Search String In Files Matching Glob Current Head

Use git grep to find a specific string in files matching a glob pattern in the current HEAD.

Terminal

git grep "<search_string>" -- "<*.ext>"

git grep "<search_string>" -- "<*.ext>"

#!/bin/bash

# Search String In Files Matching Glob Current Head
git grep "{{search_string}}" -- "{{*.ext}}"

import subprocess

# Search String In Files Matching Glob Current Head
# Make sure to replace <placeholders> with actual values
def run_command():
    cmd = [
        "git",
        "grep",
        "\"<search_string>\"",
        "--",
        "\"<*.ext>\""
    ]
    
    try:
        print(f"Executing: {' '.join(cmd)}")
        subprocess.run(cmd, check=True)
    except subprocess.CalledProcessError as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")
    except FileNotFoundError:
        print("Error: git not found. Please install it first.")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    run_command()

When To Use

Diagnosing bugs by searching for function usage in specific file types.

Command Builder

Tune the command before you copy it

Back to syntax

Generated Command

git grep "<search_string>" -- "<*.ext>"

Terminal Output

Expected runtime feedback

Simulated preview

Output

function_name() {
    // This is a sample function
}

// Usage of function_name in file.ext

Command Breakdown

What each part is doing

git: Base Command; The executable that performs this operation. Here it runs Git before the shell applies any redirect operators.
<search_string>: search string; The value supplied for search string.
<*.ext>: *.ext; The value supplied for *.ext.
--: Command Option; Tool-specific option used by this command invocation.

How To Run

Execution path

Step 1
Open your terminal and navigate to the repository.
Step 2
Run the command: git grep "{{search_string}}" -- "{{*.ext}}".
Step 3
Review the output for matches in the specified file types.

Alternative Approaches

Comparable commands in other tools

Alternative version control tools for the same job.

Jj / List Tags Matching Pattern jj tag l "<pattern>" Jj / List Tags Matching Substring jj tag l "{substring:release}" Hg / Exclude Files Matching Pattern hg status -X <pattern> Hg / Remove Staged Files Matching Pattern hg remove -I <pattern> Gh / Search Issues Excluding Label Unix gh search issues -- "<search_query> -label:<label_name>"