Re: [PATCH 08/15] merge: handle NULL value for branch.<name>.mergeOptions

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

Phillip Wood <phillip.wood123@gmail.com> writes:

> Hi Thomas
>
> On 07/11/2026 08:42, Thomas Bachem via GitGitGadget wrote:
>> diff --git a/builtin/merge.c b/builtin/merge.c
>> index 5b4eb23a83..fbabda97f8 100644
>> --- a/builtin/merge.c
>> +++ b/builtin/merge.c
>> @@ -668,6 +668,8 @@ static int git_merge_config(const char *k, const char *v,
>>   	    skip_prefix(k, "branch.", &str) &&
>>   	    skip_prefix(str, branch, &str) &&
>>   	    !strcmp(str, ".mergeoptions")) {
>> +		if (!v)
>> +			return config_error_nonbool(k);
>>   		free(branch_mergeoptions);
>>   		branch_mergeoptions = xstrdup(v);
>>   		return 0;
>
> We treat an empty value differently to a missing value, I'm not sure if 
> that makes sense or not.

Sorry but I do not understand this comment.

	[branch "main"] mergeOptions =

is an explicit "there is no extra options when we make a merge".

	[branch "main"] mergeOptions

is an attempt to set a configuration variable to boolean "true".
I am not sure if it helps users to pretend as if the latter were

	[branch "main"] mergeOptions =

if that is what you are hinting.  It would confuse them when they
see a true boolean variable

	[branch "main"] rebase

and wonder why

	[branch "main"] rebase =

does not behave the same way, no?