Getting the source code (git)

Haiku's source code is currently being hosted in a Git based repository. Anonymous access will allow anyone to download Haiku's source code; However, only Haiku contributors with commit access should use the authenticated (non-anonymous) method.

Configure your git! Before making any commits to the Haiku repository (local even), be sure to configure the git environment on your local system! Failure to configure git properly before a commit will result in incorrect naming in your commit and public humiliation on the mailing list.
The buildtools are not needed when building from within Haiku. Pre-built images of Haiku already come with the buildtools pre-installed.

Git Access - Anonymous testers

  • Build Tools:

    git clone git://git.haiku-os.org/buildtools

  • Haiku:

    git clone git://git.haiku-os.org/haiku

Git Access - Contributors with commit permission

  • Configure Git on your system:

    Before making your first commit on a new system, be sure to configure Git. These global settings are stored in your git configuration directory (~/.git/) and will be appended to each commit as your personal information.

    git config --global user.name "John Doe"
git config --global user.email "john.doe@developers.com"

    If you were used to the short version of the svn commands (st, di,... instead of status, diff,...), you'll also want to set up similar shortcuts as aliases for the respective long git commands:

    git config --global alias.st "status -s"
git config --global alias.di "diff"
git config --global alias.ci "commit"
git config --global alias.co "checkout"

  • Build Tools:

    The <login>@ is only needed if your currently logged in username doesn't match your git.haiku-os.org username.

    git clone ssh://<login>@git.haiku-os.org/buildtools

  • Haiku:

    The <login>@ is only needed if your currently logged in username doesn't match your git.haiku-os.org username.

    git clone ssh://<login>@git.haiku-os.org/haiku

Some Notes

  • Case Sensitive Filesystem

    Haiku's source code needs to reside on a case sensitive file system.

    In short, such a file system recognizes "ThisIsAFile.txt" and "THISISAFILE.txt" as two different files. Some file systems that are (or could be) case in-sensitive include, FAT32, NTFS, and HFS+. Mac OS X's HFS+ is case in-sensitive by default. For more information regarding how to create a case-sensitive HFS+ volume, see this article.

  • Updating the Sources

    Be sure to use the --rebase argument while doing a pull prior to a push to avoid confusing nonlinear histories! ("Merge 'master' on ssh://git.haiku-os.org/haiku" messages showing your name and others changes) Do NOT however use --rebase on branches you have shared with other people! (rebase re-writes the local history. If your local history doesn't match people who cloned off of you, and they want to push to you, they will have major problems.) 
    cd /path/haiku/haiku
git pull --rebase

    Alternatively, a single path or multiple paths can be given to git pull. This will allow you to run the following command from any directory. This becomes extremely useful if you use an external object directory or if you wish to update both the buildtools and haiku directories at the same time.

    git pull --rebase /path/haiku/haiku /path/haiku/buildtools

  • Making local commits

    In git you make commits to your local tree, then push the final results to the central remote Haiku repository. The comment quality of commits should be high, explaining changes in as much detail as possible.

    Short commit comment

    Short commit messages are best utilized for small changes or changes that hold a simple ideal.

    git commit -a -m "Style cleanup, no functional change"

    The short commit message should be a summary no longer than 64 characters, no returns

    Long commit comments

    Long commit messages are best used to explain what was changed and why on new code, rewrites, or other tasks that may need explanation.

    git commit -a -F ~/mycommitlog

    The following commit message format is recommended:

    Perform the usual early morning tasks

* Ensure cats in computer are fed.
* Clean up white space.
* The retroencabulator needs to be adjusted to accept input from
  multiple sources of data and ensure the buffer is free for
  shenanigans.
* No functional change.

    The first line should be a summary no longer than 64 characters, separated from a detailed description by a blank line. The description lines shouldn't be longer than 72 characters.

  • Pushing changes remotely

    git push

    After your changes are complete, the push command will push your local tree to the remote Haiku repository.

  • Example git workflow