Git checkout: updating paths is incompatible with switching branches

Ikke_20261 0
Viewed 216045

My problem is related to Fatal Git error when switching branch.

I try to fetch a remote branch with the command

git checkout -b local-name origin/remote-name

but I get this error message:

fatal: git checkout: updating paths is incompatible with switching branches.
Did you intend to checkout 'origin/remote-name' which can not be resolved as commit?

If I manually create a branch and then pull the remote branch, it works, just as making a new clone and checking the branch out.

Why does it not work on the repository I work with?

remote-branch git-checkout git
11 Answers

Could your issue be linked to this other SO question "checkout problem"?

i.e.: a problem related to:

  • an old version of Git
  • a curious checkout syntax, which should be: git checkout -b [<new_branch>] [<start_point>], with [<start_point>] referring to the name of a commit at which to start the new branch, and 'origin/remote-name' is not that.
    (whereas git branch does support a start_point being the name of a remote branch)

Note: what the checkout.sh script says is:

  if test '' != "$newbranch$force$merge"
  then
    die "git checkout: updating paths is incompatible with switching branches/forcing$hint"
  fi

It is like the syntax git checkout -b [] [remote_branch_name] was both renaming the branch and resetting the new starting point of the new branch, which is deemed incompatible.

VonC_63090
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