GitPack

GitPack stands on a simple idea a Git repository is a package, its URL is the package name. Based on that it is possible to install/update your favorite Git projects as shown:

gitpack install <url>

And when they are no longer needed, uninstall them that way:

gitpack uninstall <url>

GitPack not only saves time for end-users to figure out how to install a Git project, but it also unifies the project development and distribution in a convenient place; its Git repository.

Do you want to try GitPack in your project? The section for developers will help you get started.

Table of Contents

• Requirements
• Installation
• Usage
  • Examples
• For Developers
  • Badge
• Useful Resources

Requirements

All you need to install and run GitPack is Linux/Unix environment and Git.

Windows users may simply use Git for Windows.

Installation

Local (user) installation:

wget -qO- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dominiksalvet/gitpack/master/.install/initl.sh | sh

Global (system) installation:

wget -qO- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dominiksalvet/gitpack/master/.install/initg.sh | sh

If you do not have wget, copy-paste the source code of one of the scripts into a shell terminal and execute it.

Once installed, you will use GitPack to manage even itself (e.g., for updating). Now start exploring.

Usage

If GitPack is run with root permissions (e.g., using sudo), it will use global access and perform global installations. Otherwise, a local approach for the current user will be used.

Install/update to the latest version:

gitpack install <url>

It uses the latest tag (latest commit if no tag) of the repository default branch.

Install/update/downgrade to a particular version:

gitpack install <url>=<version>

The <version> is any Git revision (tag name, branch name, commit hash).

Uninstall (version is detected automatically):

gitpack uninstall <url>

Show the status of a project:

gitpack status <url>

List all installed projects:

gitpack list

Use gitpack help to see more arguments.

Examples

To better understand how GitPack works, there are some examples below.

• Install a simple game with pathfinding locally (latest version):

$ gitpack install github.com/dominiksalvet/pathfinding-robots
>>> running install for github.com/dominiksalvet/pathfinding-robots
downloading repository
reading status database
using automatic candidate version
installing version 1.1.0
running script .install/install-local
copying files
adding to status database
<<< done; successfully installed

• Use URL with no HTTPS and other adjustments (e.g., for SSH):

$ gitpack -r status [email protected]:dominiksalvet/vhdldep.git
>>> running status for [email protected]:dominiksalvet/vhdldep.git
downloading repository
reading status database
using automatic candidate version
<<< not installed; candidate is 2.2.0

• List globally installed projects (display full commit hashes):

$ sudo gitpack -H list
github.com/dominiksalvet/gitpack 4ca05c10a9903251826a8d0addc25daf6808fffa
github.com/dominiksalvet/asus-fan-control cb6be871cdbf4453d9072118194198d75dd0b380
github.com/dominiksalvet/ux430ua-jack-volume 208f1a7bce8644482abdfa14107f90358a75bb1b

• GitPack uses different paths for local and global access:

$ gitpack paths
state-dir /home/dominik/.local/share/gitpack
cache-dir /home/dominik/.cache/gitpack
lock-path /var/lock/gitpack-1000

$ sudo gitpack paths
state-dir /var/lib/gitpack
cache-dir /var/cache/gitpack
lock-path /var/lock/gitpack-0

Did you know that GitPack has sleek tab completion for Bash shells?

For Developers

There are many reasons why developers should like GitPack:

• Tight integration with Git
• Any programming language may be used
• Runs on Linux, macOS, and other Unixes
• Runs on Windows (after some setup)
• Easy and flexible repository adaptation

GitPack shines when installing the following:

• Scripts with no/few dependencies
• Binaries directly present in the repository
• Simple compiled programs
• Other repository content (e.g., themes)

Unsure? There is even more in GitPack:

• Simple by design
• Delta updates
• Smart repository cache
• POSIX-friendly (i.e., very portable)
• Standalone script (for advanced uses)
• Suitable even for self-hosted Git services

So are you ready to try GitPack in your project? Then see how it works.

Badge

Projects that use GitPack work best with the following sleek badge:

In markdown:

[![GitPack](https://img.shields.io/badge/-GitPack-571997)](https://github.com/topics/gitpack)

Useful Resources

• support.md questions, answers, help
• contributing.md get involved, suggestions, bug reports
• license author, license text