github-repo-management

name	github-repo-management
description	Clone, fork, create repos; remotes, releases, settings.
stack	vcs
tags	["github","clone","fork","release","remote","repo"]

GitHub Repo Management

When to use

Clone/fork/create repos, fix remotes, cut releases, inspect repo metadata.

Prerequisites

Load github-auth. Prefer gh; fall back to git + token curl.

Setup helpers

if command -v gh >/dev/null && gh auth status >/dev/null 2>&1; then AUTH=gh; else AUTH=git; fi
REMOTE_URL=$(git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null || true)
OWNER_REPO=$(echo "$REMOTE_URL" | sed -E 's|.*github\.com[:/]||; s|\.git$||')

Clone

git clone https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git
git clone --branch main https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git
gh repo clone OWNER/REPO

Fork

gh repo fork OWNER/REPO --clone=true
git remote -v
# origin → your fork; add upstream if missing
git remote add upstream https://github.com/OWNER/REPO.git 2>/dev/null || true

Create

gh repo create NAME --private --source=. --remote=origin --push
gh repo create ORG/NAME --public --description "short description"

Remotes and default branch

git remote -v
git remote set-url origin https://github.com/YOU/REPO.git
gh repo view --json nameWithOwner,defaultBranchRef,isPrivate,url
git fetch origin
git branch -vv

Releases

gh release list --limit 10
gh release view latest
gh release create v1.2.3 --title "v1.2.3" --generate-notes
gh release upload v1.2.3 ./dist/artifact.tgz

Browse without full clone

gh api repos/OWNER/REPO/contents/PATH --jq '.[].name'
gh api "repos/OWNER/REPO/git/trees/BRANCH?recursive=1" --jq '.tree[].path' | head -100
gh api repos/OWNER/REPO/readme --jq .content | base64 -d | head -80

Pitfalls

• Shallow clones lack history for some bisects
• Fork PRs need push access to the head fork, not only upstream
• Never force-push main/master without explicit user ask