Re: [PATCH 1/2] clone: Fix error message for reference repository

Aaron Schrab [off-list ref] writes:

At 16:48 -0700 07 Apr 2013, Jonathan Nieder [off-list ref] wrote:

quoted

quoted

Do not report an argument to clone's --reference option is not a local
directory.  Nothing checks for the actual directory so we have no way to
know if whether or not exists.  Telling the user that a directory doesn't
exist when that isn't actually known may lead him or her on the wrong
path to finding the problem.

I don't understand the above explanation.  Could you give an example?

I originally noticed this while trying to use a submodule as a
reference repository.

I do agree that it would be nice to dereference .git gitfile when we
deal with --reference argument, but you do not want to use in-tree
repository of a submodule working tree.  What happens when you have
to check out a version of the containing superproject that did not
have the submodule you are borrowing from?  The directory will
disappear, leaving the borrowing repository still pointing at it
with its .git/objects/info/alternates file, no?