VSI-AXPVMS-VGIT-V0100-0-1-RNOTES.PDF

VGIT V1.0-0 is a partial implementation of the Git version control system specifically designed for VSI OpenVMS Alpha and I64 platforms. Its primary goal is to enable OpenVMS application developers to participate in heterogeneous development environments and interact with cloud-based Git services like GitHub and BitBucket. VGIT is used internally by VMS Software Inc. and its functionality is expected to grow.

This release, V1.0-0, introduces several key enhancements and bug fixes. New features include support for rebase and pull -r commands, ed25519 SSH keys, http.proxy configuration, diff -e for output navigation, and the -t (tags) option for pull and fetch. Bug fixes address issues with branch/tag names containing periods and unnecessary credential requests. Previous cumulative updates improved cloning from Azure DevOps, updated certificate bundles, enhanced various Git commands (e.g., checkout, commit, rm, merge, branching), integrated DCL/MMS script status reporting, and added pull conflict handling.

VGIT requires OpenVMS 8.4-2L1 or higher and a compatible TCP/IP stack; it bundles OpenSSL 1.1.1 internally. Installation is via an OpenVMS PCSI kit, followed by post-installation steps to configure logical names and foreign commands, including managing the CA-BUNDLE.CRT file for secure connections. Initial setup involves configuring user details (user.name, user.email) and optionally HTTP proxy settings.

Important operational notes include the requirement for files to be stream-lf, use of ODS-5 file systems, case-sensitivity for some commands, considerations for performance with large repositories, and support for both key-based (RSA/ed25519 PEM) and username/password authentication, with options to force specific methods. VGIT can operate in an OpenVMS cluster environment, but users are cautioned about potential conflicts when using rebase and pull -r, and about logical names matching repository names. VGIT leverages open-source packages such as cURL, libgit2, and OpenSSL.