Re: [PATCH] git-config: update doc for --get with multiple values

From

John Keeping <john@keeping.me.uk>

Date

Jul 7, 2013, 09:50 UTC

Message-ID

<20130707095026.GR9161@serenity.lan>

In-Reply-To

<7vd2qzfpk9.fsf@alter.siamese.dyndns.org>

On Wed, Jul 03, 2013 at 11:47:50AM -0700, Junio C Hamano wrote:

> John Keeping <john@keeping.me.uk> writes:
> 
> > Since commit 00b347d (git-config: do not complain about duplicate
> > entries, 2012-10-23), "git config --get" does not exit with an error if
> > there are multiple values for the specified key but instead returns the
> > last value.  Update the documentation to reflect this.
> >
> > Signed-off-by: John Keeping <john@keeping.me.uk>
> > ---
> >  Documentation/git-config.txt | 2 +-
> >  1 file changed, 1 insertion(+), 1 deletion(-)
> >
> > diff --git a/Documentation/git-config.txt b/Documentation/git-config.txt
> > index 19a7be0..fbad05e 100644
> > --- a/Documentation/git-config.txt
> > +++ b/Documentation/git-config.txt
> > @@ -82,7 +82,7 @@ OPTIONS
> >  --get::
> >  	Get the value for a given key (optionally filtered by a regex
> >  	matching the value). Returns error code 1 if the key was not
> > -	found and error code 2 if multiple key values were found.
> > +	found and the last value if multiple key values were found.
> >  
> >  --get-all::
> >  	Like get, but does not fail if the number of values for the key
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> I wondered if we should explain the significance of "last" a bit
> more (like "this results in the value from the most specific
> configuration file to be used, the ones in $GIT_DIR/config
> overriding what is in $HOME/.gitconfig"), but I do not have a strong
> opinion either way.  Let's queue this for 'maint' for now.

-- >8 --

diff --git a/Documentation/git-config.txt b/Documentation/git-config.txt
index fbad05e..99dc497 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-config.txt
+++ b/Documentation/git-config.txt
@@ -206,12 +206,8 @@ FILES
 If not set explicitly with '--file', there are four files where
 'git config' will search for configuration options:
 
-$GIT_DIR/config::
-	Repository specific configuration file.
-
-~/.gitconfig::
-	User-specific configuration file. Also called "global"
-	configuration file.
+$(prefix)/etc/gitconfig::
+	System-wide configuration file.
 
 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config::
 	Second user-specific configuration file. If $XDG_CONFIG_HOME is not set
@@ -221,8 +217,12 @@ $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config::
 	you sometimes use older versions of Git, as support for this
 	file was added fairly recently.
 
-$(prefix)/etc/gitconfig::
-	System-wide configuration file.
+~/.gitconfig::
+	User-specific configuration file. Also called "global"
+	configuration file.
+
+$GIT_DIR/config::
+	Repository specific configuration file.
 
 If no further options are given, all reading options will read all of these
 files that are available. If the global or the system-wide configuration
@@ -230,6 +230,10 @@ file are not available they will be ignored. If the repository configuration
 file is not available or readable, 'git config' will exit with a non-zero
 error code. However, in neither case will an error message be issued.
 
+The files are read in the order given above, with last value found taking
+precedence over values read earlier.  When multiple values are taken then all
+values of a key from all files will be used.
+
 All writing options will per default write to the repository specific
 configuration file. Note that this also affects options like '--replace-all'
 and '--unset'. *'git config' will only ever change one file at a time*.