Subject: Re: [PATCH] merge-file: honor merge.conflictStyle outside of a repository

From: Junio C Hamano <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 05 Feb 2026 12:44:08 -0800

Yannik Tausch <[email-masked]> writes:

> -	if (startup_info->have_repository) {
> -		/* Read the configuration file */
> +	if (startup_info->have_repository)
>  		repo_config(the_repository, git_xmerge_config, NULL);
> -		if (0 <= git_xmerge_style)
> -			xmp.style = git_xmerge_style;
> -	}
> +	else
> +		read_very_early_config(git_xmerge_config, NULL);
> +
> +	if (0 <= git_xmerge_style)
> +		xmp.style = git_xmerge_style;

Wouldn't it suffice to unconditionally execute the body of the if
(startup_info->have_repository) block to pass "repo" we obtained
from the caller to repo_config() instead of the_repository?  The
caller of this function passes us either the_repository or NULL and
repo_config() does the very-early thing when passed NULL as the
repo, signalling that we are outside a repository.

IOW, something like

diff --git c/builtin/merge-file.c w/builtin/merge-file.c
index 46775d0c79..f9de636884 100644
--- c/builtin/merge-file.c
+++ w/builtin/merge-file.c
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ static int diff_algorithm_cb(const struct option *opt,
 int cmd_merge_file(int argc,
 		   const char **argv,
 		   const char *prefix,
-		   struct repository *repo UNUSED)
+		   struct repository *repo)
 {
 	const char *names[3] = { 0 };
 	mmfile_t mmfs[3] = { 0 };
@@ -95,12 +95,10 @@ int cmd_merge_file(int argc,
 	xmp.style = 0;
 	xmp.favor = 0;
 
-	if (startup_info->have_repository) {
-		/* Read the configuration file */
-		repo_config(the_repository, git_xmerge_config, NULL);
-		if (0 <= git_xmerge_style)
-			xmp.style = git_xmerge_style;
-	}
+	/* Read the configuration file */
+	repo_config(repo, git_xmerge_config, NULL);
+	if (0 <= git_xmerge_style)
+		xmp.style = git_xmerge_style;
 
 	argc = parse_options(argc, argv, prefix, options, merge_file_usage, 0);
 	if (argc != 3)