# default commit message for a tree

3 messages from 2008-04-26 to 2008-04-26. Participants: Steve French, Linus Torvalds.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/13264

## Steve French, 2008-04-26 01:39

Subject: default commit message for a tree
Message-ID: <524f69650804251839u56198808o8b7a66d9894fbbfc@mail.gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/524f69650804251839u56198808o8b7a66d9894fbbfc%40mail.gmail.com

```
What needs to be done to setup a default commit message in git?

I did the following, trying to setup a default commit message (to get
the equivalent of  what I used to have with cg-commit in the past
where 1/2 of my commit text was filled in automatically from a file in
my tree ie default signed off line etc...

What I tried: First I did
    git-config commit.template commit-template

which changed the .git/config to add  new "[commit]" section (see below:
[core]
        repositoryformatversion = 0
        filemode = true
        bare = false
        logallrefupdates = true
[remote "origin"]
        url = git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/sfrench/cifs-2.6.git
        fetch = +refs/heads/*:refs/remotes/origin/*
[branch "master"]
        remote = origin
        merge = refs/heads/master

[commit]
        template = commit-template




I created a file .git/commit-template with default text as follows:

[CIFS]

Signed-off-by: Steve French <sfrench@us.ibm.com>




Now doing a "git commiit -a" though does not show this text.  It just
shows the typical
empty default message in vi e.g.


# Please enter the commit message for your changes.
# (Comment lines starting with '#' will not be included)
# On branch master
# Changes to be committed:
#   (use "git reset HEAD <file>..." to unstage)
#
#       modified:   fs/cifs/CHANGES
....

-- 
Thanks,

Steve

```

## Linus Torvalds, 2008-04-26 02:01

Subject: Re: default commit message for a tree
Message-ID: <alpine.LFD.1.10.0804251859100.2813@woody.linux-foundation.org>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/alpine.LFD.1.10.0804251859100.2813%40woody.linux-foundation.org
In-Reply-To: <524f69650804251839u56198808o8b7a66d9894fbbfc@mail.gmail.com>

```


On Fri, 25 Apr 2008, Steve French wrote:
> 
> I created a file .git/commit-template with default text as follows:
> 
> [CIFS]
> 
> Signed-off-by: Steve French <sfrench@us.ibm.com>

You need to use

	    git-config commit.template .git/commit-template

(or use the whole absolute pathname to your template file). The pathname 
is relative to the working tree, not GIT_DIR.

		Linus

```

## Steve French, 2008-04-26 02:13

Subject: Re: default commit message for a tree
Message-ID: <524f69650804251913s302bf05n2853c267a0475768@mail.gmail.com>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/524f69650804251913s302bf05n2853c267a0475768%40mail.gmail.com
In-Reply-To: <alpine.LFD.1.10.0804251859100.2813@woody.linux-foundation.org>

```
Worked beautifully - thanks

On Fri, Apr 25, 2008 at 9:01 PM, Linus Torvalds
<torvalds@linux-foundation.org> wrote:
>
>
>  On Fri, 25 Apr 2008, Steve French wrote:
>  >
>  > I created a file .git/commit-template with default text as follows:
>  >
>  > [CIFS]
>  >
>  > Signed-off-by: Steve French <sfrench@us.ibm.com>
>
>  You need to use
>
>             git-config commit.template .git/commit-template
>
>  (or use the whole absolute pathname to your template file). The pathname
>  is relative to the working tree, not GIT_DIR.
>
>                 Linus
>



-- 
Thanks,

Steve

```