Rel4tion-Wiki/maint/admin/Git_Server/Gitolite_Setup.mdwn

Install the 'gitolite' package using your favorite package manager from the
Debian repositories. It should require 'git' and 'openssh-server' and several
other packages as dependencies (unless they are already installed). On the
command-line this can be done by running the following command as root:

	# apt-get install gitolite

When installing gitolite, debconf basically should prompt the user for several
settings. However, due the a [bug] in the stable package, it doesn't happen
automatically. If it did work for you when you installed the package - great.
Otherwise, run the configuration program (as root) after the 'gitolite' package
is installed:

	# dpkg-reconfigure gitolite

The first setting you'll be asked to choose is the name of the user which
gitolite will use to access the repositories. It can be any user, but it is
safer to use a separate user. If the specified user doesn't exist, it will be
automatically created.

The default user is gitolite, but personally I prefer to decouple general git
server details from the specific management software I use (gitolite is not the
only one of its kind). Thus, since the gitolite user is the owner of the git
repositories, I give it the name __git__. This is also seems to be the name used
commonly for this purpose in other places.

The second setting you need to fill in is the path where the repositories will
be stored. This will also be the gitolite user's home directory. The default,
/var/lib/gitolite, may be fine for many cases, but you should probably take the
following into consideration:

* __Disk encryption__: If you don't use a single disk partition for your whole
  file system, your home directory and the file system root (whose path is
  __/__) probably reside in different partitions. It is common to have the home
  partition encrypted while the root partition is not, so take that into account
  when choosing the path. This has an implication on anonymity: If you host your
  repositories on a darknet or in any other anonymous mechanism, storing them on
  an encrypted partition may prevent 3rd parties from figuring out who you are
  in case they file your lost harddrive. Otherwise it probably doesn't make a
  big difference, because your code is going to be available via your new git
  server anyway.
* __Available space__: For the same reason explained above, it is common for
  home computers to have a large home partition and a smaller root partition
  (e.g. 300 GB home partition and 25 GB root partition). Files stored in version
  control are usually relatively small, i.e. they aren't binaries (executables,
  audio, video), but as repositories grow and new ones are added, this may
  become a consideration.
* For the same reason I prefer __git__ as the name of the user, I prefer to not
  have 'gitolite' in the path of the repositories.

Note that it is possible to use /var/lib/gitolite (or any other path) and simply
make it a symbolic link which points to the real location of the repositories.

Some common options are:

+ /var/lib/gitolite
+ /home/git
+ /opt/git
+ /srv/git

For details on the purpose of the various folders, you can read about the
[Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS)][fhs].

For the purpose of the example, let's use __/home/git__. The repositories
themselves will be stored under a subfolder /home/git/repositories created for
you automatically.

The third and last thing you'll be asked is the SSH key of the administator.
When gitolite is installed on a dedicated server, its configuration is usually
done by connecting to it via SSH from a workstation, e.g. a personal computer of
the developer. The SSH key specified should be the key of the person who will be
in charge of managing the repositories and gitolite's configuration files. For
example, it may be the lead developer or a system administrator or someone in
the team who is hosting the server.

In my case, the same computers multi-function as servers and as user desktops,
so I use my personal SSH key. If the key needs to be sent over to the server
from a remote location, e.g. a personal workstation, you can leave the setting
empty and configure gitolite manually. [[TODO|TODO/OPEN]]

A personal SSH key is commonly stored in your home folder, under the .ssh hidden
folder. This folder usually contains the key as a pair of files:

+ /home/alice/.ssh/id_rsa
+ /home/alice/.ssh/id_rsa.pub

The first file is your private key, which you should never give to anyone or
send anywhere. The second file is the public key, and this is what you need to
put on the server. If the server runs on your own computer, the key setting can
be the path to the public key: __/home/alice/.ssh/id_rsa.pub__.

After the last setting has been entered, the following message will be presented
in the terminal:

	creating gitolite-admin...
	Initialized empty Git repository in /home/git/repositories/gitolite-admin.git/
	creating testing...
	Initialized empty Git repository in /home/git/repositories/testing.git/
	[master (root-commit) 5bd9b40] start
	 2 files changed, 6 insertions(+)
	 create mode 100644 conf/gitolite.conf
	 create mode 100644 keydir/admin.pub

[bug]: http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=699490
[fhs]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filesystem_Hierarchy_Standard