Re: git commit <path> scanning entire working tree?

[Junio C Hamano <gitster@pobox.com>]

skillzero@gmail.com writes:

> When I do a 'git commit <path to a single file>', git seems to scan
> the entire working tree. Since my tree is relatively large (and when
> on Windows, stat'ing is even slower), it takes quite a while (5 or so
> seconds) before I can even edit the commit message.

Do you mean you edit the commit message, starting from the message
template "git commit" gives you?

The template lists "Changes to be committed" (which obviously would list
only the path that matches the single pathspec you give to the command,
and there is no need to scan the whole tree -- it only needs to check the
file or a directory hierarchy if the pathspec matches a directory), but
also "Changed but not updated" and "Untracked files".  You cannot generate
the latter two lists without checking with your work tree.