# Q: warning: unable to rmdir 'submodule': Directory not empty

2 messages from 2021-12-29 to 2021-12-29. Participants: Ulrich Windl.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/57164

## Ulrich Windl, 2021-12-29 12:24

Subject: Q: warning: unable to rmdir 'submodule': Directory not empty
Message-ID: <61CC5390020000A10004692A@gwsmtp.uni-regensburg.de>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/61CC5390020000A10004692A%40gwsmtp.uni-regensburg.de

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Hi!

I wonder whether you'd think this is a bug:
When a branch uses a submodule (named "submodule" here), and when you checkout another branch that does not (yet) have that submodule, I get an error message saying:
warning: unable to rmdir 'submodule': Directory not empty

Well obviously the directory is not empty. The point is: Is the user expected to remove submodule directories manually before switching branches?

When I tried "git checkout master --recurse-submodules" instead, the submodule directory was "mostly deleted", only leaving two object files that weren't ".gitignore"d.
(But the error message was the same)

Wouldn't a message like "... submodule directory contains untracked files; won't delete those..." be better?

Regards,
Ulrich



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## Ulrich Windl, 2021-12-29 12:25

Subject: Antw: Q: warning: unable to rmdir 'submodule': Directory not empty
Message-ID: <61CC53D5020000A10004692E@gwsmtp.uni-regensburg.de>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/61CC53D5020000A10004692E%40gwsmtp.uni-regensburg.de
In-Reply-To: <61CC5390020000A10004692A@gwsmtp.uni-regensburg.de>

```
Sorry, I should have mentioned: git 2.26.2 on SLES12 SP5

>>> Ulrich Windl schrieb am 29.12.2021 um 13:24 in Nachricht <61CC5390.C34 : 161 :
60728>:
> Hi!
> 
> I wonder whether you'd think this is a bug:
> When a branch uses a submodule (named "submodule" here), and when you 
> checkout another branch that does not (yet) have that submodule, I get an 
> error message saying:
> warning: unable to rmdir 'submodule': Directory not empty
> 
> Well obviously the directory is not empty. The point is: Is the user 
> expected to remove submodule directories manually before switching branches?
> 
> When I tried "git checkout master --recurse-submodules" instead, the 
> submodule directory was "mostly deleted", only leaving two object files that 
> weren't ".gitignore"d.
> (But the error message was the same)
> 
> Wouldn't a message like "... submodule directory contains untracked files; 
> won't delete those..." be better?
> 
> Regards,
> Ulrich
> 
> 





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