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Git Show Files Only: List Commit Files Without Diff

Learn how to list files in a Git commit without diff output. Use git show --name-only command to display only modified file paths. Complete guide with examples and alternatives.

#commit-analysis#developer-tools#file-listing#git-commands#git-diff#git-show#version-control
Question

How do I list all files in a Git commit without showing diff information?

I need to print a plain list of all files that were part of a specific commit. When I use the following command, it lists the files but also includes unwanted diff information for each file:

git show a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

What Git command or option can I use to get just the list of files modified in a commit, without the diff output?

NeuroAgent

To list all files in a Git commit without showing diff information, use the --name-only option with the git show command. The correct command would be git show --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d, which will display only the file paths without any diff content. This option is specifically designed to show just the names of files that were modified in the commit.

Contents

Basic Solution: Using --name-only

The most straightforward way to list files in a commit without diff output is to use the --name-only (or -s) option with git show. This option suppresses the diff output and shows only the file paths that were modified in the specified commit.

bash
git show --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

This command will output something like:

src/main.js
README.md
package.json

The --name-only flag is an alias for --name-status, which shows the status of each file (modified, added, or deleted) along with the filename. If you want just the filenames without any status indicators, you can combine it with --pretty=format:.

Alternative Methods

Using git diff-tree

Another approach is to use git diff-tree with the --name-only option:

bash
git diff-tree --no-commit-id --name-only -r a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

This command:

  • --no-commit-id: Suppresses the commit ID output
  • --name-only: Shows only the filenames
  • -r: Processes each tree recursively

Using git log

You can also use git log with specific formatting options:

bash
git log --name-only --format=format: a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d -1

The -1 option limits the output to just that one commit.

Combining with Other Options

Adding Commit Information

If you want to see the commit message along with the file list:

bash
git show --name-only --format=format:"%H %s%n" a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

This will show the commit hash, subject, and then the file names.

Filtering File Types

You can pipe the output to filter for specific file types:

bash
git show --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d | grep "\.js$"

This will only show JavaScript files modified in that commit.

Counting Files

To count the number of files modified in a commit:

bash
git show --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d | wc -l

Practical Examples

Example 1: Basic File List

bash
$ git show --name-only HEAD
src/components/Header.js
src/components/Footer.js
src/utils/helpers.js
package.json

Example 2: With Status Indicators

bash
$ git show --name-status HEAD
M	src/components/Header.js
A	src/components/Footer.js
D	src/utils/helpers.js
M	package.json

The status indicators are:

  • M = Modified
  • A = Added
  • D = Deleted
  • R = Renamed
  • C = Copied

Example 3: Multiple Commits

To see files from multiple commits:

bash
git show --name-only HEAD~3..HEAD

This shows files modified in the last 3 commits.

Advanced File Listing Techniques

Using Custom Formats

For more control over the output format:

bash
git show --pretty=format:"Commit: %H%nAuthor: %an%nDate: %ad%n%nFiles:" --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

Getting Full Paths

To get full paths instead of relative paths:

bash
git show --name-only --pretty=format: --root a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

Sorting Files

To sort the file list alphabetically:

bash
git show --name-only a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d | sort

Creating a Script

You can create a reusable script or function:

bash
# In your .bashrc or .zshrc
list_commit_files() {
    if [ -z "$1" ]; then
        echo "Usage: list_commit_files <commit-hash>"
        return 1
    fi
    git show --name-only --pretty=format: "$1"
}

Then use it as:

bash
list_commit_files a303aa90779efdd2f6b9d90693e2cbbbe4613c1d

Sources

  1. Git Documentation - git show
  2. Git Documentation - git diff-tree
  3. Git Documentation - git log
  4. Pro Git Book - Viewing the Commit History

Conclusion

The most efficient way to list files in a Git commit without diff information is using git show --name-only <commit-hash>. This command provides a clean, simple output of just the file paths modified in that specific commit. For more advanced scenarios, you can combine this option with various flags and formatting options to customize the output according to your needs. Remember that you can always pipe the output to other Unix tools like grep, sort, or wc for further processing and analysis of your commit files.

How to get file status indicators (modified, added, deleted) in a Git commit?How to list files from multiple Git commits without diff output?How to filter specific file types from a Git commit?How to count the number of files modified in a Git commit?How to create a script to list files in any Git commit?How to get full paths instead of relative paths when listing Git commit files?
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