git-branch, git-checkout: autosetup for remote branch tracking

In order to track and build on top of a branch 'topic' you track from
your upstream repository, you often would end up doing this sequence:

  git checkout -b mytopic origin/topic
  git config --add branch.mytopic.remote origin
  git config --add branch.mytopic.merge refs/heads/topic

This would first fork your own 'mytopic' branch from the 'topic'
branch you track from the 'origin' repository; then it would set up two
configuration variables so that 'git pull' without parameters does the
right thing while you are on your own 'mytopic' branch.

This commit adds a --track option to git-branch, so that "git
branch --track mytopic origin/topic" performs the latter two actions
when creating your 'mytopic' branch.

If the configuration variable branch.autosetupmerge is set to true, you
do not have to pass the --track option explicitly; further patches in
this series allow setting the variable with a "git remote add" option.
The configuration variable is off by default, and there is a --no-track
option to countermand it even if the variable is set.

Signed-off-by: Paolo Bonzini  <bonzini@gnu.org>
Signed-off-by: Junio C Hamano <junkio@cox.net>

1 files changed, 8 insertions, 1 deletions

diff --git a/Documentation/git-branch.txt b/Documentation/git-branch.txt
index 3ea3b80635..603f87f3b5 100644
--- a/Documentation/git-branch.txt
+++ b/Documentation/git-branch.txt
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ SYNOPSIS
 [verse]
 'git-branch' [--color | --no-color] [-r | -a]
 	   [-v [--abbrev=<length> | --no-abbrev]]
-'git-branch' [-l] [-f] <branchname> [<start-point>]
+'git-branch' [--track | --no-track] [-l] [-f] <branchname> [<start-point>]
 'git-branch' (-m | -M) [<oldbranch>] <newbranch>
 'git-branch' (-d | -D) [-r] <branchname>...
 
@@ -26,6 +26,13 @@ It will start out with a head equal to the one given as <start-point>.
 If no <start-point> is given, the branch will be created with a head
 equal to that of the currently checked out branch.
 
+When a local branch is started off a remote branch, git can setup the
+branch so that gitlink:git-pull[1] will appropriately merge from that
+remote branch.  If this behavior is desired, it is possible to make it
+the default using the global `branch.autosetupmerge` configuration
+flag.  Otherwise, it can be chosen per-branch using the `--track`
+and `--no-track` options.
+
 With a '-m' or '-M' option, <oldbranch> will be renamed to <newbranch>.
 If <oldbranch> had a corresponding reflog, it is renamed to match
 <newbranch>, and a reflog entry is created to remember the branch