[Feature Request] Rename Files Per Git Protocol ("Git Mv" Command)

[tacokangaroo]

I searched far and wide for some open-source Git GUI that allows you to rename the way Git actually recognizes (using git mv behind-the-scenes so that files don't get considered as deleted and added differently but rather RENAMED). From what I could find, none exists.

Never fear! My request is that GitFourchette lead the charge. Can you please add this as a feature in the context menu under Working Directory > Unstaged (and perhaps Working Directory > Staged too) so that we are able to click "Git Rename File" and rename a file in the way Git recognizes? (Using git mv behind the scenes)?

[jorio]

I'm not opposed to adding this to GitFourchette, but I think the reason this feature is uncommon is that git doesn't really track renames internally.

git mv is just a convenience command that stages a deletion of the old name and an add of the new name. It doesn't tag the file as renamed (because git doesn't support this).

Instead, renames are inferred from file contents. To figure out if a delete/add pair is a likely rename, git looks at the contents of both files and computes their "similarity index". The pair is displayed as a rename if the contents are similar enough.

(You can customize the threshold above which a delete/add pair counts as a rename. For example, git status --find-renames=100% will only detect renames if the contents are 100% identical. The default threshold is 50%.)