1. Using Visual Builder Studio
  2. Common Tasks
  3. Manage Source Code Files with Git
  4. Set Up a Git Repository
  5. Create a Git Repository
  6. Mirror an External Git Repository

Mirror an External Git Repository

If you’ve been using a Git repository on another platform, such as GitHub or Bitbucket, and don’t want to import it to a project’s Git repository, you can mirror it in VB Studio. Mirroring copies the repository to VB Studio and then VB Studio automatically synchronizes its files. In an active VB Studio project, repositories are synchronized approximately every five minutes, but the duration may vary according to the number of external Git repositories in all projects across the organization.

Note that you can’t add or update files or manage branches of a mirrored Git repository from the project's Git page.

If the external Git repository is a private repository or is password protected, you'll need to create an authentication token, such as GitHub's personal access token or BitBucket's App Password, and use it to provide access to the external Git repository. Never provide your account’s password.

Here's how to mirror an external repository:

  1. In the left navigator, click Project Administration Project Administration.
  2. Click Repositories.
  3. Under External Repositories, click + Link External Repository.
  4. In the New Repository dialog, enter the URL of the external Git repository in URL and the repository description in Description.
  5. Expand the Credentials for non-public repos section and provide the credentials to access the external Git repository.

    In Username, enter the username of the external repository account. In Token, enter the authentication token.

  6. Click Create.
The external repository is now available on the Git page and in the Project Home page's Repositories tab.

When you add an external Git repository, VB Studio shows two URLs in the repository's Clone drop-down menu:

Description of vbs_code_clone_external.png follows
Description of the illustration vbs_code_clone_external.png

Use the URL with the external address to access the repository directly. You may want to use this URL to access the repository's updates immediately, but you'll need to enter credentials to access a private repository. Use the URL with the internal address to access the mirrored repository. You'll want to use this URL to access a private repository because it doesn't require credentials.