Re: removing content from git history

From: Nicolas Pitre <nico@cam.org>
Date: Feb 21, 2007, 18:02 UTC
Message-ID: <alpine.LRH.0.82.0702211236180.31945@xanadu.home>
In-Reply-To: <Pine.LNX.4.64.0702210904350.4043@woody.linux-foundation.org>

On Wed, 21 Feb 2007, Linus Torvalds wrote:

Show 5 quoted lines

> But at least in theory, it wouldn't be impossible to extend on the 
> ".git/grafts" kind of setup to say "this object has been consciously 
> deleted", and that could in some circumstances be a better model. The 
> biggest headache there would be the need to extend the native git protocol 
> with a way to add such objects.

I think that would be a big security issue. Right now the GIT history can be validated and more importantly trusted from a single commit signature. If poking holes in that model is allowed by the graft mechanism, it must remain a local thing and a very conscious one otherwise the GIT trust model would be greatly weakened.

If your goal is to remove content froma repository then the only sensible way is to rewrite history before publishing. It is pointless to add mechanisms to remove content after it has been distributed.

Nicolas