git-sparse-checkout

Reduce working tree to a subset of tracked files

TLDR

Enable sparse checkout and set directories (cone mode)

$ git sparse-checkout set [dir1] [dir2]

Add more directories to sparse checkout

$ git sparse-checkout add [dir]

List current sparse patterns

$ git sparse-checkout list

Reapply sparse patterns after config changes

$ git sparse-checkout reapply

Disable sparse checkout and restore all files

$ git sparse-checkout disable

Check which paths match sparse rules

$ echo "[path/to/file]" | git sparse-checkout check-rules

Preview files outside sparse definition that would be removed

$ git sparse-checkout clean --dry-run

SYNOPSIS

git sparse-checkout enables partial repository checkouts, where only specified directories and files are materialized in the working tree. This significantly reduces working directory size for large monorepos.Cone mode (the default) restricts patterns to directory-based inclusion, which is faster and simpler than full pattern matching. In cone mode, the set and add subcommands accept directory names rather than arbitrary gitignore patterns. Non-cone mode (--no-cone) allows arbitrary gitignore-style patterns but is deprecated due to poor performance and confusing semantics.This command is experimental. Its behavior may change in the future.

PARAMETERS

--cone

Use cone mode for directory-based patterns (default, faster).

--no-cone

Use full pattern mode for arbitrary gitignore-style patterns.

--sparse-index

Enable sparse index format for improved performance.

--no-sparse-index

Disable sparse index format for compatibility with external tools.

--stdin

Read patterns from stdin (one per line) instead of arguments.

-f, --force

Allow cleaning without clean.requireForce config (for clean subcommand).

--dry-run

Preview what clean would remove without deleting anything.

--rules-file file

Match against rules in specified file instead of current rules (for check-rules).

-z

Use NUL-terminated paths for stdin and output (for check-rules).

CONFIGURATION

.git/info/sparse-checkout

File containing the sparse-checkout patterns that control which paths are checked out.

SUBCOMMANDS

init

Deprecated. Use set instead to enable and configure sparse checkout.

set

Define which directories/patterns to include in the working tree.

add

Add additional directories/patterns to the sparse checkout.

list

List the current sparse checkout patterns.

disable

Disable sparse checkout and restore all files.

reapply

Reapply patterns after manual config changes.

check-rules

Check if paths match the current sparsity rules.

clean

Remove files outside the sparse-checkout definition. Requires -f unless clean.requireForce is false.