Git - How do I set config values in git?

Posted 23 Mar. 2021 | 2 min read.

This article covers how to use the command 'git config'.

The git config command allows us to modify git configuration values, either:

  • Locally - Within the current repository
  • Globally - For every repository for the current operating system user
  • System-wide - For every repository, and for every user on the system

These configuration values are saved within .gitconfig text files.

Values are stored in the config against a configuration name. To get the value for each configuration name, you can pass it to the git config command:

Get a configuration value

git config <configuration-name>

Let's look at an example:

$ git config user.name
Sean Lloyd

$ git config user.email
sean@email.com

Set a configuration value

To set a config value, we need to pass in the new value with the configuration name:

git config <configuration-name> <configuration-value>

For example, to change my name to "Sean P Lloyd":

$ git config user.name "Sean P Lloyd"

$ git config user.name
Sean P Lloyd

Setting different configuration levels

In the previous example, we set a configuration value without specifying the configuration level.

As mentioned previously, we have three configuration levels: local, global, and system.

By default, the local level is used if no configuration level is provided.

--local

To explicitly set a local value, add the parameter --local:

git config --local <configuration-name> <configuration-value>

This will set the value for that operating system user, only within that repository.

Local values can be found in the repository's git directory: .git/config

--global

To set a global value, add the parameter --global:

git config --global <configuration-name> <configuration-value>

This will set the value for every repository, for that operating system user.

Global values can be found in a file within the user's home directory:

  • Unix and Unix-like systems - ~ /.gitconfig
  • Windows - C:\Users\.gitconfig

--system

To set a system value, add the parameter --system:

git config --system <configuration-name> <configuration-value>

This will set the value for every repository, and for every user on that machine.

System-level configuration can be found in the following places:

  • Unix and Unix-like systems - $(prefix)/etc/gitconfig
  • Windows Vista and above - C:\ProgramData\Git\config
  • Windows XP - C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Git\config
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