| name | gitload |
| description | This skill should be used when the user asks to "download files from GitHub", "fetch a folder from a repo", "grab code from GitHub", "download a GitHub repository", "get files from a GitHub URL", "clone just a folder", or needs to download specific files/folders from GitHub without cloning the entire repo. |
gitload
Download files, folders, or entire repos from GitHub URLs using the gitload CLI.
When to Use
Use gitload when:
- Downloading a specific folder from a repo (not the whole repo)
- Fetching a single file from GitHub
- Downloading repo contents without git history
- Creating a ZIP archive of GitHub content
- Accessing private repos with authentication
Do NOT use gitload when:
- Full git history is needed (use
git clone instead)
- The repo is already cloned locally
- Working with non-GitHub repositories
Prerequisites
Run gitload via npx (no install needed):
npx gitload-cli https://github.com/user/repo
Or install globally:
npm install -g gitload-cli
Basic Usage
Download entire repo
gitload https://github.com/user/repo
Creates a repo/ folder in the current directory.
Download a specific folder
gitload https://github.com/user/repo/tree/main/src/components
Creates a components/ folder with just that folder's contents.
Download a single file
gitload https://github.com/user/repo/blob/main/README.md
Download to a custom location
gitload https://github.com/user/repo/tree/main/src -o ./my-source
Download contents flat to current directory
gitload https://github.com/user/repo/tree/main/templates -o .
Download as ZIP
gitload https://github.com/user/repo -z ./repo.zip
Authentication (for private repos or rate limits)
Using gh CLI (recommended)
gitload https://github.com/user/private-repo --gh
Requires prior gh auth login.
Using explicit token
gitload https://github.com/user/repo --token ghp_xxxx
Using environment variable
export GITHUB_TOKEN=ghp_xxxx
gitload https://github.com/user/repo
Token priority: --token > GITHUB_TOKEN > --gh
URL Formats
gitload accepts standard GitHub URLs:
- Repo root:
https://github.com/user/repo
- Folder:
https://github.com/user/repo/tree/branch/path/to/folder
- File:
https://github.com/user/repo/blob/branch/path/to/file.ext
Common Patterns
Scaffold from a template folder
gitload https://github.com/org/templates/tree/main/react-starter -o ./my-app
cd my-app && npm install
Grab example code
gitload https://github.com/org/examples/tree/main/authentication
Download docs for offline reading
gitload https://github.com/org/project/tree/main/docs -z ./docs.zip
Fetch a single config file
gitload https://github.com/org/configs/blob/main/.eslintrc.json -o .
Options Reference
| Option | Description |
|---|
-o, --output <dir> | Output directory (default: folder named after URL path) |
-z, --zip <path> | Save as ZIP file at the specified path |
-t, --token <token> | GitHub personal access token |
--gh | Use token from gh CLI |
--no-color | Disable colored output |
-h, --help | Display help |
-V, --version | Output version |
Error Handling
If gitload fails:
- 404 errors: Verify the URL exists and is accessible
- Rate limit errors: Add authentication with
--gh or --token
- Permission errors: For private repos, ensure token has
repo scope
- Network errors: Check internet connectivity
Notes
- gitload downloads content via GitHub's API, not git protocol
- No git history is preserved (use
git clone if history is needed)
- Large repos may take time; consider downloading specific folders
- Output directory is created if it doesn't exist
