Provided by: dgit_12.6_all 
NAME
dgit - git integration with the Debian archive
SYNOPSIS
dgit [dgit-opts] clone [dgit-opts] package [suite] [./dir|/dir]
dgit [dgit-opts] fetch|pull [dgit-opts] [suite]
dgit [dgit-opts] build|sbuild|build-source [build-opts]
dgit [dgit-opts] pbuilder|cowbuilder [debbuildopts]
dgit [dgit-opts] push-source|push-built [dgit-opts] [suite]
dgit [dgit-opts] rpush-source|rpush-built build-host:build-dir [push args...]
dgit [dgit-opts] action ...
DESCRIPTION
dgit allows you to treat the Debian archive as if it were a git repository. Conversely, it allows Debian
to publish the source of its packages as git branches, in a format which is directly usable by ordinary
people.
This is the command line reference. Please read the tutorial(s):
dgit-user(7) for users: edit, build and share packages
dgit-nmu-simple(7) for DDs: do a straightforward NMU
dgit-maint-native(7) for maintainers of Debian-native packages
dgit-maint-debrebase(7) for maintainers: a pure-git rebasish workflow
dgit-maint-merge(7) for maintainers: a pure-git merging workflow
dgit-maint-gbp(7) for maintainers already using git-buildpackage
dgit-sponsorship(7) for sponsors and sponsored contributors
dgit-downstream-dsc(7) setting up dgit push for a new distro
See dgit(7) for detailed information about the data model, common problems likely to arise with certain
kinds of package, etc.
OPERATIONS
dgit clone package [suite] [./dir|/dir]
Consults the archive and dgit-repos to construct the git view of history for package in suite (sid
by default) in a new directory (named ./package by default); also, downloads any necessary orig
tarballs.
The suite's git tip is left on the local branch dgit/suite ready for work, and on the
corresponding dgit remote tracking branch. The origin remote will be set up to point to the
package's dgit-repos tree for the distro to which suite belongs.
suite may be a combination of several underlying suites in the form mainsuite,subsuite...; see
COMBINED SUITES in dgit(7).
For your convenience, the vcs-git remote will be set up from the package's Vcs-Git field, if there
is one - but note that in the general case the history found there may be different to or even
disjoint from dgit's view. (See also dgit update-vcs-git.)
dgit fetch [suite]
Consults the archive and git-repos to update the git view of history for a specific suite (and
downloads any necessary orig tarballs), and updates the remote tracking branch
remotes/dgit/dgit/suite. If the current branch is dgit/suite then dgit fetch defaults to suite;
otherwise it parses debian/changelog and uses the suite specified there. suite may be a combined
suite, as for clone.
dgit pull [suite]
Does dgit fetch, and then merges the new head of the remote tracking branch
remotes/dgit/dgit/suite into the current branch.
dgit checkout suite
Checks out the local branch dgit/suite.
If the branch does not exist, dgit checkout creates it, and sets it up the same way as dgit clone
would. In that case, if the archive remote tracking branch does not exist, dgit checkout will do
a dgit fetch first.
NB: dgit checkout will only do a fetch if it has to. If you already have the suite branch, and
want to merge your branch with updates from the archive, use dgit pull.
dgit checkout will normally need to access the archive server, to canonicalise the provided suite
name. The exception is if you specify the canonical name, and the branch (or tracking branch)
already exists.
dgit build ...
Runs dpkg-buildpackage with some suitable options. Options and arguments after build will be
passed on to dpkg-buildpackage. It is not necessary to use dgit build when using dgit; it is OK
to use any approach which ensures that the generated source package corresponds to the relevant
git commit.
Tagging, signing and actually uploading should be left to dgit push.
dgit's build operations access the network, to get the -v option right. See -v, below.
dgit build-source ...
Builds the source package, and a changes file for a prospective source-only upload, using dpkg-
source. The output is left in package_version.dsc and package_version_source.changes.
Tagging, signing and actually uploading should be left to dgit push-source, or dgit push.
dgit clean
Cleans the current working tree (according to the --clean= option in force).
dgit update-vcs-git [suite|.] [--] [git fetch options]
dgit update-vcs-git [suite|.] -
Sets up, or updates the url of, the vcs-git remote, and (unless - was specified) runs git fetch on
it.
By default, the Vcs-Git field of the .dsc from Debian sid is used, as that is probably most up to
date. Another suite may be specified, or . to indicate that the Vcs-Git of the cwd's
debian/control should be used instead.
dgit help
Print a usage summary.
dgit sbuild ...
Constructs the source package, uses sbuild to do a binary build, and uses mergechanges to merge
the source and binary changes files. Options and arguments after sbuild will be passed on to
sbuild. The output is left in package_version_multi.changes.
Tagging, signing and actually uploading should be left to dgit push.
dgit pbuilder [debbuildopts]
Constructs the source package, uses pbuilder to do a binary build, and uses mergechanges to merge
the source and binary changes files. The output is left in package_version_multi.changes.
You should ensure that your dgit --build-products-dir setting matches your pbuilder --buildresult.
The debbuildopts are passed to pbuilder using its --debbuildopts option. If you want to pass
other options to pbuilder, use the --pbuilder: dgit option as described below (remember that dgit
options should appear between dgit and pbuilder).
You should ensure that in your pbuilderrc you do not have the setting SOURCE_ONLY_CHANGES=yes as
this may cause trouble.
dgit cowbuilder [debbuildopts]
Like dgit pbuilder, but uses cowbuilder instead of pbuilder.
dgit gbp-build ...
Runs git-buildpackage with some suitable options. Options and arguments after gbp-build will be
passed on to git-buildpackage.
By default this uses --quilt=gbp, so HEAD should be a git-buildpackage style branch, not a
patches-applied branch.
Tagging, signing and actually uploading should be left to dgit push.
dgit push-source [suite]
Does an `upload': sends the current HEAD to dgit-repos (as git commits), and to the archive (as a
source package, built by this command).
This is the usual way to upload to Debian. It is like saying "update the source code in the
archive to match my git HEAD, and let the autobuilders do the rest."
In more detail: dgit push-source builds a source package from HEAD. It then pushes the HEAD to
the suite's dgit-repos branch, adjusts the .changes to include any .origs which the archive lacks
and exclude .origs which the archive has (so -sa and -sd are not needed when building for dgit
push), makes a signed git tag, edits the .dsc to contain the dgit metadata field, runs debsign to
sign the upload (.dsc and .changes), pushes the signed tag, and finally uses dput to upload the
.changes to the archive.
dgit push always uses the package, suite and version specified in the debian/changelog and the
.dsc, which must agree. If the command line specifies a suite then that must match too.
When used on a git-debrebase branch, dgit calls git-debrebase to prepare the branch for source
package upload and push.
With -C, dgit push-source performs a dgit push-built, additionally ensuring that no binary
packages are uploaded.
dgit push-built [suite]
Does an `upload' of a previously built package, possibly including binaries. Sends the current
HEAD to dgit-repos (as git commits); and, sends the previously built source package and binaries
to the archive.
The package must already have been built ready for upload, with the .dsc and .changes left in the
parent directory. It is normally best to do the build with dgit too (e.g. with dgit sbuild): some
existing build tools pass unhelpful options to dpkg-source et al by default, which can result in
the built source package not being identical to the git tree.
dgit will check that the .dsc corresponds exactly to the current HEAD, ensuring that all users,
whether of the dgit git view, or of the traditional archive, see the same source package.
dgit rpush-source|rpush-built build-host:src-dir [push args...]
Pushes the contents of the specified directory on a remote machine. This is like running dgit
push on build-host with src-dir as the current directory; however, signing operations are done on
the invoking host. This allows you to do a push when the system which has the source code (and
any built binaries) has no access to the key:
1. Clone on build host (dgit clone)
2. Edit code on build host (edit, git commit)
3. Build package on build host (dgit build)
4. Test package on build host or elsewhere (dpkg -i, test)
5. Upload by invoking dgit rpush on host with your GPG key.
However, the build-host must be able to ssh to the dgit repos. If this is not already the case,
you must organise it separately, for example by the use of ssh agent forwarding.
The remaining arguments are treated just as dgit push-source or dgit push-built would handle them.
build-host and build-dir can be passed as separate arguments; this is assumed to be the case if
the first argument contains no : (except perhaps one in [ ], to support IPv6 address literals).
You will need similar enough versions of dgit on the build-host and the invocation host. The
build-host needs gnupg installed, with your public key, and that of any sponsee, in its keyring
(but not your private key, obviously).
dgit push|rpush ...
Configurable aliases for dgit push-built and dgit rpush-built. These aliases will in the future
change to mean dgit push-source and dgit rpush-source, and therefore they currently generate a
warning.
The behaviour of dgit push is controlled by the dgit.default.push-subcmd git config option:
source runs dgit push-source future default
built and runs dgit push-built
built,warn warns, and runs dgit push-built current default
reject fails
For dgit rpush, the behaviour is controlled by dgit.default.rpush-subcmd, falling back to
dgit.default.push-subcmd if that is not set. Because dgit rpush is not typically run in a git
working tree, only global git config options (and -c command line options) are relevant.
These settings can safely be passed to older dgit (via -c); the value built will be supported
indefinitely. This should be used in scripts that need to work with both old versions of dgit
(that don't have push-built) and new versions (where push-source is the default).
dgit setup-new-tree
Configure the current working tree the way that dgit clone would have set it up. Like running
dgit setup-useremail, setup-mergechangelogs and setup-gitattributes (but only does each thing if
dgit is configured to do it automatically). You can use these in any git repository, not just
ones used with the other dgit operations. Does not run update-vcs-git (as that requires Debian
packaging information).
dgit setup-useremail
Set the working tree's user.name and user.email from the distro-specific dgit configuration (dgit-
distro.distro.user-name and .user-email), or DEBFULLNAME or DEBEMAIL.
dgit setup-mergechangelogs
Configures a git merge helper for the file debian/changelog which uses dpkg-mergechangelogs.
dgit setup-gitattributes
Set up the working tree's .git/info/attributes to disable all transforming attributes for all
files. This is done by defining a macro attribute, dgit-defuse-attrs, and applying it to *. For
why, see GITATTRIBUTES in dgit(7). Note that only attributes affecting the working tree are
suppressed. git-archive may remain exciting.
If there is an existing macro attribute line [attr]dgit-defuse-attrs in .git/info/attributes, but
it is insufficient, because it was made by an earlier version of dgit and git has since introduced
new transforming attributes, this modifies the macro to disable the newer transformations.
(If there is already a macro attribute line [attr]dgit-defuse-attrs in .git/info/attributes which
does what dgit requires (whatever files it effects), this operation does nothing further. This
fact can be used to defeat or partially defeat dgit setup-gitattributes and hence dgit setup-new-
tree.)
dgit quilt-fixup
`3.0 (quilt)' format source packages need changes representing not only in-tree but also as
patches in debian/patches. dgit quilt-fixup checks whether this has been done; if not, dgit will
make appropriate patches in debian/patches and also commit the resulting changes to git.
This is normally done automatically by dgit build and dgit push.
dgit will try to turn each relevant commit in your git history into a new quilt patch. dgit
cannot convert nontrivial merges, or certain other kinds of more exotic history. If dgit can't
find a suitable linearisation of your history, by default it will fail, but you can ask it to
generate a single squashed patch instead.
When used with a git-debrebase branch, dgit will ask git-debrebase to prepare patches. However,
dgit can make patches in some situations where git-debrebase fails, so dgit quilt-fixup can be
useful in its own right. To always use dgit's own patch generator instead of git-debrebase make-
patches, pass --git-debrebase=true to dgit.
See FORMAT 3.0 (QUILT) in dgit(7).
dgit import-dsc [sub-options] ../path/to/.dsc [+|..]branch
Import a Debian-format source package, specified by its .dsc, into git, the way dgit fetch would
do.
This does about half the work of dgit fetch: it will convert the .dsc into a new, orphan git
branch. Since dgit has no access to a corresponding source package archive or knowledge of the
history it does not consider whether this version is newer than any previous import or
corresponding git branches; and it therefore does not make a pseudomerge to bind the import into
any existing git history.
Because a .dsc can contain a Dgit field naming a git commit (which you might not have), and
specifying where to find that commit (and any history rewrite table), import-dsc might need online
access. If this is a problem (or dgit's efforts to find the commit fail), consider --no-chase-
dsc-distro or --force-import-dsc-with-dgit-field.
There is only one sub-option:
--require-valid-signature causes dgit to insist that the signature on the .dsc is valid (using the
same criteria as dpkg-source -x). Otherwise, dgit tries to verify the signature but the outcome
is reported only as messages to stderr.
If branch is prefixed with + then if it already exists, it will be simply overwritten, no matter
its existing contents. If branch is prefixed with .. then if it already exists and dgit actually
imports the dsc (rather than simply reading the git commit out of the Dgit field), dgit will make
a pseudomerge so that the result is necessarily fast forward from the existing branch. Otherwise,
if branch already exists, dgit will stop with an error message.
If branch does not start with refs/, refs/heads/ is prepended.
dgit version
Prints version information and exits.
dgit clone-dgit-repos-server destdir
Tries to fetch a copy of the source code for the dgit-repos-server, as actually being used on the
dgit git server, as a git tree.
dgit print-dgit-repos-server-source-url
Prints the url used by dgit clone-dgit-repos-server. This is hopefully suitable for use as a git
remote url. It may not be usable in a browser.
dgit print-dpkg-source-ignores
Prints the -i and -I arguments which must be passed to dpkg-souce to cause it to exclude exactly
the .git directory and nothing else. The separate arguments are unquoted, separated by spaces,
and do not contain spaces.
dgit print-unapplied-treeish
Constructs a tree-ish approximating the patches-unapplied state of your 3.0 (quilt) package, and
prints the git object name to stdout. This requires appropriate .orig tarballs. This tree object
is identical to your .origs as regards upstream files. The contents of the debian subdirectory is
not interesting and should not be inspected; except that debian/patches will be identical to your
HEAD.
To make this operate off-line, the access configuration key which is used to determine the build-
products-dir is the uncanonicalised version of the suite name from the changelog, or (of course)
dgit.default.build-products-dir. See ACCESS CONFIGURATION, below.
This function is primarily provided for the benefit of git-debrebase.
OPTIONS
-kkeyid
Use keyid for signing the tag and the upload. The default comes from the distro's keyid config
setting (see CONFIGURATION, below), or failing that, the uploader trailer line in
debian/changelog.
--no-sign
does not sign tags or uploads (meaningful only with push).
-ppackage
Specifies that we should process source package package.
For dgit fetch and dgit pull, uses this value rather than looking in debian/control or
debian/changelog.
For dgit rpush, specifies that the invoking host should be willing to sign only a .dsc or .changes
file for the source package package.
--clean=git | -wg
Use git clean -xdf to clean the working tree, rather than running the package's rules clean
target.
This will delete all files which are not tracked by git. (Including any files you forgot to git
add.)
--clean=... options other than dpkg-source are useful when the package's clean target is
troublesome, or to avoid needing the build-dependencies.
dgit will only actually clean the tree if it needs to (because it needs to build the source
package or binaries from your working tree). Otherwise it will just check that there are no
untracked unignored files. See --clean=git[-ff],always, below.
--clean=git-ff | -wgf
Use git clean -xdff to clean the working tree. Like git clean -xdf but it also removes any
subdirectories containing different git trees (which only unusual packages are likely to create).
--clean=git[-ff],always | -wga | -wgfa
Like --clean=git, but always does the clean and not just a check, deleting any untracked un-
ignored files.
--clean=check | --clean=check,ignores | -wc | -wci
Merely check that the tree is clean (does not contain uncommitted files). Avoids running rules
clean, and can avoid needing the build-dependencies.
With ,ignores or -wci, untracked files covered by .gitignore are tolerated, so only files which
show up as ? in git status (ie, ones you maybe forgot to git add) are treated as a problem.
--clean=none | -wn
Do not clean the tree, nor check that it is clean. Avoids running rules clean, and can avoid
needing the build-dependencies. If there are files which are not in git, or if the build creates
such files, a subsequent dgit push will fail.
--clean=dpkg-source[-d] | -wd | -wdd
Use dpkg-buildpackage to do the clean, so that the source package is cleaned by dpkg-source
running the package's clean target. --clean=dpkg-source is the default.
Without the extra d, requires the package's build dependencies.
With ...-d or -wdd, the build-dependencies are not checked (due to passing -d to dpkg-
buildpackage), which violates policy, but may work in practice.
The rules clean target will only be run if it is needed: when dgit is going to build source or
binary packages from your working tree, rather than from your git branch (for example because of
--include-dirty or because the binary package build uses your working tree).
In all cases, dgit will check that there are (after rules clean, if applicable) no untracked un-
ignored files, in case these are files you forgot to git add. (Except that this check is not done
for a `3.0 (quilt)' package when dgit has to apply patches, dirtily, to the working tree.) If
your package does not have a good .gitignore you will probably need --clean=dpkg-source,no-check
aka -wdn.
--clean=dpkg-source[-d],no-check | -wdn | -wddn
Like --clean=dpkg-source, but does not care about untracked un-ignored files.
--clean=dpkg-source[-d],all-check | -wda | -wdda
Like --clean=dpkg-source, but fails even on ignored untracked files. This could perhaps be used
to detect bugs in your rules clean target.
-N | --new
The package is, or may be, new in this suite. Without this, dgit will refuse to push. Needing
--new is not unusual; for example, it is frequently needed for uploading to Debian experimental.
Note that dgit may be unable to access the git history for an entirely new package which has not
been accepted by the archive. So for an entirely new package you need to properly coordinate with
anyone else who might upload.
--include-dirty
Do not complain if the working tree does not match your git HEAD, and when building, include the
changes from your working tree. This can be useful with build, if you plan to commit later.
(dgit push will still ensure that the .dsc you upload and the git tree you push are identical, so
this option won't make broken pushes.)
Note that this does not prevent dgit from cleaning your tree, so if the changes in your working
tree are in the form of untracked files, those might still be deleted, especially with
--clean=git. If you want to include untracked files in the build, you can use --clean=none or
--clean=dpkg-source[-d] in addition to --include-dirty. Note that this combination can fail if
the untracked files are under debian/patches/.
--ignore-dirty
Deprecated alias for --include-dirty.
--collab-non-dgit
Make dgit push, behave more suitably for collaborating (using shared git history) with git-using
co-developers who aren't using dgit.
With this option, dgit won't mind that the git history you're using isn't necessarily fast forward
from the dgit view; instead, it will rely on the changelog to prevent accidentally overwriting
changes.
And, the synthetic commits needed to make the dgit git history fast forward will appear only on
the dgit git server, and local dgit suite branches, not on your own main branch. So they won't
end up in the maintainer-visible history, when you push your own branch to make a merge request.
This is equivalent to --split-view=always --trust-changelog.
--trust-changelog | --overwrite=previous-version
Declare that your HEAD really does contain all the (wanted) changes from all versions listed in
its changelog; or, all (wanted) changes from previous-version. This promise is needed when your
git branch is not a descendant of the version in the archive according to the git revision
history.
It is safer to specify --trust-changelog, than --overwrite=previous-version, and usually the
latter is not needed.
--trust-changelog is useful if you are the maintainer, and you have incorporated NMU changes into
your own git workflow in a way that doesn't make your branch a fast forward from the NMU. It can
also be useful when there was an upload made without dgit since the most recent upload made with
dgit.
It is also usually necessary the first time a package is pushed with dgit push to a particular
suite. See dgit-maint-*(7).
With --trust-changelog dgit will check that the version in the archive is mentioned in your
debian/changelog. (This will avoid losing changes, unless someone committed to git a finalised
changelog entry, and then made later changes to that version.)
With --overwrite=previous-version that version ought to be the version currently in the archive,
and it will be unconditionally overwritten, regardless of what's in the changelog.
These options will, if necessary, make a pseudo-merge (that is, something that looks like the
result of git merge -s ours) to stitch the archive's version into your own git history, so that
your push is a fast forward from the archive.
(In quilt mode gbp, dpm, unpatched or baredebian*, implying a split between the dgit view and the
maintainer view, the pseudo-merge will appear only in the dgit view; --split-view=always can be
used to force that behaviour, e.g. in other quilt modes.)
--overwrite without a version number is an obsolete way of specifying --trust-changelog.
--delayed=days
Upload to a DELAYED queue.
WARNING: If the maintainer responds by cancelling your upload from the queue, and does not make an
upload of their own, this will not rewind the git branch on the dgit git server. Other dgit users
will then see your push (with a warning message from dgit) even though the maintainer wanted to
abolish it. Such users might unwittingly reintroduce your changes.
If this situation arises, someone should make a suitable dgit push to update the contents of dgit-
repos to a version without the controversial changes.
--no-chase-dsc-distro
Tells dgit not to look online for additional git repositories containing information about a
particular .dsc being imported. Chasing is the default.
For most operations (such as fetch and pull), disabling chasing means dgit will access only the
git server for the distro you are directly working with, even if the .dsc was copied verbatim from
another distro. For import-dsc, disabling chasing means dgit will work completely offline.
Disabling chasing can be hazardous: if the .dsc names a git commit which has been rewritten by
those in charge of the distro, this option may prevent that rewrite from being effective. Also,
it can mean that dgit fails to find necessary git commits.
--save-dgit-view=branch|ref
Specifies that when split view is in operation, and dgit calculates (or looks up in its cache) a
dgit view corresponding to your HEAD, the dgit view will be left in ref. The specified ref is
unconditionally overwritten, so don't specify a branch you want to keep.
This option is effective only with the following operations: quilt-fixup; push; all builds. And
it is only effective when split view is actually in operation.
If ref does not start with refs/ it is taken to be a branch - i.e. refs/heads/ is prepended.
--dgit-view-save is a deprecated alias for --save-dgit-view.
--deliberately-something
Declare that you are deliberately doing something. This can be used to override safety catches,
including safety catches which relate to distro-specific policies. The use of --deliberately is
declared and published in the signed tags generated for you by dgit, so that the archive software
can give effect to your intent, and for the benefit of humans looking at the history. The
meanings of somethings understood in the context of Debian are discussed below:
--deliberately-not-fast-forward
Declare that you are deliberately rewriting history. This could be because your branch is not
fast forward from the dgit server history, or not fast forward from a locally-synthesised dsc
import.
When pushing to Debian, use this only when you are making a renewed upload of an entirely new
source package whose previous version was not accepted for release from NEW because of problems
with copyright or redistributibility; or, exceptionally, for the very first upload with dgit.
When split view is in operation, this also prevents the construction by dgit of a pseudomerge to
make the dgit view fast forwarding. Normally only one of --trust-changelog (which creates a
suitable pseudomerge) and --deliberately-not-fast-forward (which suppresses the pseudomerge and
the fast forward checks) should be needed; --trust-changelog is usually better.
--deliberately-include-questionable-history
Declare that you are deliberately including, in the git history of your current push, history
which contains a previously-submitted version of this package which was not approved (or has not
yet been approved) by the ftpmasters. When pushing to Debian, only use this option after
verifying that: none of the rejected-from-NEW (or never-accepted) versions in the git history of
your current push, were rejected by ftpmaster for copyright or redistributability reasons.
--deliberately-fresh-repo
Declare that you are deliberately rewriting history and want to throw away the existing repo. Not
relevant when pushing to Debian, as the Debian server will do this automatically when necessary.
--quilt=linear
With format `3.0 (quilt)', insist on a linear patch stack: one new patch for each relevant commit.
If such a stack cannot be generated, fail. This is the default for Debian.
HEAD should be a series of plain commits (not touching debian/patches/), and pseudomerges, with as
ancestor a patches-applied branch.
--quilt=try-linear
With format `3.0 (quilt)', prefer a linear patch stack (as with --quilt=linear) but if that
doesn't seem possible, try to generate a single squashed patch for all the changes made in git (as
with --quilt=smash). This is not a good idea for an NMU in Debian.
--quilt=smash
With format `3.0 (quilt)', assume patches-applied (as obtained from dgit clone) and generate a
single additional patch for all the changes made in git. This is not a good idea for an NMU in
Debian.
(If HEAD has any in-tree patches already, they must apply cleanly. This will be the case for any
trees produced by dgit fetch or clone; if you do not change the upstream version nor make changes
in debian/patches, it will remain true.)
--quilt=single
With format `3.0 (quilt)', assume patches-applied (as obtained from dgit clone), delete all the
existing patches, and then generate a single patch for all the changes made in git. This is not a
good idea for an NMU in Debian.
Use this instead of the single-debian-patch dpkg-source format option. That dpkg-source option
cannot handle certain changes to the tree that dpkg-source otherwise permits, and in some cases it
can generate strange source packages that dpkg-source appears to accept but which become corrupted
when people later try to modify them.
--quilt=nofix
With format `3.0 (quilt)', assume patches-applied (as obtained from dgit clone), and check that
the patch metadata is up to date. If it isn't, fail; you must then fix the metadata yourself
somehow before pushing. (NB that dpkg-source --commit will not work because the dgit git tree
does not have a .pc directory.)
--quilt=nocheck | --no-quilt-fixup
With format `3.0 (quilt)', assume that the tree is patches-applied (as obtained from dgit clone),
and assume that the patch metadata is up to date. If you use this option and the patch metadata
is out of date, dgit push will fail.
--[quilt=]gbp | --[quilt=]dpm | --quilt=unapplied | --[quilt=]baredebian[+git|+tarball]
Tell dgit that you are using a nearly-dgit-compatible git branch, aka a maintainer view, and do
not want your branch changed by dgit.
These quilt modes are known as splitting quilt modes. See --split-view, below.
--gbp (short for --quilt=gbp) is for use with git-buildpackage. Your HEAD is expected to be a
patches-unapplied git branch, except that it might contain changes to upstream .gitignore files.
This is the default for dgit gbp-build.
--dpm (short for --quilt=dpm) is for use with git-dpm. Your HEAD is expected to be a patches-
applied git branch, except that it might contain changes to upstream .gitignore files.
--quilt=unapplied specifies that your HEAD is a patches-unapplied git branch (and that any changes
to upstream .gitignore files are represented as patches in debian/patches).
--quilt=baredebian (or its alias --quilt=baredebian+git) specifies that your HEAD contains only a
debian/ directory, with any changes to upstream files represented as patches in debian/patches.
The upstream source must be available in git, by default, in a suitably named git tag; see
--upstream-commitish. In this mode, dgit cannot check that all edited upstream files are properly
represented as patches: dgit relies on debian/patches being correct.
--quilt=baredebian+tarball is like --quilt=baredebian, but is used when there is no appropriate
upstream git history. To construct the dgit view, dgit will import your orig tarballs' contents
into git. In this mode, dgit cannot check that the upstream parts of your upload correspond to
what you intend: dgit relies on the right orig tarball(s) existing, and debian/patches being
correct.
With --quilt=gbp|dpm|unapplied|baredebian*, dgit push (or precursors like quilt-fixup and build)
will automatically generate a conversion of your git branch into the right form. dgit push will
push the dgit-compatible form (the dgit view) to the dgit git server. The dgit view will be
visible to you in the dgit remote tracking branches, but your own branch will not be modified.
dgit push will create a tag debian/version for the maintainer view, and the dgit tag
archive/debian/version for the dgit view. dgit quilt-fixup will merely do some checks, and cache
the maintainer view.
If you have a branch like this it is essential to specify the appropriate --quilt= option! This
is because it is not always possible to tell: a patches-unapplied git branch of a package with one
patch, for example, looks very like a patches-applied branch where the user has used git revert to
undo the patch, expecting to actually revert it. However, if you fail to specify the right
--quilt option, and you aren't too lucky, dgit will notice the problem and stop, with a useful
hint.
-ddistro | --distro=distro
Specifies that the suite to be operated on is part of distro distro. This overrides the default
value found from the git config option dgit-suite.suite.distro. The only effect is that other
configuration variables (used for accessing the archive and dgit-repos) used are dgit-
distro.distro.*.
If your suite is part of a distro that dgit already knows about, you can use this option to make
dgit work even if your dgit doesn't know about the suite. For example, specifying -ddebian will
work when the suite is an unknown suite in the Debian archive.
To define a new distro it is necessary to define methods and URLs for fetching (and, for dgit
push, altering) a variety of information both in the archive and in dgit-repos. How to set this
up is not yet documented.
--split-view=auto|always|never
Controls whether dgit operates a split view, separating your own branch (as Debian maintainer)
from that shown to users of dgit clone and dgit fetch.
When split view is in operation dgit will not make or merge any commits onto your own branch.
Specifically, only the dgit view will contain dgit's pseudomerges, which bring into the git
history previous uploads made with dgit push, and any commits in debian/patches required to make a
correct `3.0 (quilt)' source package.
auto is the default, and splits the view only when needed: i.e., when you are working with a `3.0
(quilt)' source package and a splitting quilt mode: --[quilt=]gbp, dpm, unpatched or baredebian*.
always splits the view regardless of the source format and the quilt mode.
never will cause dgit to fail if split view is needed.
When split view is in operation, the dgit view is visible in your local git clone, but only in
refs specific to dgit: notably remotes/dgit/dgit/suite and archive/distro/version.
Note that split view does not affect dgit fetch, and is not compatible with dgit pull.
-Cchangesfile
Specifies the .changes file which is to be uploaded. By default dgit push looks for a single
.changes file in the parent directory whose filename suggests it is for the right package and
version.
If the specified changesfile pathname contains slashes, the directory part is also used as the
value for --build-products-dir; otherwise, the changes file is expected in that directory (by
default, in ..).
--upstream-commitish=upstream
For use with --quilt=baredebian only. Specifies the commit containing the upstream source. This
commit must be identical to your .orig tarball. The default is to look for one of the git tags U
vU upstream/U (in that order), where U is the upstream version.
--rm-old-changes
When doing a build, delete any changes files matching package_version_*.changes before starting.
This ensures that dgit push (and dgit sbuild) will be able to unambiguously identify the relevant
changes files from the most recent build, even if there have been previous builds with different
tools or options. The default is not to remove, but --no-rm-old-changes can be used to override a
previous --rm-old-changes or the .rm-old-changes configuration setting.
Note that dgit push-source will always find the right .changes, regardless of this option.
--build-products-dir=directory
Specifies where to find and create tarballs, binary packages, source packages, .changes files, and
so on.
By default, dgit uses the parent directory (..).
Changing this setting may necessitate moving .orig tarballs to the new directory, so it is
probably best to use the dgit.default.build-products-dir configuration setting (see CONFIGURATION,
below) which this command line option overrides).
--no-rm-on-error
Do not delete the destination directory if clone fails.
--dep14tag | --no-dep14tag
Whether to push a DEP-14 tag (eg debian/version) as well as a dgit tag (eg
archive/debian/version).
Pushing a DEP-14 tag is the default. In split view mode, a DEP-14 tag is always pushed,
regardless of this option.
--always-dep14tag is an obsolete alias for --dep14tag, retained for compatibility.
--dep14tag-reuse=must|if-exists|replace-unsuitable|replace
Whether to use an existing DEP-14 tag, or make a fresh one. Ignored if no DEP-14 tag is to be
pushed.
--dep14tag-reuse=must
Push an existing tag DEP-14 tag. If there is no existing tag, or the existing tag is
unsuitable, fail.
--dep14tag-reuse=if-exists
Push an existing tag DEP-14 tag, if it exists. If there is no existing tag, make one. If
there is an existing tag but it is unsuitable, fail.
This is the default.
--dep14tag-reuse=replace-unsuitable
Push an existing tag DEP-14 tag, if it exists and is suitable. If there is no existing
tag, or it's unsuitable, make a fresh tag, overwriting the corresponding git ref, and thus
deleting any old tag.
--dep14tag-reuse=replace
Always make a fresh DEP-14 tag, overwriting the corresponding git ref, and thus deleting
any old tag.
This was the default in dgit 11 and earlier.
--dep14tag-verify | --no-dep14tag-verify
Whether to verify an existing DEP-14 tag, as part of the suitability check.
The default is to consider an unsigned tag suitable (and not verify a signed one).
Note that any DEP-14 tag being pushed will be, effectively, countersigned: the hash of the DEP-14
tag object (if there is one) is part of the metadata in the dgit view archive/ tag message.
-D Prints debugging information to stderr. Repeating the option produces more output (currently, up
to -DDDD is meaningfully different).
--keep-playground|--no--keep-playground
Controls whether to retain the "playground" working directory .git/dgit/unpack even on success,
for examination and debugging. The default is --no-keep-playground which deletes the directory
after a successful execution.
-cname=value
Specifies a git configuration option, to be used for this run. dgit itself is also controlled by
git configuration options.
-vversion|_ | --since-version=version|_
Specifies the -vversion option to pass to dpkg-genchanges, during builds. Changes (from
debian/changelog) since this version will be included in the built changes file, and hence in the
upload. If this option is not specified, dgit will query the archive and use the latest version
uploaded to the intended suite.
Specifying _ inhibits this, so that no -v option will be passed to dpkg-genchanges (and as a
result, only the last stanza from debian/changelog will be used for the build and upload).
-mmaintaineraddress
Passed to dpkg-genchanges (eventually).
--ch:option
Specifies a single additional option to pass, eventually, to dpkg-genchanges.
Options which are safe to pass include -C (and also -si -sa -sd although these should never be
necessary with Debian since dgit automatically calculates whether .origs need to be uploaded.)
For other options the caveat below applies.
--curl:option | --dput:option |...
Specifies a single additional option to pass to curl, dput, debsign, dpkg-source, dpkg-
buildpackage, dpkg-genchanges, sbuild, pbuilder, cowbuilder, ssh, dgit, git-debrebase, apt-get,
apt-cache, gbp-pq, gbp-build, or mergechanges. Can be repeated as necessary.
Use of this ability should not normally be necessary. It is provided for working around bugs, or
other unusual situations. If you use these options, you may violate dgit's assumptions about the
behaviour of its subprograms and cause lossage.
For dpkg-buildpackage, dpkg-genchanges, mergechanges and sbuild, the option applies only when the
program is invoked directly by dgit. Usually, for passing options to dpkg-genchanges, you should
use --ch:option.
Specifying --git is not effective for some lower-level read-only git operations performed by dgit,
and also not when git is invoked by another program run by dgit.
See notes below regarding ssh and dgit.
NB that --gpg:option is not supported (because debsign does not have that facility). But see -k
and the keyid distro config setting.
--curl!:option | --dput!:option |...
Specifies an option to remove from the command line for a program called by dgit, as for
--program:option (and the same caveats apply).
Any options or arguments exactly identical to option are removed. (It is not an error if there
were none.)
This can only be used to delete options which are always passed by default by dgit, or to undo a
previous --program:option. It cannot be used to override option(s) dynamically decided on by
dgit.
--curl=program | --dput=program |...
Specifies alternative programs to use instead of curl, dput, debsign, dpkg-source, dpkg-
buildpackage, dpkg-genbuildinfo, dpkg-genchanges, dpkg-query, sbuild, pbuilder, cowbuilder, gpg,
ssh, dgit, git-debrebase, apt-get, apt-cache, git, gbp-pq, gbp-build, or mergechanges.
For dpkg-buildpackage, dpkg-genbuildinfo, dpkg-genchanges, dpkg-query, mergechanges and sbuild,
this applies only when the program is invoked directly by dgit.
For dgit, specifies the command to run on the remote host when dgit rpush needs to invoke a remote
copy of itself. (dgit also reinvokes itself as the EDITOR for dpkg-source --commit; this is done
using argv[0], and is not affected by --dgit=).
gbp-build's value is used instead of gbp build or git-buildpackage. (The default is the latter
unless the former exists on PATH.) gbp-pq's value is used instead of gbp pq. In both cases,
unusually, the specified value is split on whitespace to produce a command and possibly some
options and/or arguments.
For pbuilder and cowbuilder, the defaults are sudo -E pbuilder and sudo -E cowbuilder
respectively. Like with gbp-build and gbp pq, the specified value is split on whitespace.
For ssh, the default value is taken from the DGIT_SSH or GIT_SSH environment variables, if set
(see below). And, for ssh, when accessing the archive and dgit-repos, this command line setting
is overridden by the git config variables dgit-distro.distro.ssh and .dgit.default.ssh (which can
in turn be overridden with -c). Also, when dgit is using git to access dgit-repos, only git's
idea of what ssh to use (eg, GIT_SSH) is relevant.
--existing-package=package
dgit push needs to canonicalise the suite name. Sometimes, dgit lacks a way to ask the archive to
do this without knowing the name of an existing package. Without --new we can just use the
package we are trying to push. But with --new that will not work, so we guess dpkg or use the
value of this option. This option is not needed with the default mechanisms for accessing the
archive.
-h|--help
Print a usage summary.
--initiator-tempdir=directory
dgit rpush uses a temporary directory on the invoking (signing) host. This option causes dgit to
use directory instead. Furthermore, the specified directory will be emptied, removed and
recreated before dgit starts, rather than removed after dgit finishes. The directory specified
must be an absolute pathname.
--dry-run | -n
Go through the motions, fetching all information needed, but do not actually update the output(s).
For push, dgit does the required checks and leaves the new .dsc and .changes in temporary files,
but does not sign, tag, push or upload.
This is not a very good simulation. It can easily go wrong in ways that a for-real push wouldn't.
--damp-run | -L
Go through many more of the motions: do everything that doesn't involve either signing things, or
making changes on the public servers.
Using this will make unsigned tags, and possibly other local changes, that will get in the way of
a for-real push. So be prepared to burn the version number you're using.
--force-something
Instructs dgit to try to proceed despite detecting what it thinks is going to be a fatal problem.
This is probably not going to work. These options are provided as an escape hatch, in case dgit
is confused. (They might also be useful for testing error cases.)
--force-import-dsc-with-dgit-field
Tell dgit import-dsc to treat a .dsc with a Dgit field like one without it. The result is a fresh
import, discarding the git history that the person who pushed that .dsc was working with.
--force-reusing-version
Carry on even though this involves reusing a version number of a previous push or upload. It is
normally best to give different versions different numbers. Some servers (including, usually, the
Debian server) will reject attempts to reuse or replace already-pushed versions.
--force-uploading-binaries
Carry on and upload binaries even though dgit thinks your distro does not permit that.
--force-uploading-source-only
Carry on and do a source-only upload, without any binaries, even though dgit thinks your distro
does not permit that, or does not permit that in this situation.
--force-unrepresentable
Carry on even if dgit thinks that your git tree contains changes (relative to your .orig tarballs)
which dpkg-source is not able to represent. Your build or push will probably fail later.
--force-changes-origs-exactly
Use the set of .origs specified in your .changes, exactly, without regard to what is in the
archive already. The archive may well reject your upload.
--force-unsupported-source-format
Carry on despite dgit not understanding your source package format. dgit will probably mishandle
it.
--force-dsc-changes-mismatch
Do not check whether .dsc and .changes match. The archive will probably reject your upload.
--force-import-gitapply-absurd | --force-import-gitapply-no-absurd
Force on or off the use of the absurd git-apply emulation when running gbp pq import when
importing a package from a .dsc. See Debian bug #841867.
--force-push-tainted
Go ahead and try to push even tainted git objects hat the server says it is going to reject, but
without declaring any --deliberately. This option is provided for testing or strange situations,
and is not the way to override the taint check: using it will probably just fail later, burning
the version number you are using. Use the appropriate --deliberately option instead.
--for-push
Override the dgit-distro.distro.readonly configuration setting, to specify that we have read/write
access and should use the corresponding git and achieve access approach even if the operation is a
read-only one.
--expect-suite=suite
Specifies that the dgit rpush invoking host should be willing to sign only a .dsc or .changes file
with target suite suite.
--expect-version=version
Specifies that the dgit rpush invoking host should be willing to sign only a .dsc or .changes file
with version version.
--tag2upload-builder-mode, --tag2upload-upstream=TAG, --tag2upload-upstream-commit=COMMIT
These options activate configuration and behavioural changes needed when the tag2upload robot
invokes dgit. They are not intended for users.
--allow-unrelated-histories
Pass --allow-unrelated-histories to git merge command when running dgit pull. This makes dgit
pull easier to use when the main repository has never been used with dgit and hence has unrelated
histories.
--dsc-control-add=FIELD=VALUE
Add an additional control file field to the .dsc.
This is similar to using --dpkg-source:-DFIELD=VALUE except that (i) you can only add an
additional field, not override a value; and (ii) for an rpush, the field is added on the invoking
(signing) host, not the build host.
--ch-control-add=FIELD=VALUE
Like --dsc-control-add but for adding fields to the .changes file.
CONFIGURATION
dgit can be configured via the git config system. You may set keys with git-config (either in system-
global or per-tree configuration), or provide -ckey=value on the dgit command line.
Settings likely to be useful for an end user include:
dgit.default.build-products-dir
Specifies where to find the built files to be uploaded, when --build-products-dir is not
specified. The default is the parent directory (..).
dgit-suite.suite.distro distro
Specifies the distro for a suite. dgit keys off the suite name (which appears in changelogs
etc.), and uses that to determine the distro which is involved. The config used is thereafter
that for the distro.
suite may be a glob pattern.
dgit.default.distro distro
The default distro for an unknown suite.
This is only used if no /usr/share/distro-info/somedistro.csv mentions the specified suite.
dgit.default.default-suite suite
The default suite (eg for clone).
dgit.default.*
for each dgit-distro.distro.*, the default value used if there is no distro-specific setting.
dgit-distro.distro.clean-mode
One of the values for the command line --clean= option; used if --clean is not specified.
dgit-distro.distro.clean-mode-newer
Like .clean-mode, but ignored if the value is unknown to this version of dgit. Setting both
.clean-mode and .clean-mode-newer is useful to provide a single git config compatible with
different dgit versions.
dgit-distro.distro.quilt-mode
One of the values for the command line --quilt= option; used if --quilt is not specified.
dgit-distro.distro.split-view
dgit-distro.distro.rm-old-changes
Boolean, used if neither --rm-old-changes nor --no-rm-old-changes is specified. The default is
not to remove.
dgit-distro.distro.readonly auto|a | true|t|y|1 | false|f|n|0
Whether you have push access to the distro. For Debian, it is OK to use auto, which uses readonly
mode if you are not pushing right now; but, setting this to false will avoid relying on the mirror
of the dgit git repository server.
dgit-distro.distro.keyid
See also -k.
dgit-distro.distro.mirror url
dgit-distro.distro.username
Not relevant for Debian.
dgit-distro.distro.upload-host
Might be useful if you have an intermediate queue server.
dgit-distro.distro.user-name dgit-distro.distro.user-email
Values to configure for user.name and user.email in new git trees. If not specified, the
DEBFULLNAME and DEBEMAIL environment variables are used, respectively. Only used if .setup-
usermail is not disabled.
dgit-distro.distro.setup-useremail
Whether to set user.name and user.email in new git trees. True by default. Ignored for dgit
setup-useremail, which does it anyway.
dgit-distro.distro.setup-mergechangelogs
Whether to set up a merge driver which uses dpkg-mergechangelogs for debian/changelog. True by
default. Ignored for dgit setup-mergechangelogs, which does it anyway.
dgit-distro.distro.setup-gitattributes
Whether to configure .git/info/attributes to suppress checkin/checkout file content
transformations in new git trees. True by default. Ignored for dgit setup-gitattributes, which
does it anyway.
dgit-distro.distro.cmd-cmd
Program to use instead of cmd. Works like --cmd=... .
dgit-distro.distro.opts-cmd
Extra options to pass to cmd. Works like --cmd:... . To pass several options, configure multiple
values in git config (with git config --add). The options for dgit.default.opts-cmd and dgit-
distro.distro/push.opts-cmd are all used, followed by options from dgit's command line.
ACCESS CONFIGURATION
There are many other settings which specify how a particular distro's services (archive and git) are
provided. These should not normally be adjusted, but are documented for the benefit of distros who wish
to adopt dgit.
dgit-distro.distro.nominal-distro
Shown in git tags, Dgit fields, and so on.
dgit-distro.distro.alias-canon
Used for all access configuration lookup.
dgit-distro.distro/push.*
If set, overrides corresponding non /push config when readonly=false, or when pushing and
readonly=auto.
dgit-distro.distro.git-url
dgit-distro.distro.git-url[-suffix]
dgit-distro.distro.git-proto
dgit-distro.distro.git-path
dgit-distro.distro.git-check true|false|url|ssh-cmd
dgit-distro.distro.git-check-suffix
dgit-distro.distro.policy-query-supported-ssh false|unknown|true
dgit-distro.distro.diverts.divert new-distro|/distro-suffix
dgit-distro.distro.git-create ssh-cmd|true
dgit-distro.distro.archive-query ftpmasterapi: | madison:distro | dummycat:/path |
sshpsql:user@host:dbname | aptget:
dgit-distro.distro.archive-query-(url|tls-key|curl-ca-args)
dgit-distro.distro.madison-distro
dgit-distro.distro.archive-query-default-component
dgit-distro.distro.dep14tag want|no[|always]
dgit-distro.distro.dep14tag-reuse must|if-exists|replace-unsuitable|replace
dgit-distro.distro.dep14tag-verify true|false
dgit-distro.distro.ssh
dgit-distro.distro.sshpsql-dbname
dgit-distro.distro.(git|sshpsql)-(user|host|user-force)
dgit-distro.distro.backports-quirk
dgit-distro.distro.rewrite-map-enable
dgit-distro.distro.source-only-uploads ok|always|never|not-wholly-new
dgit.default.old-dsc-distro
dgit.dsc-url-proto-ok.protocol
dgit.dsc-url-proto-ok.bad-syntax
dgit.default.dsc-url-proto-ok
dgit.default.push-subcmd source|built|warn,built
Controls the behaviour of dgit push.
dgit.vcs-git.suites suite[;...]
ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
DGIT_SSH, GIT_SSH
specify an alternative default program (and perhaps arguments) to use instead of ssh. DGIT_SSH is
consulted first and may contain arguments; if it contains any whitespace will be passed to the
shell. GIT_SSH specifies just the program; no arguments can be specified, so dgit interprets it
the same way as git does. See also the --ssh= and --ssh: options.
DEBEMAIL, DEBFULLNAME
Default git user.email and user.name for new trees. See dgit setup-new-tree.
gpg, dpkg-..., debsign, git, [lib]curl, dput
and other subprograms and modules used by dgit are affected by various environment variables.
Consult the documentation for those programs for details.
SUPPORT ON OLD DISTRIBUTIONS
We aim to make modern dgit installable and useable on old versions of Debian, and on derivatives. One
reason this is helpful is that it can be necessary to upgrade to handle strange source packages that
trigger bugs (in dgit or tools that dgit runs).
This version of dgit.deb is directly installable, and functional (with apt install dgit.deb) all the way
back to Debian 10 (buster) and later; this is tested in our CI. It is likely to work on many Debian
derivatives, too.
BUGS
There should be a `dgit rebase-prep' command or some such to turn a fast-forwarding branch containing
pseudo-merges back into a rebasing patch stack. It might have to leave a note for a future dgit push.
If the dgit push fails halfway through, it is not necessarily restartable and idempotent. It would be
good to check that the proposed signing key is available before starting work.
dgit's build functions, and dgit push, may make changes to your current HEAD. Sadly this is necessary
for packages in the `3.0 (quilt)' source format. This is ultimately due to what I consider design
problems in quilt and dpkg-source.
--dry-run does not always work properly, as not doing some of the git fetches may result in subsequent
actions being different. Doing a non-dry-run dgit fetch first will help. --damp-run is likely to work
much better.
SEE ALSO
dgit(7), dgit-*(7), curl(1), dput(1), debsign(1), git-config(1), git-buildpackage(1), dpkg- buildpackage(1), https://browse.dgit.debian.org/