VSI-VGIT-NOTES-28-JAN-2019.PDF

VGIT2 is a partial implementation of the Git version control system (v0.9.5, 28-JAN-2019) specifically for OpenVMS IA64 (v8.4 or higher), with potential for Alpha 8.4. It provides Git capabilities for OpenVMS users.

The tool is distributed as a single ZIP file (VGIT-28-JAN-2019.ZIP) from the VSI secure FTP site. This release adds a basic "stash" command and support for interacting with remote repositories via a proxy server. The ZIP file contains vgit2.exe (a UNIX-style executable, which is the preferred and more user-friendly version) and cert.pem (a certificate file required for services like GitHub or BitBucket).

To get started:

1. Extract the ZIP contents on your OpenVMS server.
2. Define vgit2 as a foreign command (e.g., $ vgit2 :== $device:[path]vgit2.exe).
3. Define the logical name git$ssl_certs to point to cert.pem (e.g., $ define git$ssl_certs device:[path]cert.pem).
4. Configure user details (e.g., $ vgit2 config user -n username -e youremail).
5. Optionally, configure a proxy server if needed (e.g., $ vgit2 config http.proxy http://myproxy.server:8080).

The UNIX-style vgit2.exe includes built-in usage notes, accessible by running the command without arguments or with an invalid one.

Important Notes and Limitations:

• All files must be stream-lf; non-stream-lf files will cause errors during the add command.
• The tool requires an ODS-5 file system.
• Initial repository loads, cloning large repositories, and the status command can be slow.
• Key-based authentication requires defining git$id_rsa and git$id_rsa_pub logical names.
• While some commands map well to standard Git, others do not.
• The document encourages users to "give it a try" and contact the developers for problems or feature requests.