git17 - garbage collection

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When you interact with Git on your computer, you might come across the following message. This message indicates that in order to enhance the performance of Git, it’s recommended to remove unnecessary files, unreachable commits, or branches. This action is analogous to performing a “garbage collection,” where Git tidies up and optimizes its internal storage for better efficiency.

Auto packing the repository in background for optimum performance.
See "git help gc" for manual housekeeping." means

In a repository where extensive changes have been made—such as numerous branches, file creations, and modifications—there’s a likelihood of accumulating files that remain detached from any commits or branches. Additionally, some files might become fragmented due to multiple blob versions. This situation can result in excessive storage consumption and suboptimal performance.
To address this challenge, Git proactively addresses storage efficiency and performance by engaging in garbage collection triggered by various conditions. These conditions encompass factors like the volume of object files, the cumulative size of objects, and the overall count of files within the repository.
As you may already be aware, Git generates a new version of a file for even the slightest alteration. Consequently, minute changes can lead to the creation of separate blob versions. For instance, if you’ve introduced 10 minor adjustments across 10 commits, Git ends up maintaining 10 distinct versions of that particular file. This cumulative storage can potentially escalate to significant levels.
To mitigate this storage inflation, Git employs a mechanism that involves:

Content-Addressable Storage: Git uses content-addressable storage, which means that identical content is stored only once. If you have multiple versions of a file with the same content, Git will store that content as a single blob object, reducing redundancy.
Compression: Git uses zlib compression to store objects, including blob objects. This helps reduce the overall storage footprint of the repository by compressing the content of blobs.
Packfiles: Git uses packfiles to store objects more efficiently. Packfiles group similar objects together and use delta compression to store the differences between objects, further reducing storage requirements.
- This implies that for files that have remained unchanged and attained a substantial size over an extended period, employing delta compression for management is advisable. While this approach may introduce a slight delay in the file reconstruction process, the significant reduction in storage usage is a noteworthy advantage.
Garbage Collection: Git’s garbage collection process helps remove unnecessary and unreferenced objects, including old versions of blob objects that are no longer needed.

When configuring Git, the pack.window option offers a means to exert control over the number of delta compressed versions saved for each object (blob) within a packfile. For instance, if you set pack.window to a specific value, like 10, you’re effectively restricting the storage of deltas for each object to a maximum of 10 versions. In simple terms, this implies that you can retain up to 10 different versions of files utilizing delta compression. It’s important to note that the pack.window parameter does not come with a default value, allowing Git to automatically store every version of a file as a complete snapshot. This means that without setting pack.window, Git ensures the preservation of each version without the reliance on delta compression.

# Replace <value> with the desired maximum number of objects
git config --local pack.window <value>

The significance of the pack.window configuration parameter becomes apparent during the creation of packfiles—a mechanism employed by Git to enhance the balance between compression efficiency and performance. Configuring pack.window with lower values, such as 10, can yield improved compression results, effectively conserving storage space. However, this comes at the expense of potentially slower packfile creation due to the more intricate computations involved in generating deltas. Conversely, opting for higher values can expedite the packfile creation process but may sacrifice a degree of compression efficiency.
While adjusting the pack.window parameter presents opportunities for optimization, it’s essential to possess a solid grasp of Git’s underlying mechanics and the intricate trade-offs that accompany such modifications. The default absence of a value for pack.window generally aligns well with the requirements of most repositories, and tweaking this setting is recommended only for those with a comprehensive understanding of its implications and a specific need for customization.