Subject: [PATCH v2 2/3] config: values of pathname type can be prefixed with :(optional)

From: "D. Ben Knoble" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 28 Sep 2025 17:29:15 -0400

From: Junio C Hamano <[email-masked]>

Sometimes people want to specify additional configuration data
as "best effort" basis.  Maybe commit.template configuration file points
at somewhere in ~/template/ but on a particular system, the file may not
exist and the user may be OK without using the template in such a case.

When the value given to a configuration variable whose type is
pathname wants to signal such an optional file, it can be marked by
prepending ":(optional)" in front of it.  Such a setting that is
marked optional would avoid getting the command barf for a missing
file, as an optional configuration setting that names a missing
file is not even seen.

cf. <[email-masked]>

Signed-off-by: Junio C Hamano <[email-masked]>
Signed-off-by: Taylor Blau <[email-masked]>
Signed-off-by: D. Ben Knoble <[email-masked]>
---

Notes:
    The 2nd paragraph in this commit is wrapped strangely
    
    I've kept the strange wrapping length for now, but can reflow it if
    desired.

 Documentation/config.adoc                 |  4 +++-
 config.c                                  | 16 ++++++++++++++--
 t/t7500-commit-template-squash-signoff.sh |  9 +++++++++
 wrapper.c                                 | 13 +++++++++++++
 wrapper.h                                 |  4 +++-
 5 files changed, 42 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/config.adoc b/Documentation/config.adoc
index cc769251be..7301ced836 100644
--- a/Documentation/config.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/config.adoc
@@ -358,7 +358,9 @@ compiled without runtime prefix support, the compiled-in prefix will be
 substituted instead. In the unlikely event that a literal path needs to
 be specified that should _not_ be expanded, it needs to be prefixed by
 `./`, like so: `./%(prefix)/bin`.
-
++
+If prefixed with `:(optional)`, the configuration variable is treated
+as if it does not exist, if the named path does not exist.
 
 Variables
 ~~~~~~~~~
diff --git a/config.c b/config.c
index 97ffef4270..73fc74c8fa 100644
--- a/config.c
+++ b/config.c
@@ -1279,11 +1279,23 @@ int git_config_string(char **dest, const char *var, const char *value)
 
 int git_config_pathname(char **dest, const char *var, const char *value)
 {
+	int is_optional;
+	char *path;
+
 	if (!value)
 		return config_error_nonbool(var);
-	*dest = interpolate_path(value, 0);
-	if (!*dest)
+
+	is_optional = skip_prefix(value, ":(optional)", &value);
+	path = interpolate_path(value, 0);
+	if (!path)
 		die(_("failed to expand user dir in: '%s'"), value);
+
+	if (is_optional && is_missing_file(path)) {
+		free(path);
+		return 0;
+	}
+
+	*dest = path;
 	return 0;
 }
 
diff --git a/t/t7500-commit-template-squash-signoff.sh b/t/t7500-commit-template-squash-signoff.sh
index 05cda50186..366f7f23b3 100755
--- a/t/t7500-commit-template-squash-signoff.sh
+++ b/t/t7500-commit-template-squash-signoff.sh
@@ -46,6 +46,15 @@ commit_msg_is ()
 	)
 '
 
+test_expect_success 'nonexistent optional template file in config' '
+	test_config commit.template ":(optional)$PWD"/notexist &&
+	(
+		GIT_EDITOR="echo hello >\"\$1\"" &&
+		export GIT_EDITOR &&
+		git commit --allow-empty
+	)
+'
+
 # From now on we'll use a template file that exists.
 TEMPLATE="$PWD"/template
 
diff --git a/wrapper.c b/wrapper.c
index 2f00d2ac87..3d507d4204 100644
--- a/wrapper.c
+++ b/wrapper.c
@@ -721,6 +721,19 @@ int xgethostname(char *buf, size_t len)
 	return ret;
 }
 
+int is_missing_file(const char *filename)
+{
+	struct stat st;
+
+	if (stat(filename, &st) < 0) {
+		if (errno == ENOENT)
+			return 1;
+		die_errno(_("could not stat %s"), filename);
+	}
+
+	return 0;
+}
+
 int is_empty_or_missing_file(const char *filename)
 {
 	struct stat st;
diff --git a/wrapper.h b/wrapper.h
index 7df824e34a..44a8597ac3 100644
--- a/wrapper.h
+++ b/wrapper.h
@@ -66,7 +66,9 @@ void write_file_buf(const char *path, const char *buf, size_t len);
 __attribute__((format (printf, 2, 3)))
 void write_file(const char *path, const char *fmt, ...);
 
-/* Return 1 if the file is empty or does not exists, 0 otherwise. */
+/* Return 1 if the file does not exist, 0 otherwise. */
+int is_missing_file(const char *filename);
+/* Return 1 if the file is empty or does not exist, 0 otherwise. */
 int is_empty_or_missing_file(const char *filename);
 
 enum fsync_action {
-- 
2.48.1