Manual: git-shell

GIT-SHELL(1)					 Git Manual					GIT-SHELL(1)

NAME
       git-shell - Restricted login shell for Git-only SSH access

SYNOPSIS
       chsh -s $(command -v git-shell) 
       git clone @localhost:/path/to/repo.git
       ssh @localhost

DESCRIPTION
       This is a login shell for SSH accounts to provide restricted Git access. It permits execution only of
       server-side Git commands implementing the pull/push functionality, plus custom commands present in a
       subdirectory named git-shell-commands in the user’s home directory.

COMMANDS
       git shell accepts the following commands after the -c option:

       git receive-pack , git upload-pack , git upload-archive 
	   Call the corresponding server-side command to support the client’s git push, git fetch, or git
	   archive --remote request.

       cvs server
	   Imitate a CVS server. See git-cvsserver(1).

       If a ~/git-shell-commands directory is present, git shell will also handle other, custom commands by
       running "git-shell-commands/ " from the user’s home directory.

INTERACTIVE USE
       By default, the commands above can be executed only with the -c option; the shell is not interactive.

       If a ~/git-shell-commands directory is present, git shell can also be run interactively (with no
       arguments). If a help command is present in the git-shell-commands directory, it is run to provide
       the user with an overview of allowed actions. Then a "git> " prompt is presented at which one can
       enter any of the commands from the git-shell-commands directory, or exit to close the connection.

       Generally this mode is used as an administrative interface to allow users to list repositories they
       have access to, create, delete, or rename repositories, or change repository descriptions and
       permissions.

       If a no-interactive-login command exists, then it is run and the interactive shell is aborted.

EXAMPLES
       To disable interactive logins, displaying a greeting instead:

	   $ chsh -s /usr/bin/git-shell
	   $ mkdir $HOME/git-shell-commands
	   $ cat >$HOME/git-shell-commands/no-interactive-login <<\EOF
	   #!/bin/sh
	   printf '%s\n' "Hi $USER! You've successfully authenticated, but I do not"
	   printf '%s\n' "provide interactive shell access."
	   exit 128
	   EOF
	   $ chmod +x $HOME/git-shell-commands/no-interactive-login

       To enable git-cvsserver access (which should generally have the no-interactive-login example above as
       a prerequisite, as creating the git-shell-commands directory allows interactive logins):

	   $ cat >$HOME/git-shell-commands/cvs <<\EOF
	   if ! test $# = 1 && test "$1" = "server"
	   then
		   echo >&2 "git-cvsserver only handles \"server\""
		   exit 1
	   fi
	   exec git cvsserver server
	   EOF
	   $ chmod +x $HOME/git-shell-commands/cvs

SEE ALSO
       ssh(1), git-daemon(1), contrib/git-shell-commands/README

GIT
       Part of the git(1) suite

Git 2.53.0					 03/02/2026					GIT-SHELL(1)