Manage your Git repositories

The Tuleap Git service allows you to host and manage Git repositories directly within your projects. Each repository is accessible through a full web interface and benefits from native integration with Trackers: commits, branches, and Pull Requests can be linked to Artifacts for complete traceability.

This complete traceability allows every team member to understand the context of a code change, navigate easily from a task to a commit, and ensure that every change is justified and validated.

Prerequisites: getting familiar with Git

Learning Git concepts

Before using the tools, understanding how Git works is essential.

The "Pro Git" book, written by Scott Chacon and Ben Straub and freely available online, is the most comprehensive resource for learning how Git works, from the basics to advanced concepts such as branches and merges.

Choosing a Git client

A Git client is the software you install on your computer to communicate with the repository hosted on Tuleap.

• Graphical clients (GUI): there are many options for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Tools such as Sourcetree, GitKraken, or GitHub Desktop provide a visual interface to simplify Git operations.

• Command line (git client): the most direct and universal method. The client can be installed via your distribution's package manager or by downloading it from the official Git website.

• Additionally, most modern integrated development environments (IDEs) include Git support, either natively or through extensions. Check the installation options available in your preferred IDE.

Create a repository

The first step to using the service is to create a repository that will host your code.

Repository creation is available to project administrators and Git service administrators.

1. Navigate to the Git service in your Tuleap project.

2. Click the button to create a new repository.

3. Enter the desired name for the repository, then click "Add repository".

Once created, the repository appears in the list of project repositories. You can create as many repositories as needed; they are all managed directly by the Tuleap platform.

The repository list

The Git service home page displays all repositories in the project. You can sort this list by path (namespace) or by last modification date.

The list distinguishes two categories:

• Project repositories ("References"): the official repositories of the project.

• Users forks: personal copies created by developers.

A text description can be added to each repository from its settings. It is displayed in the repository list and on the repository page.

Repositories can be grouped into folders (namespaces) for better organization. For example: backend/api, frontend/webapp, libs/common. This organization is defined at repository creation time by specifying a path.

Browse a repository

By selecting a repository from the list, you can access its main page and view all related information.

On this page, you will find:

• The repository name: displayed at the top of the page.

• Files: the repository content at the root of the selected branch. Each file can be viewed or downloaded.

• The Pull Requests counter: shows the number of Pull Requests pending review.

Several actions are also available:

• Navigation tabs: three main tabs — "Files" to view the repository content, "Commits" for the change history, and "Pull Requests" to manage code reviews.

• "Create a pull request" button: initiates a new code review.

• "Clone" button: displays the SSH and HTTPS URLs to clone the repository.

• "Fork" button: creates a personal copy of the repository.

• Settings: access to the repository configuration area (permissions, notifications, etc.).

Browsing the commit history

By default, the page displays the commit history of the main branch (usually main or master). You can select another branch to display its specific history. You can also select a specific tag.

By clicking on the "Commits" tab, you access a detailed view of the full history of the selected branch. To get all information related to a change, click on a commit in the list. You will then be able to view:

• The author and the committer.

• The unique identifiers (commit, tree, parent).

• The detailed commit message.

• Any references to Tuleap Artifacts.

• The list of modified files.

Code changes can be viewed as a list or as a "diff", globally or file by file.

Additionally, for each file in a commit, the "blame" view shows who modified each line and in which commit.

Clone a repository

To start working on the code, you need to create a local copy of the repository hosted on Tuleap. Two protocols are available:

• Via SSH: this method requires that you have previously configured a public SSH key in your Tuleap user profile. Once your key is added, you can clone without entering your credentials for each operation.

• Via HTTPS: this method requires a Personal Access Key (with the Git repository scope) that you must generate from your user profile. When cloning, use your Tuleap username and the token as the password.

To retrieve the clone URL:

1. Navigate to the repository page.

2. Click the "Clone" button.

3. Copy the displayed SSH or HTTPS URL.

Information

For more details on configuring SSH keys and Access Keys, refer to the Edit my profile section of the Tuleap documentation.

Fork a repository

Personal forks support a decentralized development model. In this model:

• Reference repositories ("References") are maintained by integrators and represent the official repositories of the project.

• Developers work in their personal repositories (forks) and regularly publish their work to share it with other developers.

Create a personal fork

1. From the Git service page, select one or more repositories to fork.

2. Click the "Fork" button.

The created forks appear in the "Users forks" section of the Git service, separate from the reference repositories.

Cross-project fork

If you are an administrator of another project where the Git service is enabled, you can fork a repository directly into that project. In this case, the fork will become a reference repository in the destination project.

Delete a repository

A repository can be deleted by a project administrator. Upon deletion, Tuleap automatically creates a backup in the format {PROJECT}_{REPOSITORY}_{TIMESTAMP}.tar.bz2 in the Git plugin backup directory.

Deleted repositories can be restored by a platform administrator from the administration interface.

Information

For more details on restoring a backup, refer to the Importing an existing Git Repository section of the technical documentation.