GIT-CAT-FILE(1) 						    Git Manual							   GIT-CAT-FILE(1)

NAME

       git-cat-file - Provide content or type and size information for repository objects

SYNOPSIS

       git cat-file (-t | -s | -e | -p | <type>) <object>
       git cat-file (--batch | --batch-check) < <list-of-objects>

DESCRIPTION

       In its first form, the command provides the content or the type of an object in the repository. The type is required unless -t or -p is
       used to find the object type, or -s is used to find the object size.

       In the second form, a list of objects (separated by linefeeds) is provided on stdin, and the SHA1, type, and size of each object is printed
       on stdout.

OPTIONS

       <object>
	   The name of the object to show. For a more complete list of ways to spell object names, see the "SPECIFYING REVISIONS" section in git-
	   rev-parse(1).

       -t
	   Instead of the content, show the object type identified by <object>.

       -s
	   Instead of the content, show the object size identified by <object>.

       -e
	   Suppress all output; instead exit with zero status if <object> exists and is a valid object.

       -p
	   Pretty-print the contents of <object> based on its type.

       <type>
	   Typically this matches the real type of <object> but asking for a type that can trivially be dereferenced from the given <object> is
	   also permitted. An example is to ask for a "tree" with <object> being a commit object that contains it, or to ask for a "blob" with
	   <object> being a tag object that points at it.

       --batch
	   Print the SHA1, type, size, and contents of each object provided on stdin. May not be combined with any other options or arguments.

       --batch-check
	   Print the SHA1, type, and size of each object provided on stdin. May not be combined with any other options or arguments.

OUTPUT

       If -t is specified, one of the <type>.

       If -s is specified, the size of the <object> in bytes.

       If -e is specified, no output.

       If -p is specified, the contents of <object> are pretty-printed.

       If <type> is specified, the raw (though uncompressed) contents of the <object> will be returned.

       If --batch is specified, output of the following form is printed for each object specified on stdin:

	   .ft C
	   <sha1> SP <type> SP <size> LF
	   <contents> LF
	   .ft

       If --batch-check is specified, output of the following form is printed for each object specified on stdin:

	   .ft C
	   <sha1> SP <type> SP <size> LF
	   .ft

       For both --batch and --batch-check, output of the following form is printed for each object specified on stdin that does not exist in the
       repository:

	   .ft C
	   <object> SP missing LF
	   .ft

AUTHOR

       Written by Linus Torvalds <torvalds@osdl.org[1]>

DOCUMENTATION

       Documentation by David Greaves, Junio C Hamano and the git-list <git@vger.kernel.org[2]>.

GIT

       Part of the git(1) suite

NOTES

	1. torvalds@osdl.org
	   mailto:torvalds@osdl.org

	2. git@vger.kernel.org
	   mailto:git@vger.kernel.org

Git 1.7.1							    07/05/2010							   GIT-CAT-FILE(1)