git_logo Git

Conan uses plain text files, conanfile.txt or conanfile.py, so it’s perfectly suitable for the use of any version control system. We use and highly recommend git.

Check workflows section to learn more about project layouts that naturally fit version control systems.

Temporary files

Conan generates some files that should not be committed, as conanbuildinfo.* and conaninfo.txt. These files can change in different computers and are re-generated with the conan install command.

However, these files are typically generated in the build tree not in the source tree, so they will be naturally disregarded. Just take care in case you have created the build folder inside your project (we do this in several examples in the documentation). In this case, you should add it to your .gitignore file:

.gitignore
...
build/

Package creators

Check scm feature to learn more about managing the libraries source code with Git.

If you are creating a Conan package:

  • You can use the url field to indicate the origin of your package recipe. If you are using an external package recipe, this url should point to the package recipe repository not to the external source origin. If a github repository is detected, the Conan website will link your github issues page from your Conan’s package page.

  • You can use git to obtain your source (requires the git client in the path) when creating external package recipes.