <em>origin</em> is used for that purpose. New upstream updates
 890         will be fetched into remote <a href="#def_remote_tracking_branch">remote-tracking branches</a> named
 891         origin/name-of-upstream-branch, which you can see using
 892         <tt>git branch -r</tt>.
 893 </p>
 894 </dd>
 895 <dt class="hdlist1">
 896 <a id="def_pack"></a>pack
 897 </dt>
 898 <dd>
 899 <p>
 900         A set of objects which have been compressed into one file (to save space
 901         or to transmit them efficiently).
 902 </p>
 903 </dd>
 904 <dt class="hdlist1">
 905 <a id="def_pack_index"></a>pack index
 906 </dt>
 907 <dd>
 908 <p>
 909         The list of identifiers, and other information, of the objects in a
 910         <a href="#def_pack">pack</a>, to assist in efficiently accessing the contents of a
 911         pack.
 912 </p>
 913 </dd>
 914 <dt class="hdlist1">
 915 <a id="def_pathspec"></a>pathspec
 916 </dt>
 917 <dd>
 918 <p>
 919        Pattern used to specify paths.
 920 </p>
 921 <div class="paragraph"><p>Pathspecs are used on the command line of "git ls-files", "git
 922 ls-tree", "git grep", "git checkout", and many other commands to
 923 limit the scope of operations to some subset of the tree or
 924 worktree.  See the documentation of each command for whether
 925 paths are relative to the current directory or toplevel.  The
 926 pathspec syntax is as follows:</p></div>
 927 <div class="ulist"><ul>
 928 <li>
 929 <p>
 930 any path matches itself
 931 </p>
 932 </li>
 933 <li>
 934 <p>
 935 the pathspec up to the last slash represents a
 936   directory prefix.  The scope of that pathspec is
 937   limited to that subtree.
 938 </p>
 939 </li>
 940 <li>
 941 <p>
 942 the rest of the pathspec is a pattern for the remainder
 943   of the pathname.  Paths relative to the directory
 944   prefix will be matched against that pattern using fnmatch(3);
 945   in particular, <em>*</em> and <em>?</em> <em>can</em> match directory separators.
 946 </p>
 947 <div class="paragraph"><p>For example, Documentation/*.jpg will match all .jpg files
 948 in the Documentation subtree,
 949 including Documentation/chapter_1/figure_1.jpg.</p></div>
 950 </li>
 951 </ul></div>
 952 </dd>
 953 <dt class="hdlist1">
 954 <a id="def_parent"></a>parent
 955 </dt>
 956 <dd>
 957 <p>
 958         A <a href="#def_commit_object">commit object</a> contains a (possibly empty) list
 959         of the logical predecessor(s) in the line of development, i.e. its
 960         parents.
 961 </p>
 962 </dd>
 963 <dt class="hdlist1">
 964 <a id="def_pickaxe"></a>pickaxe
 965 </dt>
 966 <dd>
 967 <p>
 968         The term <a href="#def_pickaxe">pickaxe</a> refers to an option to the diffcore
 969         routines that help select changes that add or delete a given text
 970         string. With the <tt>--pickaxe-all</tt> option, it can be used to view the full
 971         <a href="#def_changeset">changeset</a> that introduced or removed, say, a
 972         particular line of text. See <a href="git-diff.html">git-diff(1)</a>.
 973 </p>
 974 </dd>
 975 <dt class="hdlist1">
 976 <a id="def_plumbing"></a>plumbing
 977 </dt>
 978 <dd>
 979 <p>
 980         Cute name for <a href="#def_core_git">core git</a>.
 981 </p>
 982 </dd>
 983 <dt class="hdlist1">
 984 <a id="def_porcelain"></a>porcelain
 985 </dt>
 986 <dd>
 987 <p>
 988         Cute name for programs and program suites depending on
 989         <a href="#def_core_git">core git</a>, presenting a high level access to
 990         core git. Porcelains expose more of a <a href="#def_SCM">SCM</a>
 991         interface than the <a href="#def_plumbing">plumbing</a>.
 992 </p>
 993 </dd>
 994 <dt class="hdlist1">
 995 <a id="def_pull"></a>pull
 996 </dt>
 997 <dd>
 998 <p>
 999         Pulling a <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> means to <a href="#def_fetch">fetch</a> it and
1000         <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> it.  See also <a href="git-pull.html">git-pull(1)</a>.
1001 </p>
1002 </dd>
1003 <dt class="hdlist1">
1004 <a id="def_push"></a>push
1005 </dt>
1006 <dd>
1007 <p>
1008         Pushing a <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> means to get the branch&#8217;s
1009         <a href="#def_head_ref">head ref</a> from a remote <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>,
1010         find out if it is a direct ancestor to the branch&#8217;s local
1011         head ref, and in that case, putting all
1012         objects, which are <a href="#def_reachable">reachable</a> from the local
1013         head ref, and which are missing from the remote
1014         repository, into the remote
1015         <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a>, and updating the remote
1016         head ref. If the remote <a href="#def_head">head</a> is not an
1017         ancestor to the local head, the push fails.
1018 </p>
1019 </dd>
1020 <dt class="hdlist1">
1021 <a id="def_reachable"></a>reachable
1022 </dt>
1023 <dd>
1024 <p>
1025         All of the ancestors of a given <a href="#def_commit">commit</a> are said to be
1026         "reachable" from that commit. More
1027         generally, one <a href="#def_object">object</a> is reachable from
1028         another if we can reach the one from the other by a <a href="#def_chain">chain</a>
1029         that follows <a href="#def_tag">tags</a> to whatever they tag,
1030         <a href="#def_commit_object">commits</a> to their parents or trees, and
1031         <a href="#def_tree_object">trees</a> to the trees or <a href="#def_blob_object">blobs</a>
1032         that they contain.
1033 </p>
1034 </dd>
1035 <dt class="hdlist1">
1036 <a id="def_rebase"></a>rebase
1037 </dt>
1038 <dd>
1039 <p>
1040         To reapply a series of changes from a <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> to a
1041         different base, and reset the <a href="#def_head">head</a> of that branch
1042         to the result.
1043 </p>
1044 </dd>
1045 <dt class="hdlist1">
1046 <a id="def_ref"></a>ref
1047 </dt>
1048 <dd>
1049 <p>
1050         A 40-byte hex representation of a <a href="#def_SHA1">SHA1</a> or a name that
1051         denotes a particular <a href="#def_object">object</a>. These may be stored in
1052         <tt>$GIT_DIR/refs/</tt>.
1053 </p>
1054 </dd>
1055 <dt class="hdlist1">
1056 <a id="def_reflog"></a>reflog
1057 </dt>
1058 <dd>
1059 <p>
1060         A reflog shows the local "history" of a ref.  In other words,
1061         it can tell you what the 3rd last revision in <em>this</em> repository
1062         was, and what was the current state in <em>this</em> repository,
1063         yesterday 9:14pm.  See <a href="git-reflog.html">git-reflog(1)</a> for details.
1064 </p>
1065 </dd>
1066 <dt class="hdlist1">
1067 <a id="def_refspec"></a>refspec
1068 </dt>
1069 <dd>
1070 <p>
1071         A "refspec" is used by <a href="#def_fetch">fetch</a> and
1072         <a href="#def_push">push</a> to describe the mapping between remote
1073         <a href="#def_ref">ref</a> and local ref. They are combined with a colon in
1074         the format &lt;src&gt;:&lt;dst&gt;, preceded by an optional plus sign, +.
1075         For example: <tt>git fetch $URL
1076         refs/heads/master:refs/heads/origin</tt> means "grab the master
1077         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> <a href="#def_head">head</a> from the $URL and store
1078         it as my origin branch head". And <tt>git push
1079         $URL refs/heads/master:refs/heads/to-upstream</tt> means "publish my
1080         master branch head as to-upstream branch at $URL". See also
1081         <a href="git-push.html">git-push(1)</a>.
1082 </p>
1083 </dd>
1084 <dt class="hdlist1">
1085 <a id="def_remote_tracking_branch"></a>remote-tracking branch
1086 </dt>
1087 <dd>
1088 <p>
1089         A regular git <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> that is used to follow changes from
1090         another <a href="#def_repository">repository</a>. A remote-tracking
1091         branch should not contain direct modifications or have local commits
1092         made to it. A remote-tracking branch can usually be
1093         identified as the right-hand-side <a href="#def_ref">ref</a> in a Pull:
1094         <a href="#def_refspec">refspec</a>.
1095 </p>
1096 </dd>
1097 <dt class="hdlist1">
1098 <a id="def_repository"></a>repository
1099 </dt>
1100 <dd>
1101 <p>
1102         A collection of <a href="#def_ref">refs</a> together with an
1103         <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a> containing all objects
1104         which are <a href="#def_reachable">reachable</a> from the refs, possibly
1105         accompanied by meta data from one or more <a href="#def_porcelain">porcelains</a>. A
1106         repository can share an object database with other repositories
1107         via <a href="#def_alternate_object_database">alternates mechanism</a>.
1108 </p>
1109 </dd>
1110 <dt class="hdlist1">
1111 <a id="def_resolve"></a>resolve
1112 </dt>
1113 <dd>
1114 <p>
1115         The action of fixing up manually what a failed automatic
1116         <a href="#def_merge">merge</a> left behind.
1117 </p>
1118 </dd>
1119 <dt class="hdlist1">
1120 <a id="def_revision"></a>revision
1121 </dt>
1122 <dd>
1123 <p>
1124         A particular state of files and directories which was stored in the
1125         <a href="#def_object_database">object database</a>. It is referenced by a
1126         <a href="#def_commit_object">commit object</a>.
1127 </p>
1128 </dd>
1129 <dt class="hdlist1">
1130 <a id="def_rewind"></a>rewind
1131 </dt>
1132 <dd>
1133 <p>
1134         To throw away part of the development, i.e. to assign the
1135         <a href="#def_head">head</a> to an earlier <a href="#def_revision">revision</a>.
1136 </p>
1137 </dd>
1138 <dt class="hdlist1">
1139 <a id="def_SCM"></a>SCM
1140 </dt>
1141 <dd>
1142 <p>
1143         Source code management (tool).
1144 </p>
1145 </dd>
1146 <dt class="hdlist1">
1147 <a id="def_SHA1"></a>SHA1
1148 </dt>
1149 <dd>
1150 <p>
1151         Synonym for <a href="#def_object_name">object name</a>.
1152 </p>
1153 </dd>
1154 <dt class="hdlist1">
1155 <a id="def_shallow_repository"></a>shallow repository
1156 </dt>
1157 <dd>
1158 <p>
1159         A shallow <a href="#def_repository">repository</a> has an incomplete
1160         history some of whose <a href="#def_commit">commits</a> have <a href="#def_parent">parents</a> cauterized away (in other
1161         words, git is told to pretend that these commits do not have the
1162         parents, even though they are recorded in the <a href="#def_commit_object">commit         object</a>). This is sometimes useful when you are interested only in the
1163         recent history of a project even though the real history recorded in the
1164         upstream is much larger. A shallow repository
1165         is created by giving the <tt>--depth</tt> option to <a href="git-clone.html">git-clone(1)</a>, and
1166         its history can be later deepened with <a href="git-fetch.html">git-fetch(1)</a>.
1167 </p>
1168 </dd>
1169 <dt class="hdlist1">
1170 <a id="def_symref"></a>symref
1171 </dt>
1172 <dd>
1173 <p>
1174         Symbolic reference: instead of containing the <a href="#def_SHA1">SHA1</a>
1175         id itself, it is of the format <em>ref: refs/some/thing</em> and when
1176         referenced, it recursively dereferences to this reference.
1177         <em><a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a></em> is a prime example of a symref. Symbolic
1178         references are manipulated with the <a href="git-symbolic-ref.html">git-symbolic-ref(1)</a>
1179         command.
1180 </p>
1181 </dd>
1182 <dt class="hdlist1">
1183 <a id="def_tag"></a>tag
1184 </dt>
1185 <dd>
1186 <p>
1187         A <a href="#def_ref">ref</a> pointing to a <a href="#def_tag_object">tag</a> or
1188         <a href="#def_commit_object">commit object</a>. In contrast to a <a href="#def_head">head</a>,
1189         a tag is not changed by a <a href="#def_commit">commit</a>. Tags (not
1190         <a href="#def_tag_object">tag objects</a>) are stored in <tt>$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/</tt>. A
1191         git tag has nothing to do with a Lisp tag (which would be
1192         called an <a href="#def_object_type">object type</a> in git&#8217;s context). A
1193         tag is most typically used to mark a particular point in the
1194         commit ancestry <a href="#def_chain">chain</a>.
1195 </p>
1196 </dd>
1197 <dt class="hdlist1">
1198 <a id="def_tag_object"></a>tag object
1199 </dt>
1200 <dd>
1201 <p>
1202         An <a href="#def_object">object</a> containing a <a href="#def_ref">ref</a> pointing to
1203         another object, which can contain a message just like a
1204         <a href="#def_commit_object">commit object</a>. It can also contain a (PGP)
1205         signature, in which case it is called a "signed tag object".
1206 </p>
1207 </dd>
1208 <dt class="hdlist1">
1209 <a id="def_topic_branch"></a>topic branch
1210 </dt>
1211 <dd>
1212 <p>
1213         A regular git <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> that is used by a developer to
1214         identify a conceptual line of development. Since branches are very easy
1215         and inexpensive, it is often desirable to have several small branches
1216         that each contain very well defined concepts or small incremental yet
1217         related changes.
1218 </p>
1219 </dd>
1220 <dt class="hdlist1">
1221 <a id="def_tree"></a>tree
1222 </dt>
1223 <dd>
1224 <p>
1225         Either a <a href="#def_working_tree">working tree</a>, or a <a href="#def_tree_object">tree         object</a> together with the dependent <a href="#def_blob_object">blob</a> and tree objects
1226         (i.e. a stored representation of a working tree).
1227 </p>
1228 </dd>
1229 <dt class="hdlist1">
1230 <a id="def_tree_object"></a>tree object
1231 </dt>
1232 <dd>
1233 <p>
1234         An <a href="#def_object">object</a> containing a list of file names and modes along
1235         with refs to the associated blob and/or tree objects. A
1236         <a href="#def_tree">tree</a> is equivalent to a <a href="#def_directory">directory</a>.
1237 </p>
1238 </dd>
1239 <dt class="hdlist1">
1240 <a id="def_tree-ish"></a>tree-ish
1241 </dt>
1242 <dd>
1243 <p>
1244         A <a href="#def_ref">ref</a> pointing to either a <a href="#def_commit_object">commit         object</a>, a <a href="#def_tree_object">tree object</a>, or a <a href="#def_tag_object">tag         object</a> pointing to a tag or commit or tree object.
1245 </p>
1246 </dd>
1247 <dt class="hdlist1">
1248 <a id="def_unmerged_index"></a>unmerged index
1249 </dt>
1250 <dd>
1251 <p>
1252         An <a href="#def_index">index</a> which contains unmerged
1253         <a href="#def_index_entry">index entries</a>.
1254 </p>
1255 </dd>
1256 <dt class="hdlist1">
1257 <a id="def_unreachable_object"></a>unreachable object
1258 </dt>
1259 <dd>
1260 <p>
1261         An <a href="#def_object">object</a> which is not <a href="#def_reachable">reachable</a> from a
1262         <a href="#def_branch">branch</a>, <a href="#def_tag">tag</a>, or any other reference.
1263 </p>
1264 </dd>
1265 <dt class="hdlist1">
1266 <a id="def_upstream_branch"></a>upstream branch
1267 </dt>
1268 <dd>
1269 <p>
1270         The default <a href="#def_branch">branch</a> that is merged into the branch in
1271         question (or the branch in question is rebased onto). It is configured
1272         via branch.&lt;name&gt;.remote and branch.&lt;name&gt;.merge. If the upstream branch
1273         of <em>A</em> is <em>origin/B</em> sometimes we say "<em>A</em> is tracking <em>origin/B</em>".
1274 </p>
1275 </dd>
1276 <dt class="hdlist1">
1277 <a id="def_working_tree"></a>working tree
1278 </dt>
1279 <dd>
1280 <p>
1281         The tree of actual checked out files.  The working tree normally
1282         contains the contents of the <a href="#def_HEAD">HEAD</a> commit&#8217;s tree,
1283         plus any local changes that you have made but not yet committed.
1284 </p>
1285 </dd>
1286 </dl></div>
1287 </div>
1288 <h2 id="_see_also">SEE ALSO</h2>
1289 <div class="sectionbody">
1290 <div class="paragraph"><p><a href="gittutorial.html">gittutorial(7)</a>,
1291 <a href="gittutorial-2.html">gittutorial-2(7)</a>,
1292 <a href="gitcvs-migration.html">gitcvs-migration(7)</a>,
1293 <a href="everyday.html">Everyday git</a>,
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