gitsnip

name	gitsnip
description	Use the gitsnip CLI to fetch full repositories or specific directories from GitHub without cloning entire repos. Trigger whenever there is a need to explore full or partial GitHub repository content, inspect remote code quickly, or pull only selected folders for analysis.

gitsnip

Use gitsnip as the default approach for remote GitHub repository exploration.

Command Shape

gitsnip <repository_url> <folder_path> [output_dir] [flags]

Arguments:

• repository_url: GitHub repo URL (for example https://github.com/owner/repo)
• folder_path: Directory path inside the repo to download
• output_dir (optional): Destination on disk

Core Rules

• Use . (dot) as folder_path to fetch the full repository tree.
• Do not use / as folder_path; sparse checkout rejects leading slashes.
• Pass an explicit output_dir to avoid writing files into the current working directory.
• Prefer output paths under the current repository's .tmp/gitsnip/ directory.
• Treat folder_path as a directory path. For a single file, download its parent directory.

Recommended Workflow

1. Identify repository_url, branch, and required scope (. for full repo or path/to/dir for partial).
2. Choose a deterministic destination folder under the current project's .tmp/ directory (for example .tmp/gitsnip/<repo>/<branch>/<scope>).
3. Run gitsnip with explicit flags.
4. Inspect downloaded content with ls, find, grep, and read.
5. Remove temporary downloads when done unless they are needed for follow-up work.

Examples

Fetch full repo from default branch:

gitsnip https://github.com/octocat/Spoon-Knife . .tmp/gitsnip/spoon-knife/main/full

Fetch a specific directory:

gitsnip https://github.com/octokit/octokit.js scripts .tmp/gitsnip/octokit/main/scripts

Fetch from non-default branch (master):

gitsnip https://github.com/octocat/Hello-World . .tmp/gitsnip/hello-world/master/full -b master

Use API mode (can be simpler for lightweight fetches):

gitsnip https://github.com/octocat/Spoon-Knife . .tmp/gitsnip/spoon-knife/main/full -m api

Use token for private repos or rate-limit headroom:

gitsnip https://github.com/owner/private-repo path/to/dir .tmp/gitsnip/private/main/dir -t "$GITHUB_TOKEN"

Flag Guidance

• -b, --branch: Specify branch (default is main)
• -m, --method: sparse (default) or api
• -t, --token: GitHub token for private repos / higher limits
• -q, --quiet: Reduce progress output
• -p, --provider: Provider (currently github)

Troubleshooting

• Error couldn't find remote ref main: rerun with the actual default branch, often -b master.
• Error about sparse checkout + leading slash: remove leading / and use relative paths (. or dir/subdir).
• Error not a directory: folder_path points to a file; download the file's parent directory instead.

Help Reference

Read references/help.md for the captured help output (--help, completion --help, version --help) used to build this skill.