git quiltimport

Old kernel/userspace workflow ingestion.

🎯 What & why

Import a Quilt patch series into Git history, one commit per patch. Old kernel and userspace projects ship code this way and this is the clean ingestion path.

🧠 Mental model

Read the series file, apply each listed patch in order, and create one Git commit per patch with the patch headers as the commit message. A scripted replay of quilt push.

🛠️ Synopsis

git quiltimport [--author <author>] [--patches <dir>]
                [--series <file>] [--keep-non-patch]

Run inside an existing Git repo. Defaults: --patches patches/ and
--series patches/series. Each non-comment line in the series file
names a patch file relative to the patches dir; each is applied and
committed in order.

🎚️ Switches & options

Flag	What it does
`--author <author>`	Override the author when a patch lacks a From: header. Format: 'Name <email>'.
`--patches <dir>`	Directory holding the patch files; defaults to patches/ under the current dir.
`--series <file>`	Path to the series file; defaults to <patches-dir>/series.
`--keep-non-patch`	Keep the [PATCH] prefix and similar bracket tags in the imported commit subject.
`--dry-run`	Walk the series file and validate without creating any commits.

💡 Use cases

Pulling a vendor's quilt-managed patch set into a Git fork for ongoing maintenance.
Converting a distro packaging tree (debian/patches with a series file) into Git history for review.
Auditing a long-lived patch series by getting one reviewable commit per patch.
Bootstrapping a Git mirror of an upstream that only publishes tarball + quilt series.

🧪 Examples

Import the default patches/ + patches/series

git quiltimport

Import from a debian-style layout

git quiltimport --patches debian/patches --series debian/patches/series

Supply a fallback author for header-less patches

git quiltimport --author 'Alice <alice@127.0.0.1>'

Dry-run to validate the series first

git quiltimport --dry-run

🎓 Recommendations

Run on a dedicated branch; if a patch fails to apply you want a clean ref to discard.
Inspect the series file first and strip commented-out entries you do not want imported.
Pair with git rebase -i afterwards to squash trivial fixup patches into their parents.

🪤 Common pitfalls

Patches without From:/Subject: headers produce ugly commits; supply --author and edit messages later.
A failed patch leaves the working tree mid-import; reset hard and fix the offending patch before retrying.
Assuming binary patches will import; quiltimport relies on git apply and chokes on non-text changes.

🔗 Related modules

📝 Quiz

Hit each option, then Check answers. Score is recorded; Next is always open.