Re: [PATCH] git submodule: add submodules with git add -f <path>

["Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason" <avarab@gmail.com>]

On Tue, Jul 6, 2010 at 21:51, Jens Lehmann <Jens.Lehmann@web.de> wrote:
> [...]
> But while I think adding the --force option to the "git add .gitmodules"
> makes perfect sense (as the submodule can't be successfully added until
> it is recorded in this file and there is really no point in ignoring
> .gitmodules when you decide to use submodules), I'm not so sure about
> what to do when the submodule path itself is ignored.
>
> I see two possible behaviors here:
>
> a) We just ignore .gitignore and add the submodule anyways (which is
>   what this patch does)
>
> b) We do the same a "git add <ignored file>" does: Print an error
>   message, maybe even tell the user to use a - still to be added -
>   "--force" (or "-f") option and exit. But without checking out the
>   submodule first nor adding or changing .gitmodules.
>
> IMHO b) is more consistent with the current behavior of "git add". And
> when you later decide that the submodules files should live in the
> superproject and you drop the submodule, the then probably still
> present entry in .gitignore might really shoot you in the foot when
> you add new files there and they won't show up because they are still
> ignored.
>
> What do others think?

Option C would be treating it like git init as the current patch
does. But init isn't strictly comparable to git add or git submodule
add since it's not adding something to *another* repository.

I really don't care, B or C works for me, although C is of course
easier since I don't have to write another patch :)

Option b) is more consistent with git-add, but I can't find a way to
ask any git tool whether a non-existing path is ignored without
actually adding something. git add --dry-run will die on "pathspec
'foo' did not match any files" unless the file exists already.