GIT-INIT(1)GIT-INIT(1)NAMEgit-init - Create an empty git repository or reinitialize an existing
one
SYNOPSIS
git init [-q | --quiet] [--bare] [--template=<template_directory>]
[--shared[=<permissions>]] [directory]
OPTIONS-q, --quiet
Only print error and warning messages, all other output will be
suppressed.
--bare Create a bare repository. If GIT_DIR environment is not set, it
is set to the current working directory.
--template=<template_directory>
Specify the directory from which templates will be used. (See
the "TEMPLATE DIRECTORY" section below.)
--shared[=(false|true|umask|group|all|world|everybody|0xxx)]
Specify that the git repository is to be shared amongst several
users. This allows users belonging to the same group to push
into that repository. When specified, the config variable
"core.sharedRepository" is set so that files and directories
under $GIT_DIR are created with the requested permissions. When
not specified, git will use permissions reported by umask(2).
The option can have the following values, defaulting to group if
no value is given:
o umask (or false): Use permissions reported by umask(2). The
default, when --shared is not specified.
o group (or true): Make the repository group-writable, (and g+sx,
since the git group may be not the primary group of all users). This
is used to loosen the permissions of an otherwise safe umask(2)
value. Note that the umask still applies to the other permission
bits (e.g. if umask is 0022, using group will not remove read privi-
leges from other (non-group) users). See 0xxx for how to exactly
specify the repository permissions.
o all (or world or everybody): Same as group, but make the repository
readable by all users.
o 0xxx: 0xxx is an octal number and each file will have mode 0xxx.
0xxx will override users' umask(2) value (and not only loosen per-
missions as group and all does). 0640 will create a repository which
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GIT-INIT(1)GIT-INIT(1)
is group-readable, but not group-writable or accessible to others.
0660 will create a repo that is readable and writable to the current
user and group, but inaccessible to others.
By default, the configuration flag receive.denyNonFastForwards is
enabled in shared repositories, so that you cannot force a non
fast-forwarding push into it.
If you name a (possibly non-existent) directory at the end of the com-
mand line, the command is run inside the directory (possibly after cre-
ating it).
DESCRIPTION
This command creates an empty git repository - basically a .git direc-
tory with subdirectories for objects, refs/heads, refs/tags, and tem-
plate files. An initial HEAD file that references the HEAD of the mas-
ter branch is also created.
If the $GIT_DIR environment variable is set then it specifies a path to
use instead of ./.git for the base of the repository.
If the object storage directory is specified via the $GIT_OBJECT_DIREC-
TORY environment variable then the sha1 directories are created under-
neath - otherwise the default $GIT_DIR/objects directory is used.
Running git init in an existing repository is safe. It will not over-
write things that are already there. The primary reason for rerunning
git init is to pick up newly added templates.
Note that git init is the same as git init-db. The command was primar-
ily meant to initialize the object database, but over time it has
become responsible for setting up the other aspects of the repository,
such as installing the default hooks and setting the configuration
variables. The old name is retained for backward compatibility reasons.
TEMPLATE DIRECTORY
The template directory contains files and directories that will be
copied to the $GIT_DIR after it is created.
The template directory used will (in order):
o The argument given with the --template option.
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o The contents of the $GIT_TEMPLATE_DIR environment variable.
o The init.templatedir configuration variable.
o The default template directory: /usr/local/share/git-core/templates.
The default template directory includes some directory structure, some
suggested "exclude patterns", and copies of sample "hook" files. The
suggested patterns and hook files are all modifiable and extensible.
EXAMPLES
Start a new git repository for an existing code base
.ft C
$ cd /path/to/my/codebase
$ git init (1)
$ git add . (2)
.ft
1. prepare /path/to/my/codebase/.git directory
2. add all existing file to the index
AUTHOR
Written by Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org: mailto:torvalds@osdl.org>
DOCUMENTATION
Documentation by David Greaves, Junio C Hamano and the git-list
<git@vger.kernel.org: mailto:git@vger.kernel.org>.
GIT
Part of the git(1) suite
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