Rename a git submodule












124















Is there some easy way to rename a git submodule directory (other than going through the entire motion of deleting it and re-adding it with a new destination name).



And while we are at it, why is it that I simply cannot do the following in the parent directory: git mv old-submodule-name new-submodule-name










share|improve this question




















  • 4





    You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

    – VonC
    Sep 10 '13 at 7:17











  • @VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

    – laconbass
    May 23 '15 at 3:31











  • Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

    – Rolf
    Mar 18 '18 at 15:00











  • @VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

    – zertyz
    Dec 7 '18 at 22:06
















124















Is there some easy way to rename a git submodule directory (other than going through the entire motion of deleting it and re-adding it with a new destination name).



And while we are at it, why is it that I simply cannot do the following in the parent directory: git mv old-submodule-name new-submodule-name










share|improve this question




















  • 4





    You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

    – VonC
    Sep 10 '13 at 7:17











  • @VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

    – laconbass
    May 23 '15 at 3:31











  • Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

    – Rolf
    Mar 18 '18 at 15:00











  • @VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

    – zertyz
    Dec 7 '18 at 22:06














124












124








124


36






Is there some easy way to rename a git submodule directory (other than going through the entire motion of deleting it and re-adding it with a new destination name).



And while we are at it, why is it that I simply cannot do the following in the parent directory: git mv old-submodule-name new-submodule-name










share|improve this question
















Is there some easy way to rename a git submodule directory (other than going through the entire motion of deleting it and re-adding it with a new destination name).



And while we are at it, why is it that I simply cannot do the following in the parent directory: git mv old-submodule-name new-submodule-name







git git-submodules






share|improve this question















share|improve this question













share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited May 23 '17 at 11:33









Community

11




11










asked Dec 24 '10 at 14:52









Lars TackmannLars Tackmann

11k135474




11k135474








  • 4





    You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

    – VonC
    Sep 10 '13 at 7:17











  • @VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

    – laconbass
    May 23 '15 at 3:31











  • Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

    – Rolf
    Mar 18 '18 at 15:00











  • @VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

    – zertyz
    Dec 7 '18 at 22:06














  • 4





    You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

    – VonC
    Sep 10 '13 at 7:17











  • @VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

    – laconbass
    May 23 '15 at 3:31











  • Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

    – Rolf
    Mar 18 '18 at 15:00











  • @VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

    – zertyz
    Dec 7 '18 at 22:06








4




4





You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

– VonC
Sep 10 '13 at 7:17





You will no longer need to update .gitmodules manually when moving a submodule. see my answer below

– VonC
Sep 10 '13 at 7:17













@VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

– laconbass
May 23 '15 at 3:31





@VonC's answer worked like a charm for me

– laconbass
May 23 '15 at 3:31













Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

– Rolf
Mar 18 '18 at 15:00





Git modules are too complicated. npm shows how simple works. One day... maybe... someone... will rewrite it... in the meantime...

– Rolf
Mar 18 '18 at 15:00













@VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

– zertyz
Dec 7 '18 at 22:06





@VonC's answer is not the full story as of today: it will indeed change .gitmodules, but will just rename the path, not the module name. You need an additional edit to .gitmodules to correct that and a 'git submodule sync' to complete the full process

– zertyz
Dec 7 '18 at 22:06












7 Answers
7






active

oldest

votes


















88














I found following workflow working:




  • Update .gitmodules

  • mv oldpath newpath

  • git rm oldpath

  • git add newpath

  • git submodule sync


Note: this approach does not update the index and .gitmodules properly in 2018 versions of GIT.






share|improve this answer





















  • 22





    note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

    – atomicules
    Jul 28 '11 at 15:17






  • 1





    this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

    – Lars Tackmann
    Nov 9 '11 at 10:03








  • 10





    With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

    – Bertrand
    Jan 26 '12 at 9:45








  • 5





    This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

    – Mahmoud Adam
    May 6 '13 at 15:07








  • 2





    If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

    – Vincent Ketelaars
    Apr 10 '14 at 14:24



















170














Git1.8.5 (October 2013) should simplify the process. Simply do a:



git mv A B



"git mv A B", when moving a submodule A has been taught to relocate its working tree and to adjust the paths in the .gitmodules file.






See more in commit 0656781fadca1:




Currently using "git mv" on a submodule moves the submodule's work tree in that of the superproject. But the submodule's path setting in .gitmodules is left untouched, which is now inconsistent with the work tree and makes git commands that rely on the proper path -> name mapping (like status and diff) behave strangely.



Let "git mv" help here by not only moving the submodule's work tree but also updating the "submodule.<submodule name>.path" setting from the .gitmodules file and stage both.

This doesn't happen when no .gitmodules file is found and only issues a warning when it doesn't have a section for this submodule. This is because the user might just use plain gitlinks without the .gitmodules file or has already updated the path setting by hand before issuing the "git mv" command (in which case the warning reminds him that mv would have done that for him).

Only when .gitmodules is found and contains merge conflicts the mv command will fail and tell the user to resolve the conflict before trying again.






git 2.9 (June 2016) will improve git mv for submodule:



See commit a127331 (19 Apr 2016) by Stefan Beller (stefanbeller).
(Merged by Junio C Hamano -- gitster -- in commit 9cb50a3, 29 Apr 2016)





mv: allow moving nested submodules



"git mv old new" did not adjust the path for a submodule that lives as a subdirectory inside old/ directory correctly.



submodules however need to update their link to the git directory as
well as updates to the .gitmodules file.







share|improve this answer


























  • Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

    – checksum
    Nov 29 '13 at 2:22











  • @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

    – VonC
    Nov 29 '13 at 6:16











  • I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

    – Maksim Dmitriev
    Jan 17 '14 at 20:24








  • 2





    @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

    – VonC
    Jan 17 '14 at 20:32






  • 5





    This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

    – Jesse Adelman
    Oct 12 '17 at 20:01



















8














$ mv submodule-oldpath submodule-newpath
$ git rm submodule-oldpath
$ git add submodule-newpath
$ git submodule sync


This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule.



the correct solution is:



$ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location
$ git rm submodule-oldpath
$ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath


Source: http://bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule/






share|improve this answer





















  • 2





    Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

    – George Stocker
    May 6 '13 at 16:17



















8














I just tried a few of the suggested above. I'm running:



$ git --version
git version 1.8.4


I found it was best to de-init the submodule, remove the directory and create a new submodule.



git submodule deinit <submodule name>

git rm <submodule folder name>

git submodule add <address to remote git repo> <new folder name>


At least that is what worked for me best. YMMV!






share|improve this answer































    3














    Edit the .gitmodules file to rename the submodule and then rename the submodule directory.



    I think you might need to do a git submodule sync afterwards, but I'm not in a position to check right now.






    share|improve this answer
























    • This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

      – Lars Tackmann
      Dec 24 '10 at 15:04






    • 1





      @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

      – Cascabel
      Apr 4 '11 at 14:53



















    2














    It's not possible to rename it, so you've to remove it first (deinit) and add it again.



    So after removing it:



    git submodule deinit <path>
    git rm --cached <path>


    you may also double check and remove the references to it in:




    • .gitmodules

    • .git/config

    • remove reference folder from .git/modules/<name> (best to make a backup), as each folder has config file where it keeps the reference to its worktree


    then stage your changes by committing any changes to your repo by:



    git commit -am 'Removing submodule.'


    and double check if you don't have any outstanding issues by:



    git submodule update
    git submodule sync
    git submodule status


    so now you can add the git submodule again:



    git submodule add --name <custom_name> git@github.com:foo/bar.git <my/path>





    share|improve this answer
























    • also it is actually today

      – Alexey
      Oct 12 '18 at 12:53



















    1














    MacOs: When I wanna use VonC solution to change submodule folder Common to lowercase:



    git mv Common common


    I get




    fatal: renaming 'Common' failed: Invalid argument




    Solution - use some temporary folder name and move twice:



    git mv Common commontemp
    git mv commontemp common


    That's all :)






    share|improve this answer























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      7 Answers
      7






      active

      oldest

      votes








      7 Answers
      7






      active

      oldest

      votes









      active

      oldest

      votes






      active

      oldest

      votes









      88














      I found following workflow working:




      • Update .gitmodules

      • mv oldpath newpath

      • git rm oldpath

      • git add newpath

      • git submodule sync


      Note: this approach does not update the index and .gitmodules properly in 2018 versions of GIT.






      share|improve this answer





















      • 22





        note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

        – atomicules
        Jul 28 '11 at 15:17






      • 1





        this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

        – Lars Tackmann
        Nov 9 '11 at 10:03








      • 10





        With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

        – Bertrand
        Jan 26 '12 at 9:45








      • 5





        This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

        – Mahmoud Adam
        May 6 '13 at 15:07








      • 2





        If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

        – Vincent Ketelaars
        Apr 10 '14 at 14:24
















      88














      I found following workflow working:




      • Update .gitmodules

      • mv oldpath newpath

      • git rm oldpath

      • git add newpath

      • git submodule sync


      Note: this approach does not update the index and .gitmodules properly in 2018 versions of GIT.






      share|improve this answer





















      • 22





        note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

        – atomicules
        Jul 28 '11 at 15:17






      • 1





        this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

        – Lars Tackmann
        Nov 9 '11 at 10:03








      • 10





        With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

        – Bertrand
        Jan 26 '12 at 9:45








      • 5





        This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

        – Mahmoud Adam
        May 6 '13 at 15:07








      • 2





        If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

        – Vincent Ketelaars
        Apr 10 '14 at 14:24














      88












      88








      88







      I found following workflow working:




      • Update .gitmodules

      • mv oldpath newpath

      • git rm oldpath

      • git add newpath

      • git submodule sync


      Note: this approach does not update the index and .gitmodules properly in 2018 versions of GIT.






      share|improve this answer















      I found following workflow working:




      • Update .gitmodules

      • mv oldpath newpath

      • git rm oldpath

      • git add newpath

      • git submodule sync


      Note: this approach does not update the index and .gitmodules properly in 2018 versions of GIT.







      share|improve this answer














      share|improve this answer



      share|improve this answer








      edited Nov 15 '18 at 18:41









      Nathan Arthur

      3,03132448




      3,03132448










      answered Apr 4 '11 at 14:52









      Mariusz NowakMariusz Nowak

      23.8k32931




      23.8k32931








      • 22





        note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

        – atomicules
        Jul 28 '11 at 15:17






      • 1





        this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

        – Lars Tackmann
        Nov 9 '11 at 10:03








      • 10





        With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

        – Bertrand
        Jan 26 '12 at 9:45








      • 5





        This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

        – Mahmoud Adam
        May 6 '13 at 15:07








      • 2





        If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

        – Vincent Ketelaars
        Apr 10 '14 at 14:24














      • 22





        note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

        – atomicules
        Jul 28 '11 at 15:17






      • 1





        this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

        – Lars Tackmann
        Nov 9 '11 at 10:03








      • 10





        With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

        – Bertrand
        Jan 26 '12 at 9:45








      • 5





        This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

        – Mahmoud Adam
        May 6 '13 at 15:07








      • 2





        If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

        – Vincent Ketelaars
        Apr 10 '14 at 14:24








      22




      22





      note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

      – atomicules
      Jul 28 '11 at 15:17





      note to self: for git add newpath don't use a trailing slash

      – atomicules
      Jul 28 '11 at 15:17




      1




      1





      this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

      – Lars Tackmann
      Nov 9 '11 at 10:03







      this works for me and the submodule appears as renamed in the status output (git status) after the move.

      – Lars Tackmann
      Nov 9 '11 at 10:03






      10




      10





      With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

      – Bertrand
      Jan 26 '12 at 9:45







      With such a workflow, you will only create a symlink to the sub-directory you use as a submodule. Symlink is just a part of the global submodule functionality. This mean that when you clone the repo that use the renamed submodules, you may end with the following error: No submodule mapping found in .gitmodules for path 'your-oldpath' After you remove the oldpath (*git rm oldpath), you should use git submodule add REPO-URL newpath instead of "git add newpath*. When done, git status will display something like this: renamed: oldpath -> newpath

      – Bertrand
      Jan 26 '12 at 9:45






      5




      5





      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

      – Mahmoud Adam
      May 6 '13 at 15:07







      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule. try $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location $ git rm submodule-oldpath $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule

      – Mahmoud Adam
      May 6 '13 at 15:07






      2




      2





      If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

      – Vincent Ketelaars
      Apr 10 '14 at 14:24





      If you do have the problem with the working tree, you can also edit the .git/modules/SUBMODULE/config file, such that the worktree points to the the right directory again.

      – Vincent Ketelaars
      Apr 10 '14 at 14:24













      170














      Git1.8.5 (October 2013) should simplify the process. Simply do a:



      git mv A B



      "git mv A B", when moving a submodule A has been taught to relocate its working tree and to adjust the paths in the .gitmodules file.






      See more in commit 0656781fadca1:




      Currently using "git mv" on a submodule moves the submodule's work tree in that of the superproject. But the submodule's path setting in .gitmodules is left untouched, which is now inconsistent with the work tree and makes git commands that rely on the proper path -> name mapping (like status and diff) behave strangely.



      Let "git mv" help here by not only moving the submodule's work tree but also updating the "submodule.<submodule name>.path" setting from the .gitmodules file and stage both.

      This doesn't happen when no .gitmodules file is found and only issues a warning when it doesn't have a section for this submodule. This is because the user might just use plain gitlinks without the .gitmodules file or has already updated the path setting by hand before issuing the "git mv" command (in which case the warning reminds him that mv would have done that for him).

      Only when .gitmodules is found and contains merge conflicts the mv command will fail and tell the user to resolve the conflict before trying again.






      git 2.9 (June 2016) will improve git mv for submodule:



      See commit a127331 (19 Apr 2016) by Stefan Beller (stefanbeller).
      (Merged by Junio C Hamano -- gitster -- in commit 9cb50a3, 29 Apr 2016)





      mv: allow moving nested submodules



      "git mv old new" did not adjust the path for a submodule that lives as a subdirectory inside old/ directory correctly.



      submodules however need to update their link to the git directory as
      well as updates to the .gitmodules file.







      share|improve this answer


























      • Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

        – checksum
        Nov 29 '13 at 2:22











      • @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

        – VonC
        Nov 29 '13 at 6:16











      • I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

        – Maksim Dmitriev
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:24








      • 2





        @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

        – VonC
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:32






      • 5





        This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

        – Jesse Adelman
        Oct 12 '17 at 20:01
















      170














      Git1.8.5 (October 2013) should simplify the process. Simply do a:



      git mv A B



      "git mv A B", when moving a submodule A has been taught to relocate its working tree and to adjust the paths in the .gitmodules file.






      See more in commit 0656781fadca1:




      Currently using "git mv" on a submodule moves the submodule's work tree in that of the superproject. But the submodule's path setting in .gitmodules is left untouched, which is now inconsistent with the work tree and makes git commands that rely on the proper path -> name mapping (like status and diff) behave strangely.



      Let "git mv" help here by not only moving the submodule's work tree but also updating the "submodule.<submodule name>.path" setting from the .gitmodules file and stage both.

      This doesn't happen when no .gitmodules file is found and only issues a warning when it doesn't have a section for this submodule. This is because the user might just use plain gitlinks without the .gitmodules file or has already updated the path setting by hand before issuing the "git mv" command (in which case the warning reminds him that mv would have done that for him).

      Only when .gitmodules is found and contains merge conflicts the mv command will fail and tell the user to resolve the conflict before trying again.






      git 2.9 (June 2016) will improve git mv for submodule:



      See commit a127331 (19 Apr 2016) by Stefan Beller (stefanbeller).
      (Merged by Junio C Hamano -- gitster -- in commit 9cb50a3, 29 Apr 2016)





      mv: allow moving nested submodules



      "git mv old new" did not adjust the path for a submodule that lives as a subdirectory inside old/ directory correctly.



      submodules however need to update their link to the git directory as
      well as updates to the .gitmodules file.







      share|improve this answer


























      • Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

        – checksum
        Nov 29 '13 at 2:22











      • @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

        – VonC
        Nov 29 '13 at 6:16











      • I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

        – Maksim Dmitriev
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:24








      • 2





        @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

        – VonC
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:32






      • 5





        This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

        – Jesse Adelman
        Oct 12 '17 at 20:01














      170












      170








      170







      Git1.8.5 (October 2013) should simplify the process. Simply do a:



      git mv A B



      "git mv A B", when moving a submodule A has been taught to relocate its working tree and to adjust the paths in the .gitmodules file.






      See more in commit 0656781fadca1:




      Currently using "git mv" on a submodule moves the submodule's work tree in that of the superproject. But the submodule's path setting in .gitmodules is left untouched, which is now inconsistent with the work tree and makes git commands that rely on the proper path -> name mapping (like status and diff) behave strangely.



      Let "git mv" help here by not only moving the submodule's work tree but also updating the "submodule.<submodule name>.path" setting from the .gitmodules file and stage both.

      This doesn't happen when no .gitmodules file is found and only issues a warning when it doesn't have a section for this submodule. This is because the user might just use plain gitlinks without the .gitmodules file or has already updated the path setting by hand before issuing the "git mv" command (in which case the warning reminds him that mv would have done that for him).

      Only when .gitmodules is found and contains merge conflicts the mv command will fail and tell the user to resolve the conflict before trying again.






      git 2.9 (June 2016) will improve git mv for submodule:



      See commit a127331 (19 Apr 2016) by Stefan Beller (stefanbeller).
      (Merged by Junio C Hamano -- gitster -- in commit 9cb50a3, 29 Apr 2016)





      mv: allow moving nested submodules



      "git mv old new" did not adjust the path for a submodule that lives as a subdirectory inside old/ directory correctly.



      submodules however need to update their link to the git directory as
      well as updates to the .gitmodules file.







      share|improve this answer















      Git1.8.5 (October 2013) should simplify the process. Simply do a:



      git mv A B



      "git mv A B", when moving a submodule A has been taught to relocate its working tree and to adjust the paths in the .gitmodules file.






      See more in commit 0656781fadca1:




      Currently using "git mv" on a submodule moves the submodule's work tree in that of the superproject. But the submodule's path setting in .gitmodules is left untouched, which is now inconsistent with the work tree and makes git commands that rely on the proper path -> name mapping (like status and diff) behave strangely.



      Let "git mv" help here by not only moving the submodule's work tree but also updating the "submodule.<submodule name>.path" setting from the .gitmodules file and stage both.

      This doesn't happen when no .gitmodules file is found and only issues a warning when it doesn't have a section for this submodule. This is because the user might just use plain gitlinks without the .gitmodules file or has already updated the path setting by hand before issuing the "git mv" command (in which case the warning reminds him that mv would have done that for him).

      Only when .gitmodules is found and contains merge conflicts the mv command will fail and tell the user to resolve the conflict before trying again.






      git 2.9 (June 2016) will improve git mv for submodule:



      See commit a127331 (19 Apr 2016) by Stefan Beller (stefanbeller).
      (Merged by Junio C Hamano -- gitster -- in commit 9cb50a3, 29 Apr 2016)





      mv: allow moving nested submodules



      "git mv old new" did not adjust the path for a submodule that lives as a subdirectory inside old/ directory correctly.



      submodules however need to update their link to the git directory as
      well as updates to the .gitmodules file.








      share|improve this answer














      share|improve this answer



      share|improve this answer








      edited May 7 '16 at 7:43

























      answered Sep 10 '13 at 7:17









      VonCVonC

      848k29626973254




      848k29626973254













      • Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

        – checksum
        Nov 29 '13 at 2:22











      • @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

        – VonC
        Nov 29 '13 at 6:16











      • I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

        – Maksim Dmitriev
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:24








      • 2





        @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

        – VonC
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:32






      • 5





        This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

        – Jesse Adelman
        Oct 12 '17 at 20:01



















      • Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

        – checksum
        Nov 29 '13 at 2:22











      • @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

        – VonC
        Nov 29 '13 at 6:16











      • I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

        – Maksim Dmitriev
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:24








      • 2





        @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

        – VonC
        Jan 17 '14 at 20:32






      • 5





        This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

        – Jesse Adelman
        Oct 12 '17 at 20:01

















      Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

      – checksum
      Nov 29 '13 at 2:22





      Note to self: Try this on 1.8.4 and you will have fatal: source directory is empty, source=my_source, destination=my_destination. Will try this again when 1.8.5 has stable release.

      – checksum
      Nov 29 '13 at 2:22













      @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

      – VonC
      Nov 29 '13 at 6:16





      @checksum But 1.8.5 has a stable release, for at least some... hours ;) github.com/git/git/releases/tag/v1.8.5

      – VonC
      Nov 29 '13 at 6:16













      I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

      – Maksim Dmitriev
      Jan 17 '14 at 20:24







      I had to build Git version 1.8.5.GIT from the source code because there is Git v.1.7.5 in Ubuntu repositories. How to build Git from the source code

      – Maksim Dmitriev
      Jan 17 '14 at 20:24






      2




      2





      @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

      – VonC
      Jan 17 '14 at 20:32





      @MaksimDmitriev but what about a ppa (Personal Package Archive) that I mentioned in stackoverflow.com/a/20918469/6309?

      – VonC
      Jan 17 '14 at 20:32




      5




      5





      This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

      – Jesse Adelman
      Oct 12 '17 at 20:01





      This should be the "accepted" solution today. :/

      – Jesse Adelman
      Oct 12 '17 at 20:01











      8














      $ mv submodule-oldpath submodule-newpath
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git add submodule-newpath
      $ git submodule sync


      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule.



      the correct solution is:



      $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath


      Source: http://bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule/






      share|improve this answer





















      • 2





        Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

        – George Stocker
        May 6 '13 at 16:17
















      8














      $ mv submodule-oldpath submodule-newpath
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git add submodule-newpath
      $ git submodule sync


      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule.



      the correct solution is:



      $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath


      Source: http://bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule/






      share|improve this answer





















      • 2





        Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

        – George Stocker
        May 6 '13 at 16:17














      8












      8








      8







      $ mv submodule-oldpath submodule-newpath
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git add submodule-newpath
      $ git submodule sync


      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule.



      the correct solution is:



      $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath


      Source: http://bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule/






      share|improve this answer















      $ mv submodule-oldpath submodule-newpath
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git add submodule-newpath
      $ git submodule sync


      This solutions doesn’t work for me because when using git add command, the submodule was included into the project as a simple directory and not as a submodule.



      the correct solution is:



      $ mv submodule-oldpath ~/another-location
      $ git rm submodule-oldpath
      $ git submodule add submodule-repository-URL submodule-newpath


      Source: http://bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule/







      share|improve this answer














      share|improve this answer



      share|improve this answer








      edited May 6 '13 at 16:24

























      answered May 6 '13 at 15:09









      Mahmoud AdamMahmoud Adam

      4,02223248




      4,02223248








      • 2





        Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

        – George Stocker
        May 6 '13 at 16:17














      • 2





        Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

        – George Stocker
        May 6 '13 at 16:17








      2




      2





      Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

      – George Stocker
      May 6 '13 at 16:17





      Did you pull this word for word from this location? bcachet.github.io/development/2012/05/25/rename-git-submodule If so, please make sure to give attribution to that site in your answer.

      – George Stocker
      May 6 '13 at 16:17











      8














      I just tried a few of the suggested above. I'm running:



      $ git --version
      git version 1.8.4


      I found it was best to de-init the submodule, remove the directory and create a new submodule.



      git submodule deinit <submodule name>

      git rm <submodule folder name>

      git submodule add <address to remote git repo> <new folder name>


      At least that is what worked for me best. YMMV!






      share|improve this answer




























        8














        I just tried a few of the suggested above. I'm running:



        $ git --version
        git version 1.8.4


        I found it was best to de-init the submodule, remove the directory and create a new submodule.



        git submodule deinit <submodule name>

        git rm <submodule folder name>

        git submodule add <address to remote git repo> <new folder name>


        At least that is what worked for me best. YMMV!






        share|improve this answer


























          8












          8








          8







          I just tried a few of the suggested above. I'm running:



          $ git --version
          git version 1.8.4


          I found it was best to de-init the submodule, remove the directory and create a new submodule.



          git submodule deinit <submodule name>

          git rm <submodule folder name>

          git submodule add <address to remote git repo> <new folder name>


          At least that is what worked for me best. YMMV!






          share|improve this answer













          I just tried a few of the suggested above. I'm running:



          $ git --version
          git version 1.8.4


          I found it was best to de-init the submodule, remove the directory and create a new submodule.



          git submodule deinit <submodule name>

          git rm <submodule folder name>

          git submodule add <address to remote git repo> <new folder name>


          At least that is what worked for me best. YMMV!







          share|improve this answer












          share|improve this answer



          share|improve this answer










          answered Mar 10 '14 at 19:14









          jaredwolffjaredwolff

          492410




          492410























              3














              Edit the .gitmodules file to rename the submodule and then rename the submodule directory.



              I think you might need to do a git submodule sync afterwards, but I'm not in a position to check right now.






              share|improve this answer
























              • This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

                – Lars Tackmann
                Dec 24 '10 at 15:04






              • 1





                @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

                – Cascabel
                Apr 4 '11 at 14:53
















              3














              Edit the .gitmodules file to rename the submodule and then rename the submodule directory.



              I think you might need to do a git submodule sync afterwards, but I'm not in a position to check right now.






              share|improve this answer
























              • This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

                – Lars Tackmann
                Dec 24 '10 at 15:04






              • 1





                @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

                – Cascabel
                Apr 4 '11 at 14:53














              3












              3








              3







              Edit the .gitmodules file to rename the submodule and then rename the submodule directory.



              I think you might need to do a git submodule sync afterwards, but I'm not in a position to check right now.






              share|improve this answer













              Edit the .gitmodules file to rename the submodule and then rename the submodule directory.



              I think you might need to do a git submodule sync afterwards, but I'm not in a position to check right now.







              share|improve this answer












              share|improve this answer



              share|improve this answer










              answered Dec 24 '10 at 14:59









              AbizernAbizern

              102k30183238




              102k30183238













              • This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

                – Lars Tackmann
                Dec 24 '10 at 15:04






              • 1





                @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

                – Cascabel
                Apr 4 '11 at 14:53



















              • This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

                – Lars Tackmann
                Dec 24 '10 at 15:04






              • 1





                @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

                – Cascabel
                Apr 4 '11 at 14:53

















              This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

              – Lars Tackmann
              Dec 24 '10 at 15:04





              This causes the new submodule name to occur as a new commit and not as a rename. But perhaps this is the way it has to be ?

              – Lars Tackmann
              Dec 24 '10 at 15:04




              1




              1





              @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

              – Cascabel
              Apr 4 '11 at 14:53





              @Lars: Do be sure to remove the old submodule directory too!

              – Cascabel
              Apr 4 '11 at 14:53











              2














              It's not possible to rename it, so you've to remove it first (deinit) and add it again.



              So after removing it:



              git submodule deinit <path>
              git rm --cached <path>


              you may also double check and remove the references to it in:




              • .gitmodules

              • .git/config

              • remove reference folder from .git/modules/<name> (best to make a backup), as each folder has config file where it keeps the reference to its worktree


              then stage your changes by committing any changes to your repo by:



              git commit -am 'Removing submodule.'


              and double check if you don't have any outstanding issues by:



              git submodule update
              git submodule sync
              git submodule status


              so now you can add the git submodule again:



              git submodule add --name <custom_name> git@github.com:foo/bar.git <my/path>





              share|improve this answer
























              • also it is actually today

                – Alexey
                Oct 12 '18 at 12:53
















              2














              It's not possible to rename it, so you've to remove it first (deinit) and add it again.



              So after removing it:



              git submodule deinit <path>
              git rm --cached <path>


              you may also double check and remove the references to it in:




              • .gitmodules

              • .git/config

              • remove reference folder from .git/modules/<name> (best to make a backup), as each folder has config file where it keeps the reference to its worktree


              then stage your changes by committing any changes to your repo by:



              git commit -am 'Removing submodule.'


              and double check if you don't have any outstanding issues by:



              git submodule update
              git submodule sync
              git submodule status


              so now you can add the git submodule again:



              git submodule add --name <custom_name> git@github.com:foo/bar.git <my/path>





              share|improve this answer
























              • also it is actually today

                – Alexey
                Oct 12 '18 at 12:53














              2












              2








              2







              It's not possible to rename it, so you've to remove it first (deinit) and add it again.



              So after removing it:



              git submodule deinit <path>
              git rm --cached <path>


              you may also double check and remove the references to it in:




              • .gitmodules

              • .git/config

              • remove reference folder from .git/modules/<name> (best to make a backup), as each folder has config file where it keeps the reference to its worktree


              then stage your changes by committing any changes to your repo by:



              git commit -am 'Removing submodule.'


              and double check if you don't have any outstanding issues by:



              git submodule update
              git submodule sync
              git submodule status


              so now you can add the git submodule again:



              git submodule add --name <custom_name> git@github.com:foo/bar.git <my/path>





              share|improve this answer













              It's not possible to rename it, so you've to remove it first (deinit) and add it again.



              So after removing it:



              git submodule deinit <path>
              git rm --cached <path>


              you may also double check and remove the references to it in:




              • .gitmodules

              • .git/config

              • remove reference folder from .git/modules/<name> (best to make a backup), as each folder has config file where it keeps the reference to its worktree


              then stage your changes by committing any changes to your repo by:



              git commit -am 'Removing submodule.'


              and double check if you don't have any outstanding issues by:



              git submodule update
              git submodule sync
              git submodule status


              so now you can add the git submodule again:



              git submodule add --name <custom_name> git@github.com:foo/bar.git <my/path>






              share|improve this answer












              share|improve this answer



              share|improve this answer










              answered Feb 28 '16 at 17:02









              kenorbkenorb

              69.7k29407414




              69.7k29407414













              • also it is actually today

                – Alexey
                Oct 12 '18 at 12:53



















              • also it is actually today

                – Alexey
                Oct 12 '18 at 12:53

















              also it is actually today

              – Alexey
              Oct 12 '18 at 12:53





              also it is actually today

              – Alexey
              Oct 12 '18 at 12:53











              1














              MacOs: When I wanna use VonC solution to change submodule folder Common to lowercase:



              git mv Common common


              I get




              fatal: renaming 'Common' failed: Invalid argument




              Solution - use some temporary folder name and move twice:



              git mv Common commontemp
              git mv commontemp common


              That's all :)






              share|improve this answer




























                1














                MacOs: When I wanna use VonC solution to change submodule folder Common to lowercase:



                git mv Common common


                I get




                fatal: renaming 'Common' failed: Invalid argument




                Solution - use some temporary folder name and move twice:



                git mv Common commontemp
                git mv commontemp common


                That's all :)






                share|improve this answer


























                  1












                  1








                  1







                  MacOs: When I wanna use VonC solution to change submodule folder Common to lowercase:



                  git mv Common common


                  I get




                  fatal: renaming 'Common' failed: Invalid argument




                  Solution - use some temporary folder name and move twice:



                  git mv Common commontemp
                  git mv commontemp common


                  That's all :)






                  share|improve this answer













                  MacOs: When I wanna use VonC solution to change submodule folder Common to lowercase:



                  git mv Common common


                  I get




                  fatal: renaming 'Common' failed: Invalid argument




                  Solution - use some temporary folder name and move twice:



                  git mv Common commontemp
                  git mv commontemp common


                  That's all :)







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                  answered Sep 5 '18 at 17:55









                  Kamil KiełczewskiKamil Kiełczewski

                  13.1k86896




                  13.1k86896






























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