git submodule Tips
To clone a repo with submodules
git clone --recursive git@github.com:url_to/awesome_submodule.git path_to_awesome_submodule
Add a submodule clone into an existing repo
git submodule add git@github.com:url_to/awesome_submodule.git path_to_awesome_submodule
If repo with a submodule that is empty
git submodule init
… or to fetch all submodules, even if not initialized yet, and recursively in case submodules have submodules
git submodule update --init --recursive
Grab update inside a single submodule
cd path/to/module
git fetch
git checkout -q <commit-sha1>
cd -
git commit -am “Updated submodule X to: blah blah”
To always see submodule status with git status while a repo
Status, like logs and diffs, is limited to the active repo (right now, the container), not to submodules, which are nested repos. This is often problematic (it’s super easy to miss a regression when limited to this view), so I recommend you set up a submodule-aware status once and for all:
git config status.submoduleSummary true
Useful global .gitcoinfig configurations
git config --global fetch.recurseSubmodules = on-demand # default for git 1.7.5+, but just in case
git config --global diff.submodule log # clearer container diffs when referenced submodule commits changed
git config --global status.submoduleSummary true # git status is useful again when a referenced submodule commit changed
…and aliases
git config --global alias.spull '!git pull && git submodule sync --recursive && git submodule update --init --recursive'
git config --global alias.spush 'push --recurse-submodules=on-demand'