Subject: Re: Efficient parsing of `status -z` output

From: Jeff King <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 9 Mar 2015 02:19:20 -0400

On Sun, Mar 08, 2015 at 09:41:08PM -0400, Matthew Rothenberg wrote:

> I see, thank you. But how would one ever get a copy operation to show
> up in the output of `git status -z` to begin with? It appears copies
> are only detected in `diff` and `show`, can be forced with the
> --find-copies-harder option, but that `git status` does not appear to
> take that option nor detect copies in any way that I can get it to
> replicate and output that status code to me... a test case would be
> great if you know one, thanks!

We don't turn on copy-detection in "git status" by default (only rename
detection), and I think you are right that there is currently no way to
turn it on manually. However, it would probably be sensible to handle
"C" diffs in your parser, if only to future-proof against a day when
that changes (and because it should fairly trivial once you build "R"
support).

I don't know if anybody is actively working on such a change, but
somebody expressed interest recently-ish:

  http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.version-control.git/260381

-Peff