Git Check Ref Format

git-check-ref-format(1) ======================= NAME ---- git-check-ref-format - Ensures that a reference name is well formed SYNOPSIS -------- [verse] 'git check-ref-format' [--normalize] [--[no-]allow-onelevel] [--refspec-pattern] <refname> 'git check-ref-format' --branch <branchname-shorthand> DESCRIPTION ----------- Checks if a given 'refname' is acceptable, and exits with a non-zero status if it is not. A reference is used in Git to specify branches and tags. A branch head is stored in the `refs/heads` hierarchy, while a tag is stored in the `refs/tags` hierarchy of the ref namespace (typically in `$GIT_DIR/refs/heads` and `$GIT_DIR/refs/tags` directories or, as entries in file `$GIT_DIR/packed-refs` if refs are packed by `git gc`). Git imposes the following rules on how references are named: . They can include slash `/` for hierarchical (directory) grouping, but no slash-separated component can begin with a dot `.` or end with the sequence `.lock`. . They must contain at least one `/`. This enforces the presence of a category like `heads/`, `tags/` etc. but the actual names are not restricted. If the `--allow-onelevel` option is used, this rule is waived. . They cannot have two consecutive dots `..` anywhere. . They cannot have ASCII control characters (i.e. bytes whose values are lower than \040, or \177 `DEL`), space, tilde `~`, caret `^`, or colon `:` anywhere. . They cannot have question-mark `?`, asterisk `*`, or open bracket `[` anywhere. See the `--refspec-pattern` option below for an exception to this rule. . They cannot begin or end with a slash `/` or contain multiple consecutive slashes (see the `--normalize` option below for an exception to this rule). . They cannot end with a dot `.`. . They cannot contain a sequence `@{`. . They cannot be the single character `@`. . They cannot contain a `\`. These rules make it easy for shell script based tools to parse reference names, pathname expansion by the shell when a reference name is used unquoted (by mistake), and also avoid ambiguities in certain reference name expressions (see linkgit:gitrevisions[7]): . A double-dot `..` is often used as in `ref1..ref2`, and in some contexts this notation means `^ref1 ref2` (i.e. not in `ref1` and in `ref2`). . A tilde `~` and caret `^` are used to introduce the postfix 'nth parent' and 'peel onion' operation. . A colon `:` is used as in `srcref:dstref` to mean "use srcref\'s value and store it in dstref" in

Git check-ref-format is a command that checks if a given reference name is well-formed according to Git's rules, which include restrictions on characters and formatting to ensure compatibility with shell scripts and avoid ambiguities.