6 git - the stupid content tracker
12 'git' [--version] [--exec-path[=GIT_EXEC_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:v1.6.0.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.6.0.6]
49 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.6.txt[1.6.0.6],
50 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.5.txt[1.6.0.5],
51 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.4.txt[1.6.0.4],
52 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.3.txt[1.6.0.3],
53 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.2.txt[1.6.0.2],
54 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.1.txt[1.6.0.1],
55 link:RelNotes-1.6.0.txt[1.6.0].
57 * link:v1.5.6.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.6.6]
60 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.6.txt[1.5.6.6],
61 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.5.txt[1.5.6.5],
62 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.4.txt[1.5.6.4],
63 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.3.txt[1.5.6.3],
64 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.2.txt[1.5.6.2],
65 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.1.txt[1.5.6.1],
66 link:RelNotes-1.5.6.txt[1.5.6].
68 * link:v1.5.5.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.5.6]
71 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.6.txt[1.5.5.6],
72 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.5.txt[1.5.5.5],
73 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.4.txt[1.5.5.4],
74 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.3.txt[1.5.5.3],
75 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.2.txt[1.5.5.2],
76 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.1.txt[1.5.5.1],
77 link:RelNotes-1.5.5.txt[1.5.5].
79 * link:v1.5.4.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.4.7]
82 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.7.txt[1.5.4.7],
83 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.6.txt[1.5.4.6],
84 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.5.txt[1.5.4.5],
85 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.4.txt[1.5.4.4],
86 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.3.txt[1.5.4.3],
87 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.2.txt[1.5.4.2],
88 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.1.txt[1.5.4.1],
89 link:RelNotes-1.5.4.txt[1.5.4].
91 * link:v1.5.3.8/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.3.8]
94 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.8.txt[1.5.3.8],
95 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.7.txt[1.5.3.7],
96 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.6.txt[1.5.3.6],
97 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.5.txt[1.5.3.5],
98 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.4.txt[1.5.3.4],
99 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.3.txt[1.5.3.3],
100 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.2.txt[1.5.3.2],
101 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.1.txt[1.5.3.1],
102 link:RelNotes-1.5.3.txt[1.5.3].
104 * link:v1.5.2.5/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.2.5]
107 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.5.txt[1.5.2.5],
108 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.4.txt[1.5.2.4],
109 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.3.txt[1.5.2.3],
110 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.2.txt[1.5.2.2],
111 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.1.txt[1.5.2.1],
112 link:RelNotes-1.5.2.txt[1.5.2].
114 * link:v1.5.1.6/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.1.6]
117 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.6.txt[1.5.1.6],
118 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.5.txt[1.5.1.5],
119 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.4.txt[1.5.1.4],
120 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.3.txt[1.5.1.3],
121 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.2.txt[1.5.1.2],
122 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.1.txt[1.5.1.1],
123 link:RelNotes-1.5.1.txt[1.5.1].
125 * link:v1.5.0.7/git.html[documentation for release 1.5.0.7]
128 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.7.txt[1.5.0.7],
129 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.6.txt[1.5.0.6],
130 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.5.txt[1.5.0.5],
131 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.3.txt[1.5.0.3],
132 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.2.txt[1.5.0.2],
133 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.1.txt[1.5.0.1],
134 link:RelNotes-1.5.0.txt[1.5.0].
136 * documentation for release link:v1.4.4.4/git.html[1.4.4.4],
137 link:v1.3.3/git.html[1.3.3],
138 link:v1.2.6/git.html[1.2.6],
139 link:v1.0.13/git.html[1.0.13].
148 Prints the git suite version that the 'git' program came from.
151 Prints the synopsis and a list of the most commonly used
152 commands. If the option '--all' or '-a' is given then all
153 available commands are printed. If a git command is named this
154 option will bring up the manual page for that command.
156 Other options are available to control how the manual page is
157 displayed. See linkgit:git-help[1] for more information,
158 because `git --help ...` is converted internally into `git
162 Path to wherever your core git programs are installed.
163 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_EXEC_PATH
164 environment variable. If no path is given, 'git' will print
165 the current setting and then exit.
169 Pipe all output into 'less' (or if set, $PAGER).
172 Do not pipe git output into a pager.
175 Set the path to the repository. This can also be controlled by
176 setting the GIT_DIR environment variable. It can be an absolute
177 path or relative path to current working directory.
180 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
181 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
182 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
183 This can also be controlled by setting the GIT_WORK_TREE
184 environment variable and the core.worktree configuration
185 variable. It can be an absolute path or relative path to
186 the directory specified by --git-dir or GIT_DIR.
187 Note: If --git-dir or GIT_DIR are specified but none of
188 --work-tree, GIT_WORK_TREE and core.worktree is specified,
189 the current working directory is regarded as the top directory
190 of your working tree.
193 Treat the repository as a bare repository. If GIT_DIR
194 environment is not set, it is set to the current working
198 FURTHER DOCUMENTATION
199 ---------------------
201 See the references above to get started using git. The following is
202 probably more detail than necessary for a first-time user.
204 The link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
205 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7] both provide
206 introductions to the underlying git architecture.
208 See also the link:howto-index.html[howto] documents for some useful
211 The internals are documented in the
212 link:technical/api-index.html[GIT API documentation].
217 We divide git into high level ("porcelain") commands and low level
218 ("plumbing") commands.
220 High-level commands (porcelain)
221 -------------------------------
223 We separate the porcelain commands into the main commands and some
224 ancillary user utilities.
226 Main porcelain commands
227 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
229 include::cmds-mainporcelain.txt[]
235 include::cmds-ancillarymanipulators.txt[]
239 include::cmds-ancillaryinterrogators.txt[]
242 Interacting with Others
243 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
245 These commands are to interact with foreign SCM and with other
246 people via patch over e-mail.
248 include::cmds-foreignscminterface.txt[]
251 Low-level commands (plumbing)
252 -----------------------------
254 Although git includes its
255 own porcelain layer, its low-level commands are sufficient to support
256 development of alternative porcelains. Developers of such porcelains
257 might start by reading about linkgit:git-update-index[1] and
258 linkgit:git-read-tree[1].
260 The interface (input, output, set of options and the semantics)
261 to these low-level commands are meant to be a lot more stable
262 than Porcelain level commands, because these commands are
263 primarily for scripted use. The interface to Porcelain commands
264 on the other hand are subject to change in order to improve the
267 The following description divides
268 the low-level commands into commands that manipulate objects (in
269 the repository, index, and working tree), commands that interrogate and
270 compare objects, and commands that move objects and references between
274 Manipulation commands
275 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
277 include::cmds-plumbingmanipulators.txt[]
280 Interrogation commands
281 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
283 include::cmds-plumbinginterrogators.txt[]
285 In general, the interrogate commands do not touch the files in
289 Synching repositories
290 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
292 include::cmds-synchingrepositories.txt[]
294 The following are helper programs used by the above; end users
295 typically do not use them directly.
297 include::cmds-synchelpers.txt[]
300 Internal helper commands
301 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
303 These are internal helper commands used by other commands; end
304 users typically do not use them directly.
306 include::cmds-purehelpers.txt[]
309 Configuration Mechanism
310 -----------------------
312 Starting from 0.99.9 (actually mid 0.99.8.GIT), `.git/config` file
313 is used to hold per-repository configuration options. It is a
314 simple text file modeled after `.ini` format familiar to some
315 people. Here is an example:
319 # A '#' or ';' character indicates a comment.
324 ; Don't trust file modes
329 name = "Junio C Hamano"
330 email = "junkio@twinsun.com"
334 Various commands read from the configuration file and adjust
335 their operation accordingly.
338 Identifier Terminology
339 ----------------------
341 Indicates the object name for any type of object.
344 Indicates a blob object name.
347 Indicates a tree object name.
350 Indicates a commit object name.
353 Indicates a tree, commit or tag object name. A
354 command that takes a <tree-ish> argument ultimately wants to
355 operate on a <tree> object but automatically dereferences
356 <commit> and <tag> objects that point at a <tree>.
359 Indicates a commit or tag object name. A
360 command that takes a <commit-ish> argument ultimately wants to
361 operate on a <commit> object but automatically dereferences
362 <tag> objects that point at a <commit>.
365 Indicates that an object type is required.
366 Currently one of: `blob`, `tree`, `commit`, or `tag`.
369 Indicates a filename - almost always relative to the
370 root of the tree structure `GIT_INDEX_FILE` describes.
374 Any git command accepting any <object> can also use the following
378 indicates the head of the current branch (i.e. the
379 contents of `$GIT_DIR/HEAD`).
383 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags/<tag>`).
387 (i.e. the contents of `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads/<head>`).
389 For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see
390 "SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in linkgit:git-rev-parse[1].
393 File/Directory Structure
394 ------------------------
396 Please see the linkgit:gitrepository-layout[5] document.
398 Read linkgit:githooks[5] for more details about each hook.
400 Higher level SCMs may provide and manage additional information in the
406 Please see linkgit:gitglossary[7].
409 Environment Variables
410 ---------------------
411 Various git commands use the following environment variables:
415 These environment variables apply to 'all' core git commands. Nb: it
416 is worth noting that they may be used/overridden by SCMS sitting above
417 git so take care if using Cogito etc.
420 This environment allows the specification of an alternate
421 index file. If not specified, the default of `$GIT_DIR/index`
424 'GIT_OBJECT_DIRECTORY'::
425 If the object storage directory is specified via this
426 environment variable then the sha1 directories are created
427 underneath - otherwise the default `$GIT_DIR/objects`
430 'GIT_ALTERNATE_OBJECT_DIRECTORIES'::
431 Due to the immutable nature of git objects, old objects can be
432 archived into shared, read-only directories. This variable
433 specifies a ":" separated (on Windows ";" separated) list
434 of git object directories which can be used to search for git
435 objects. New objects will not be written to these directories.
438 If the 'GIT_DIR' environment variable is set then it
439 specifies a path to use instead of the default `.git`
440 for the base of the repository.
443 Set the path to the working tree. The value will not be
444 used in combination with repositories found automatically in
445 a .git directory (i.e. $GIT_DIR is not set).
446 This can also be controlled by the '--work-tree' command line
447 option and the core.worktree configuration variable.
449 'GIT_CEILING_DIRECTORIES'::
450 This should be a colon-separated list of absolute paths.
451 If set, it is a list of directories that git should not chdir
452 up into while looking for a repository directory.
453 It will not exclude the current working directory or
454 a GIT_DIR set on the command line or in the environment.
455 (Useful for excluding slow-loading network directories.)
462 'GIT_COMMITTER_NAME'::
463 'GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL'::
464 'GIT_COMMITTER_DATE'::
466 see linkgit:git-commit-tree[1]
471 Only valid setting is "--unified=??" or "-u??" to set the
472 number of context lines shown when a unified diff is created.
473 This takes precedence over any "-U" or "--unified" option
474 value passed on the git diff command line.
476 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF'::
477 When the environment variable 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is set, the
478 program named by it is called, instead of the diff invocation
479 described above. For a path that is added, removed, or modified,
480 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 7 parameters:
482 path old-file old-hex old-mode new-file new-hex new-mode
486 <old|new>-file:: are files GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF can use to read the
487 contents of <old|new>,
488 <old|new>-hex:: are the 40-hexdigit SHA1 hashes,
489 <old|new>-mode:: are the octal representation of the file modes.
492 The file parameters can point at the user's working file
493 (e.g. `new-file` in "git-diff-files"), `/dev/null` (e.g. `old-file`
494 when a new file is added), or a temporary file (e.g. `old-file` in the
495 index). 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' should not worry about unlinking the
496 temporary file --- it is removed when 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' exits.
498 For a path that is unmerged, 'GIT_EXTERNAL_DIFF' is called with 1
503 'GIT_MERGE_VERBOSITY'::
504 A number controlling the amount of output shown by
505 the recursive merge strategy. Overrides merge.verbosity.
506 See linkgit:git-merge[1]
509 This environment variable overrides `$PAGER`. If it is set
510 to an empty string or to the value "cat", git will not launch
511 a pager. See also the `core.pager` option in
512 linkgit:git-config[1].
515 If this environment variable is set then 'git-fetch'
516 and 'git-push' will use this command instead
517 of 'ssh' when they need to connect to a remote system.
518 The '$GIT_SSH' command will be given exactly two arguments:
519 the 'username@host' (or just 'host') from the URL and the
520 shell command to execute on that remote system.
522 To pass options to the program that you want to list in GIT_SSH
523 you will need to wrap the program and options into a shell script,
524 then set GIT_SSH to refer to the shell script.
526 Usually it is easier to configure any desired options through your
527 personal `.ssh/config` file. Please consult your ssh documentation
531 If this environment variable is set to "1", then commands such
532 as 'git-blame' (in incremental mode), 'git-rev-list', 'git-log',
533 and 'git-whatchanged' will force a flush of the output stream
534 after each commit-oriented record have been flushed. If this
535 variable is set to "0", the output of these commands will be done
536 using completely buffered I/O. If this environment variable is
537 not set, git will choose buffered or record-oriented flushing
538 based on whether stdout appears to be redirected to a file or not.
541 If this variable is set to "1", "2" or "true" (comparison
542 is case insensitive), git will print `trace:` messages on
543 stderr telling about alias expansion, built-in command
544 execution and external command execution.
545 If this variable is set to an integer value greater than 1
546 and lower than 10 (strictly) then git will interpret this
547 value as an open file descriptor and will try to write the
548 trace messages into this file descriptor.
549 Alternatively, if this variable is set to an absolute path
550 (starting with a '/' character), git will interpret this
551 as a file path and will try to write the trace messages
554 Discussion[[Discussion]]
555 ------------------------
557 More detail on the following is available from the
558 link:user-manual.html#git-concepts[git concepts chapter of the
559 user-manual] and linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7].
561 A git project normally consists of a working directory with a ".git"
562 subdirectory at the top level. The .git directory contains, among other
563 things, a compressed object database representing the complete history
564 of the project, an "index" file which links that history to the current
565 contents of the working tree, and named pointers into that history such
566 as tags and branch heads.
568 The object database contains objects of three main types: blobs, which
569 hold file data; trees, which point to blobs and other trees to build up
570 directory hierarchies; and commits, which each reference a single tree
571 and some number of parent commits.
573 The commit, equivalent to what other systems call a "changeset" or
574 "version", represents a step in the project's history, and each parent
575 represents an immediately preceding step. Commits with more than one
576 parent represent merges of independent lines of development.
578 All objects are named by the SHA1 hash of their contents, normally
579 written as a string of 40 hex digits. Such names are globally unique.
580 The entire history leading up to a commit can be vouched for by signing
581 just that commit. A fourth object type, the tag, is provided for this
584 When first created, objects are stored in individual files, but for
585 efficiency may later be compressed together into "pack files".
587 Named pointers called refs mark interesting points in history. A ref
588 may contain the SHA1 name of an object or the name of another ref. Refs
589 with names beginning `ref/head/` contain the SHA1 name of the most
590 recent commit (or "head") of a branch under development. SHA1 names of
591 tags of interest are stored under `ref/tags/`. A special ref named
592 `HEAD` contains the name of the currently checked-out branch.
594 The index file is initialized with a list of all paths and, for each
595 path, a blob object and a set of attributes. The blob object represents
596 the contents of the file as of the head of the current branch. The
597 attributes (last modified time, size, etc.) are taken from the
598 corresponding file in the working tree. Subsequent changes to the
599 working tree can be found by comparing these attributes. The index may
600 be updated with new content, and new commits may be created from the
601 content stored in the index.
603 The index is also capable of storing multiple entries (called "stages")
604 for a given pathname. These stages are used to hold the various
605 unmerged version of a file when a merge is in progress.
609 * git's founding father is Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org>.
610 * The current git nurse is Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>.
611 * The git potty was written by Andreas Ericsson <ae@op5.se>.
612 * General upbringing is handled by the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
616 The documentation for git suite was started by David Greaves
617 <david@dgreaves.com>, and later enhanced greatly by the
618 contributors on the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org>.
622 linkgit:gittutorial[7], linkgit:gittutorial-2[7],
623 link:everyday.html[Everyday Git], linkgit:gitcvs-migration[7],
624 linkgit:gitglossary[7], linkgit:gitcore-tutorial[7],
625 linkgit:gitcli[7], link:user-manual.html[The Git User's Manual]
629 Part of the linkgit:git[1] suite