# git-rewrite-history behaves quite contrary to documentation

1 messages from 2007-08-09 to 2007-08-09. Participants: David Kastrup.
Thread: https://gitlist.dev/t/9454

## David Kastrup, 2007-08-09 11:30

Subject: git-rewrite-history behaves quite contrary to documentation
Message-ID: <86abt1j67h.fsf@lola.quinscape.zz>
URL: https://gitlist.dev/e/86abt1j67h.fsf%40lola.quinscape.zz

```

git-filter-branch --index-filter 'git-update-index --force-remove --remove -g bilder bilder3' master trunk
Rewrite a7a8f2fc263256c98ed5220e7467d34584c8c6ac (58/58)
Ref 'refs/heads/master' was rewritten
Ref 'refs/remotes/trunk' was rewritten

These refs were rewritten:
fatal: Not a git repository: '/rep/akspiele/.git-rewrite/t/../../.git'

The manual page, however, claims:


	   git-filter-branch [--env-filter <command>] [--tree-filter <command>]
			 [--index-filter <command>] [--parent-filter <command>]
			 [--msg-filter <command>] [--commit-filter <command>]
			 [--tag-name-filter <command>] [--subdirectory-filter <directory>]
			 [-d <directory>] <new-branch-name> [<rev-list options>...]

<new-branch-name> apparently is completely ignored: specifying a
non-existing branch will not work.

In the examples, it claims:

	   git filter-branch --index-filter 'git update-index --remove filename' newbranch
	Now, you will get the rewritten history saved in the branch
	newbranch (your current branch is left untouched).

This is again wrong: one needs to write "-g" at very least, or it will
not bother removing a file that is not present in the working dir.

Could someone please pass this on to Dscho?  He has me in his killfile.

-- 
David Kastrup

```