`git.init()` with `gitdir` set behaves differently to `git init --separate-git-dir=foo`

[AtkinsSJ]

I'm developing a browser-based git client using isomorphic-git, and noticed a couple of differences here against the official git client:

• With the official git CLI, git init --separate-git-dir=foo creates a .git text file containing gitdir: /repo/foo/. isomorphic-git does not do this.
• If this git init is run inside an existing repo directory, the git CLI moves the contents of the gitdir to the new location, whereas isomorphic-git does not do so.

For the second one, it's possible that isomorphic-git just doesn't handle git init in an existing repo at all, but I'm not far enough with my client to know if that's the case. :sweat_smile:

Neither of these is a big issue (because who even uses a different git dir?) but I thought it was worth reporting anyway. 🙂

I'm using isomorphic-git in the browser, bundled using rollup.

[hhourani27]

Isomorphic-git's init({gitdir:<path to gitdir>}) doesn't quite behave as Canonical Git git init --separate-git-dir=<path to gitdir> . Canonical Git, creates a .git file with a link to <gitdir>. While isomorphic-git just directly creates <gitdir>, and you have to pass it for each subsequent command.

I'm curious what's your use case for supporting --separate-git-dir ?

[AtkinsSJ]

I'm curious what's your use case for supporting --separate-git-dir ?

The use case is roughly "copy canonical git's command line and functionality". You can find the app here: https://github.com/HeyPuter/puter/tree/main/packages/git It's part of a whole cloud OS, and the idea is someone could use it from Puter's terminal just like they would on any other OS.

[jcubic]

@hhourani27 I think that git.init({gitdir}) is creating a new git bare repo, not changing the git directory. It's by design.