# fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists 5 messages from 2007-01-05 to 2007-01-06. Participants: Len Brown, Manu, Johannes Schindelin, Fredrik Kuivinen. Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/6235 ## Len Brown, 2007-01-05 16:50 Subject: fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists Message-ID: <200701051150.09968.lenb@kernel.org> URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/200701051150.09968.lenb%40kernel.org ``` I kicked off a pull. Realized I was on the wrong branch and immediately did a ^C Now I can't change branches: # git checkout release fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists git reset --hard does not help. curiously, moving .git/index to /tmp and repeating results in the same error. clues? thanks, -Len ``` ## Manu, 2007-01-05 17:30 Subject: Re: fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists Message-ID: URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/f898cca90701050930l21338b88t1bd75e037beeca05%40mail.gmail.com In-Reply-To: <200701051150.09968.lenb@kernel.org> ``` Got this message once. The reason was a git process still had a lock on the index file. Make sure you have no git processes left running from the interruption of git pull. ps -ux | grep "git" Manu On 1/5/07, Len Brown wrote: > I kicked off a pull. > Realized I was on the wrong branch > and immediately did a ^C > > Now I can't change branches: > > # git checkout release > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists > > git reset --hard > does not help. > > curiously, moving .git/index to /tmp and repeating > results in the same error. > > clues? > > thanks, > -Len > - > To unsubscribe from this list: send the line "unsubscribe git" in > the body of a message to majordomo@vger.kernel.org > More majordomo info at http://vger.kernel.org/majordomo-info.html > ``` ## Johannes Schindelin, 2007-01-05 20:16 Subject: Re: fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists Message-ID: URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/Pine.LNX.4.63.0701052115161.22628%40wbgn013.biozentrum.uni-wuerzburg.de In-Reply-To: <200701051150.09968.lenb@kernel.org> ``` Hi, On Fri, 5 Jan 2007, Len Brown wrote: > I kicked off a pull. > Realized I was on the wrong branch > and immediately did a ^C > > Now I can't change branches: > > # git checkout release > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists This usually means that .git/index.lock exists. Try removing that file. However, it _should_ be removed by the atexit() handler, methinks. I have no idea why it does not. Ciao, Dscho ``` ## Len Brown, 2007-01-06 03:01 Subject: Re: fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists Message-ID: <200701052201.39727.lenb@kernel.org> URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/200701052201.39727.lenb%40kernel.org In-Reply-To: <200701051150.09968.lenb@kernel.org> ``` On Friday 05 January 2007 11:50, Len Brown wrote: > I kicked off a pull. > Realized I was on the wrong branch > and immediately did a ^C > > Now I can't change branches: > > # git checkout release > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists > > git reset --hard > does not help. > > curiously, moving .git/index to /tmp and repeating > results in the same error. rm .git/index.lock seemed to do the trick. Hopefully nothing is toasted by this... ``` ## Fredrik Kuivinen, 2007-01-06 09:24 Subject: Re: fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists Message-ID: <4c8ef70701060124u3fa1dddfp5347a006c4ebb13d@mail.gmail.com> URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/4c8ef70701060124u3fa1dddfp5347a006c4ebb13d%40mail.gmail.com In-Reply-To: ``` On 1/5/07, Johannes Schindelin wrote: > Hi, > > On Fri, 5 Jan 2007, Len Brown wrote: > > > I kicked off a pull. > > Realized I was on the wrong branch > > and immediately did a ^C > > > > Now I can't change branches: > > > > # git checkout release > > fatal: unable to create '.git/index': File exists > > This usually means that .git/index.lock exists. Try removing that file. > > However, it _should_ be removed by the atexit() handler, methinks. I have > no idea why it does not. We will get SIGINT when the user hits ^C so I don't think the atexit handler will run. However, we also install a signal handler for SIGINT which removes the lock file, so I don't really see how it can be left around... There is a small race condition between open and signal as we do fd = open(lk->filename, O_RDWR | O_CREAT | O_EXCL, 0666); ... signal(SIGINT, remove_lock_file_on_signal); atexit(remove_lock_file); in lock_file:lockfile.c. But I think it is very improbable that the user hits ^C between "open" and "signal". It might be worth fixing though. Are there any other signals we might get when the user hits ^C? SIGPIPE? - Fredrik ```