+[[!toc]]
+
Using ikiwiki with the [[rcs/git]] backend, some interesting things can be done
with creating mirrors (or, really, branches) of a wiki. In this tip, I'll
assume your wiki is located on a server, and you want to take a copy with
wiki using a local web server. When you're ready, you can manually push the
changes to the main wiki on the server.
+## simple clone approach
+
First, set up the wiki on the server, if it isn't already. Nothing special
needs to be done here, just follow the regular instructions in [[setup]]
for setting up ikiwiki with git.
Next, `git clone` the source (`$REPOSITORY`, not `$SRCDIR`)
from the server to the laptop.
-Now, set up a [[web_server|apache_cgi]] on your laptop, if it doesn't
+Now, set up a [[web_server|dot_cgi]] on your laptop, if it doesn't
already have one.
Now you need to write a setup file for ikiwiki on the laptop. Mostly this
is standard, but a few special settings are needed:
* Configure a cgi wrapper as usual, but configure the git wrapper to
- be written to the `post-commit` hook of the git clone.
+ be written to the `post-commit` hook of the git clone, rather than the
+ usual `post-update` hook.
* By default, ikiwiki pulls and pushes from `origin`. This shouldn't be
done on the laptop, because the origin may not be accessible (when the
Note that if changes are pulled from the server, you will need to manually
update the wiki, with a command such as `ikiwiki -setup wiki.setup -refresh`.
If you'd like it to automatically update when changes are merged in, you
-can simply symlink the post-commit hook to a post-merge hook.
+can simply make a symlink `post-merge` hook pointing at the `post-update`
+hook ikiwiki created.
+
+## bare mirror approach
+
+As above, set up a normal ikiwiki on the server, with the usual bare repository.
+
+Next, `git clone --mirror server:/path/to/bare/repository`
+
+This will be used as the $REPOSITORY on the laptop. Then you can follow
+the instructions in [[setup by hand|/setup/byhand]] as per a normal ikiwiki
+installation. This means that you can clone from the local bare repository
+as many times as you want (thus being able to have a repository which is
+used by the ikiwiki CGI, and another which you can use for updating via
+git).
+
+Use standard git commands, run in the laptop's bare git repository
+to handle pulling from and pushing to the server.