git-checkout-index

git checkout-index [options] [files...]

git checkout-index is a low-level plumbing command that copies files from Git's staging area (index) to the working directory. It provides fine-grained control over which index entries are materialized as working tree files.Unlike the higher-level git checkout, this command operates purely on the index without switching branches or updating HEAD. It's primarily used in Git's internal operations and specialized scripts that need precise control over working tree population.The --prefix option enables extracting the index to an alternate location, useful for creating clean checkouts or exporting specific versions. This command is essential for understanding Git's three-tree architecture (working directory, index, and HEAD) and how file state moves between them.

-a, --all

Check out all files.

Force overwrite.

Output prefix.

Update stat information in the index file after checking out.

Don't create new files, only refresh existing ones.

Separate input paths with NUL instead of newline (use with --stdin).

Read the list of paths to check out from standard input.

Copy out unmerged files from the given stage instead of the default.

git-checkout(1), git-read-tree(1)

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