diff --git a/blame.c b/blame.c
index 7e88833a37..396defccc7 100644
--- a/blame.c
+++ b/blame.c
@@ -752,6 +752,7 @@ int main(int argc, const char **argv)
 	int found_rename;
 
 	const char* prefix = setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	for(i = 1; i < argc; i++) {
 		if(options) {
diff --git a/cache.h b/cache.h
index 1f962809b0..255e6b5cc7 100644
--- a/cache.h
+++ b/cache.h
@@ -165,6 +165,7 @@ extern void rollback_index_file(struct cache_file *);
 extern int trust_executable_bit;
 extern int assume_unchanged;
 extern int only_use_symrefs;
+extern int warn_ambiguous_refs;
 extern int diff_rename_limit_default;
 extern int shared_repository;
 extern const char *apply_default_whitespace;
diff --git a/cat-file.c b/cat-file.c
index 1a613f3ee5..761111eb0f 100644
--- a/cat-file.c
+++ b/cat-file.c
@@ -100,6 +100,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	int opt;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 	if (argc != 3 || get_sha1(argv[2], sha1))
 		usage("git-cat-file [-t|-s|-e|-p|<type>] <sha1>");
 
diff --git a/config.c b/config.c
index 7dbdce1966..95ec34923d 100644
--- a/config.c
+++ b/config.c
@@ -232,6 +232,11 @@ int git_default_config(const char *var, const char *value)
 		return 0;
 	}
 
+	if (!strcmp(var, "core.warnambiguousrefs")) {
+		warn_ambiguous_refs = git_config_bool(var, value);
+		return 0;
+	}
+
 	if (!strcmp(var, "user.name")) {
 		strncpy(git_default_name, value, sizeof(git_default_name));
 		return 0;
diff --git a/environment.c b/environment.c
index 16c08f0697..6df647862c 100644
--- a/environment.c
+++ b/environment.c
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ char git_default_name[MAX_GITNAME];
 int trust_executable_bit = 1;
 int assume_unchanged = 0;
 int only_use_symrefs = 0;
+int warn_ambiguous_refs = 1;
 int repository_format_version = 0;
 char git_commit_encoding[MAX_ENCODING_LENGTH] = "utf-8";
 int shared_repository = 0;
diff --git a/fetch-pack.c b/fetch-pack.c
index 535de10660..a3bcad016f 100644
--- a/fetch-pack.c
+++ b/fetch-pack.c
@@ -7,8 +7,9 @@
 static int keep_pack;
 static int quiet;
 static int verbose;
+static int fetch_all;
 static const char fetch_pack_usage[] =
-"git-fetch-pack [-q] [-v] [-k] [--thin] [--exec=upload-pack] [host:]directory <refs>...";
+"git-fetch-pack [--all] [-q] [-v] [-k] [--thin] [--exec=upload-pack] [host:]directory <refs>...";
 static const char *exec = "git-upload-pack";
 
 #define COMPLETE	(1U << 0)
@@ -266,8 +267,9 @@ static void filter_refs(struct ref **refs, int nr_match, char **match)
 	for (prev = NULL, current = *refs; current; current = next) {
 		next = current->next;
 		if ((!memcmp(current->name, "refs/", 5) &&
-					check_ref_format(current->name + 5)) ||
-				!path_match(current->name, nr_match, match)) {
+		     check_ref_format(current->name + 5)) ||
+		    (!fetch_all &&
+		     !path_match(current->name, nr_match, match))) {
 			if (prev == NULL)
 				*refs = next;
 			else
@@ -376,7 +378,11 @@ static int fetch_pack(int fd[2], int nr_match, char **match)
 		goto all_done;
 	}
 	if (find_common(fd, sha1, ref) < 0)
-		fprintf(stderr, "warning: no common commits\n");
+		if (!keep_pack)
+			/* When cloning, it is not unusual to have
+			 * no common commit.
+			 */
+			fprintf(stderr, "warning: no common commits\n");
 
 	if (keep_pack)
 		status = receive_keep_pack(fd, "git-fetch-pack", quiet);
@@ -426,6 +432,10 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 				use_thin_pack = 1;
 				continue;
 			}
+			if (!strcmp("--all", arg)) {
+				fetch_all = 1;
+				continue;
+			}
 			if (!strcmp("-v", arg)) {
 				verbose = 1;
 				continue;
diff --git a/git-clone.sh b/git-clone.sh
index 4ed861d576..6887321972 100755
--- a/git-clone.sh
+++ b/git-clone.sh
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
 unset CDPATH
 
 usage() {
-	echo >&2 "Usage: $0 [--bare] [-l [-s]] [-q] [-u <upload-pack>] [-o <name>] [-n] <repo> [<dir>]"
+	echo >&2 "Usage: $0 [--use-separate-remote] [--reference <reference-repo>] [--bare] [-l [-s]] [-q] [-u <upload-pack>] [-o <name>] [-n] <repo> [<dir>]"
 	exit 1
 }
 
@@ -40,22 +40,73 @@ Perhaps git-update-server-info needs to be run there?"
 	do
 		name=`expr "$refname" : 'refs/\(.*\)'` &&
 		case "$name" in
-		*^*)	;;
-		*)
-			git-http-fetch -v -a -w "$name" "$name" "$1/" || exit 1
+		*^*)	continue;;
 		esac
+		if test -n "$use_separate_remote" &&
+		   branch_name=`expr "$name" : 'heads/\(.*\)'`
+		then
+			tname="remotes/$origin/$branch_name"
+		else
+			tname=$name
+		fi
+		git-http-fetch -v -a -w "$tname" "$name" "$1/" || exit 1
 	done <"$clone_tmp/refs"
 	rm -fr "$clone_tmp"
+	http_fetch "$1/HEAD" "$GIT_DIR/REMOTE_HEAD"
 }
 
+# Read git-fetch-pack -k output and store the remote branches.
+copy_refs='
+use File::Path qw(mkpath);
+use File::Basename qw(dirname);
+my $git_dir = $ARGV[0];
+my $use_separate_remote = $ARGV[1];
+my $origin = $ARGV[2];
+
+my $branch_top = ($use_separate_remote ? "remotes/$origin" : "heads");
+my $tag_top = "tags";
+
+sub store {
+	my ($sha1, $name, $top) = @_;
+	$name = "$git_dir/refs/$top/$name";
+	mkpath(dirname($name));
+	open O, ">", "$name";
+	print O "$sha1\n";
+	close O;
+}
+
+open FH, "<", "$git_dir/CLONE_HEAD";
+while (<FH>) {
+	my ($sha1, $name) = /^([0-9a-f]{40})\s(.*)$/;
+	next if ($name =~ /\^\173/);
+	if ($name eq "HEAD") {
+		open O, ">", "$git_dir/REMOTE_HEAD";
+		print O "$sha1\n";
+		close O;
+		next;
+	}
+	if ($name =~ s/^refs\/heads\///) {
+		store($sha1, $name, $branch_top);
+		next;
+	}
+	if ($name =~ s/^refs\/tags\///) {
+		store($sha1, $name, $tag_top);
+		next;
+	}
+}
+close FH;
+'
+
 quiet=
 use_local=no
 local_shared=no
 no_checkout=
 upload_pack=
 bare=
-origin=origin
+reference=
+origin=
 origin_override=
+use_separate_remote=
 while
 	case "$#,$1" in
 	0,*) break ;;
@@ -68,9 +119,21 @@ while
         *,-s|*,--s|*,--sh|*,--sha|*,--shar|*,--share|*,--shared) 
           local_shared=yes; use_local=yes ;;
 	*,-q|*,--quiet) quiet=-q ;;
+	*,--use-separate-remote)
+		use_separate_remote=t ;;
 	1,-o) usage;;
+	1,--reference) usage ;;
+	*,--reference)
+		shift; reference="$1" ;;
+	*,--reference=*)
+		reference=`expr "$1" : '--reference=\(.*\)'` ;;
 	*,-o)
-		git-check-ref-format "$2" || {
+		case "$2" in
+		*/*)
+		    echo >&2 "'$2' is not suitable for an origin name"
+		    exit 1
+		esac
+		git-check-ref-format "heads/$2" || {
 		    echo >&2 "'$2' is not suitable for a branch name"
 		    exit 1
 		}
@@ -100,9 +163,19 @@ then
 		echo >&2 '--bare and -o $origin options are incompatible.'
 		exit 1
 	fi
+	if test t = "$use_separate_remote"
+	then
+		echo >&2 '--bare and --use-separate-remote options are incompatible.'
+		exit 1
+	fi
 	no_checkout=yes
 fi
 
+if test -z "$origin"
+then
+	origin=origin
+fi
+
 # Turn the source into an absolute path if
 # it is local
 repo="$1"
@@ -130,6 +203,28 @@ yes)
 	GIT_DIR="$D/.git" ;;
 esac
 
+if test -n "$reference"
+then
+	if test -d "$reference"
+	then
+		if test -d "$reference/.git/objects"
+		then
+			reference="$reference/.git"
+		fi
+		reference=$(cd "$reference" && pwd)
+		echo "$reference/objects" >"$GIT_DIR/objects/info/alternates"
+		(cd "$reference" && tar cf - refs) |
+		(cd "$GIT_DIR/refs" &&
+		 mkdir reference-tmp &&
+		 cd reference-tmp &&
+		 tar xf -)
+	else
+		echo >&2 "$reference: not a local directory." && usage
+	fi
+fi
+
+rm -f "$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD"
+
 # We do local magic only when the user tells us to.
 case "$local,$use_local" in
 yes,yes)
@@ -165,24 +260,14 @@ yes,yes)
 	    } >"$GIT_DIR/objects/info/alternates"
 	    ;;
 	esac
-
-	# Make a duplicate of refs and HEAD pointer
-	HEAD=
-	if test -f "$repo/HEAD"
-	then
-		HEAD=HEAD
-	fi
-	(cd "$repo" && tar cf - refs $HEAD) |
-	(cd "$GIT_DIR" && tar xf -) || exit 1
+	git-ls-remote "$repo" >"$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD"
 	;;
 *)
 	case "$repo" in
 	rsync://*)
 		rsync $quiet -av --ignore-existing  \
-			--exclude info "$repo/objects/" "$GIT_DIR/objects/" &&
-		rsync $quiet -av --ignore-existing  \
-			--exclude info "$repo/refs/" "$GIT_DIR/refs/" || exit
-
+			--exclude info "$repo/objects/" "$GIT_DIR/objects/" ||
+		exit
 		# Look at objects/info/alternates for rsync -- http will
 		# support it natively and git native ones will do it on the
 		# remote end.  Not having that file is not a crime.
@@ -205,6 +290,7 @@ yes,yes)
 		    done
 		    rm -f "$GIT_DIR/TMP_ALT"
 		fi
+		git-ls-remote "$repo" >"$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD"
 		;;
 	http://*)
 		if test -z "@@NO_CURL@@"
@@ -217,38 +303,89 @@ yes,yes)
 		;;
 	*)
 		cd "$D" && case "$upload_pack" in
-		'') git-clone-pack $quiet "$repo" ;;
-		*) git-clone-pack $quiet "$upload_pack" "$repo" ;;
-		esac || {
-			echo >&2 "clone-pack from '$repo' failed."
+		'') git-fetch-pack --all -k $quiet "$repo" ;;
+		*) git-fetch-pack --all -k $quiet "$upload_pack" "$repo" ;;
+		esac >"$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD" || {
+			echo >&2 "fetch-pack from '$repo' failed."
 			exit 1
 		}
 		;;
 	esac
 	;;
 esac
+test -d "$GIT_DIR/refs/reference-tmp" && rm -fr "$GIT_DIR/refs/reference-tmp"
+
+if test -f "$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD"
+then
+	# Figure out where the remote HEAD points at.
+	perl -e "$copy_refs" "$GIT_DIR" "$use_separate_remote" "$origin"
+fi
 
 cd "$D" || exit
 
-if test -f "$GIT_DIR/HEAD" && test -z "$bare"
+if test -z "$bare" && test -f "$GIT_DIR/REMOTE_HEAD"
 then
-	head_points_at=`git-symbolic-ref HEAD`
-	case "$head_points_at" in
-	refs/heads/*)
-		head_points_at=`expr "$head_points_at" : 'refs/heads/\(.*\)'`
-		mkdir -p "$GIT_DIR/remotes" &&
-		echo >"$GIT_DIR/remotes/origin" \
-		"URL: $repo
-Pull: $head_points_at:$origin" &&
-		git-update-ref "refs/heads/$origin" $(git-rev-parse HEAD) &&
-		(cd "$GIT_DIR" && find "refs/heads" -type f -print) |
-		while read ref
+	head_sha1=`cat "$GIT_DIR/REMOTE_HEAD"`
+	# Figure out which remote branch HEAD points at.
+	case "$use_separate_remote" in
+	'')	remote_top=refs/heads ;;
+	*)	remote_top="refs/remotes/$origin" ;;
+	esac
+
+	# What to use to track the remote primary branch
+	if test -n "$use_separate_remote"
+	then
+		origin_tracking="remotes/$origin/master"
+	else
+		origin_tracking="heads/$origin"
+	fi
+
+	# The name under $remote_top the remote HEAD seems to point at
+	head_points_at=$(
+		(
+			echo "master"
+			cd "$GIT_DIR/$remote_top" &&
+			find . -type f -print | sed -e 's/^\.\///'
+		) | (
+		done=f
+		while read name
 		do
-			head=`expr "$ref" : 'refs/heads/\(.*\)'` &&
-			test "$head_points_at" = "$head" ||
-			test "$origin" = "$head" ||
-			echo "Pull: ${head}:${head}"
-		done >>"$GIT_DIR/remotes/origin"
+			test t = $done && continue
+			branch_tip=`cat "$GIT_DIR/$remote_top/$name"`
+			if test "$head_sha1" = "$branch_tip"
+			then
+				echo "$name"
+				done=t
+			fi
+		done
+		)
+	)
+
+	# Write out remotes/$origin file.
+	case "$head_points_at" in
+	?*)
+		mkdir -p "$GIT_DIR/remotes" &&
+		echo >"$GIT_DIR/remotes/$origin" \
+		"URL: $repo
+Pull: refs/heads/$head_points_at:refs/$origin_tracking" &&
+		case "$use_separate_remote" in
+		t) git-update-ref HEAD "$head_sha1" ;;
+		*) git-update-ref "refs/heads/$origin" $(git-rev-parse HEAD) ;;
+		esac &&
+		(cd "$GIT_DIR/$remote_top" && find . -type f -print) |
+		while read dotslref
+		do
+			name=`expr "$dotslref" : './\(.*\)'` &&
+			test "$head_points_at" = "$name" ||
+			test "$origin" = "$name" ||
+			echo "Pull: refs/heads/${name}:$remote_top/${name}"
+		done >>"$GIT_DIR/remotes/$origin" &&
+		case "$use_separate_remote" in
+		t)
+			rm -f "refs/remotes/$origin/HEAD"
+			git-symbolic-ref "refs/remotes/$origin/HEAD" \
+				"refs/remotes/$origin/$head_points_at"
+		esac
 	esac
 
 	case "$no_checkout" in
@@ -256,6 +393,7 @@ Pull: $head_points_at:$origin" &&
 		git-read-tree -m -u -v HEAD HEAD
 	esac
 fi
+rm -f "$GIT_DIR/CLONE_HEAD" "$GIT_DIR/REMOTE_HEAD"
 
 trap - exit
 
diff --git a/git-fetch.sh b/git-fetch.sh
index 68356343a6..954901ddce 100755
--- a/git-fetch.sh
+++ b/git-fetch.sh
@@ -94,6 +94,9 @@ append_fetch_head () {
     # remote-nick is the URL given on the command line (or a shorthand)
     # remote-name is the $GIT_DIR relative refs/ path we computed
     # for this refspec.
+
+    # the $note_ variable will be fed to git-fmt-merge-msg for further
+    # processing.
     case "$remote_name_" in
     HEAD)
 	note_= ;;
@@ -103,6 +106,9 @@ append_fetch_head () {
     refs/tags/*)
 	note_="$(expr "$remote_name_" : 'refs/tags/\(.*\)')"
 	note_="tag '$note_' of " ;;
+    refs/remotes/*)
+	note_="$(expr "$remote_name_" : 'refs/remotes/\(.*\)')"
+	note_="remote branch '$note_' of " ;;
     *)
 	note_="$remote_name of " ;;
     esac
@@ -147,10 +153,10 @@ fast_forward_local () {
 	else
 		echo >&2 "* $1: storing $3"
 	fi
-	git-update-ref "$1" "$2" 
+	git-update-ref "$1" "$2"
 	;;
 
-    refs/heads/*)
+    refs/heads/* | refs/remotes/*)
 	# $1 is the ref being updated.
 	# $2 is the new value for the ref.
 	local=$(git-rev-parse --verify "$1^0" 2>/dev/null)
diff --git a/git-fmt-merge-msg.perl b/git-fmt-merge-msg.perl
index afe80e6321..5986e5414a 100755
--- a/git-fmt-merge-msg.perl
+++ b/git-fmt-merge-msg.perl
@@ -75,6 +75,7 @@ while (<>) {
 		$src{$src} = {
 			BRANCH => [],
 			TAG => [],
+			R_BRANCH => [],
 			GENERIC => [],
 			# &1 == has HEAD.
 			# &2 == has others.
@@ -91,6 +92,11 @@ while (<>) {
 		push @{$src{$src}{TAG}}, $1;
 		$src{$src}{HEAD_STATUS} |= 2;
 	}
+	elsif (/^remote branch (.*)$/) {
+		$origin = $1;
+		push @{$src{$src}{R_BRANCH}}, $1;
+		$src{$src}{HEAD_STATUS} |= 2;
+	}
 	elsif (/^HEAD$/) {
 		$origin = $src;
 		$src{$src}{HEAD_STATUS} |= 1;
@@ -123,6 +129,8 @@ for my $src (@src) {
 	}
 	push @this, andjoin("branch ", "branches ",
 			   $src{$src}{BRANCH});
+	push @this, andjoin("remote branch ", "remote branches ",
+			   $src{$src}{R_BRANCH});
 	push @this, andjoin("tag ", "tags ",
 			   $src{$src}{TAG});
 	push @this, andjoin("commit ", "commits ",
diff --git a/git-parse-remote.sh b/git-parse-remote.sh
index 5f158c613f..63f22818e6 100755
--- a/git-parse-remote.sh
+++ b/git-parse-remote.sh
@@ -86,14 +86,14 @@ canon_refs_list_for_fetch () {
 		local=$(expr "$ref" : '[^:]*:\(.*\)')
 		case "$remote" in
 		'') remote=HEAD ;;
-		refs/heads/* | refs/tags/*) ;;
-		heads/* | tags/* ) remote="refs/$remote" ;;
+		refs/heads/* | refs/tags/* | refs/remotes/*) ;;
+		heads/* | tags/* | remotes/* ) remote="refs/$remote" ;;
 		*) remote="refs/heads/$remote" ;;
 		esac
 		case "$local" in
 		'') local= ;;
-		refs/heads/* | refs/tags/*) ;;
-		heads/* | tags/* ) local="refs/$local" ;;
+		refs/heads/* | refs/tags/* | refs/remotes/*) ;;
+		heads/* | tags/* | remotes/* ) local="refs/$local" ;;
 		*) local="refs/heads/$local" ;;
 		esac
 
diff --git a/ls-tree.c b/ls-tree.c
index d005643ee0..58663ff969 100644
--- a/ls-tree.c
+++ b/ls-tree.c
@@ -87,6 +87,7 @@ int main(int argc, const char **argv)
 	struct tree *tree;
 
 	prefix = setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 	if (prefix && *prefix)
 		chomp_prefix = strlen(prefix);
 	while (1 < argc && argv[1][0] == '-') {
diff --git a/merge-base.c b/merge-base.c
index e73fca7453..07f5ab4d1c 100644
--- a/merge-base.c
+++ b/merge-base.c
@@ -237,6 +237,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	unsigned char rev1key[20], rev2key[20];
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	while (1 < argc && argv[1][0] == '-') {
 		char *arg = argv[1];
diff --git a/name-rev.c b/name-rev.c
index 0c3f547622..bad8a53777 100644
--- a/name-rev.c
+++ b/name-rev.c
@@ -127,6 +127,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	int as_is = 0, all = 0, transform_stdin = 0;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	if (argc < 2)
 		usage(name_rev_usage);
diff --git a/read-tree.c b/read-tree.c
index 1c3b09beff..eaff444196 100644
--- a/read-tree.c
+++ b/read-tree.c
@@ -717,6 +717,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	merge_fn_t fn = NULL;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	newfd = hold_index_file_for_update(&cache_file, get_index_file());
 	if (newfd < 0)
diff --git a/rev-parse.c b/rev-parse.c
index f90e999e60..19a5ef7f48 100644
--- a/rev-parse.c
+++ b/rev-parse.c
@@ -166,6 +166,8 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	unsigned char sha1[20];
 	const char *prefix = setup_git_directory();
 	
+	git_config(git_default_config);
+
 	for (i = 1; i < argc; i++) {
 		struct stat st;
 		char *arg = argv[i];
diff --git a/send-pack.c b/send-pack.c
index c8ffc8d537..409f188503 100644
--- a/send-pack.c
+++ b/send-pack.c
@@ -362,6 +362,8 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	pid_t pid;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
+
 	argv++;
 	for (i = 1; i < argc; i++, argv++) {
 		char *arg = *argv;
diff --git a/sha1_name.c b/sha1_name.c
index d67de18ba5..4f92e12a8d 100644
--- a/sha1_name.c
+++ b/sha1_name.c
@@ -235,14 +235,21 @@ static int ambiguous_path(const char *path, int len)
 
 static int get_sha1_basic(const char *str, int len, unsigned char *sha1)
 {
-	static const char *prefix[] = {
-		"",
-		"refs",
-		"refs/tags",
-		"refs/heads",
+	static const char *fmt[] = {
+		"%.*s",
+		"refs/%.*s",
+		"refs/tags/%.*s",
+		"refs/heads/%.*s",
+		"refs/remotes/%.*s",
+		"refs/remotes/%.*s/HEAD",
 		NULL
 	};
 	const char **p;
+	const char *warning = "warning: refname '%.*s' is ambiguous.\n";
+	char *pathname;
+	int already_found = 0;
+	unsigned char *this_result;
+	unsigned char sha1_from_ref[20];
 
 	if (len == 40 && !get_sha1_hex(str, sha1))
 		return 0;
@@ -251,11 +258,21 @@ static int get_sha1_basic(const char *str, int len, unsigned char *sha1)
 	if (ambiguous_path(str, len))
 		return -1;
 
-	for (p = prefix; *p; p++) {
-		char *pathname = git_path("%s/%.*s", *p, len, str);
-		if (!read_ref(pathname, sha1))
-			return 0;
+	for (p = fmt; *p; p++) {
+		this_result = already_found ? sha1_from_ref : sha1;
+		pathname = git_path(*p, len, str);
+		if (!read_ref(pathname, this_result)) {
+			if (warn_ambiguous_refs) {
+				if (already_found)
+					fprintf(stderr, warning, len, str);
+				already_found++;
+			}
+			else
+				return 0;
+		}
 	}
+	if (already_found)
+		return 0;
 	return -1;
 }
 
diff --git a/tar-tree.c b/tar-tree.c
index e478e13e28..92035f51d8 100644
--- a/tar-tree.c
+++ b/tar-tree.c
@@ -380,6 +380,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	struct tree_desc tree;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	switch (argc) {
 	case 3:
diff --git a/unpack-file.c b/unpack-file.c
index 07303f8bb3..3accb974dd 100644
--- a/unpack-file.c
+++ b/unpack-file.c
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 		usage("git-unpack-file <sha1>");
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 
 	puts(create_temp_file(sha1));
 	return 0;
diff --git a/update-ref.c b/update-ref.c
index e6fbddbab6..ba4bf5153e 100644
--- a/update-ref.c
+++ b/update-ref.c
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ int main(int argc, char **argv)
 	int fd, written;
 
 	setup_git_directory();
+	git_config(git_default_config);
 	if (argc < 3 || argc > 4)
 		usage(git_update_ref_usage);