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git-cms

Burnt-Out Linux Penguin

A serverless, database-free CMS built on Git plumbing.

"I'm using git push as my API endpoint."

git-cms treats your Git repository as a distributed, cryptographically verifiable database. Instead of files, it stores content as commit messages on "empty trees," creating a linear, append-only ledger for articles, comments, or any other structured data.

Quick Start (Docker - Safe!)

One-Time Setup

# Clone this repo
git clone https://github.com/flyingrobots/git-cms.git
cd git-cms

# Run setup (checks Docker + validates environment)
npm run setup

Try It Out

# Option 1: Guided walkthrough of key features
npm run demo

# Option 2: Interactive menu (start server, run tests, open shell)
npm run quickstart

# Option 3: Just start the server
npm run dev
# Open http://localhost:4638

Everything runs in Docker - completely safe for your local Git setup.

⚠️ SAFETY WARNING

This project manipulates Git repositories at a low level. ALWAYS use Docker for testing.

The tests create, destroy, and manipulate Git repositories. Running low-level plumbing commands on your host filesystem is risky - a typo could affect your local Git setup. That's why we built Docker isolation into everything.

Read more: TESTING_GUIDE.md | docs/GETTING_STARTED.md | docs/CONTENT_ID_POLICY.md

Features

  • Database-Free: No SQL, No NoSQL. Just Git objects (Merkle DAG).
  • Fast-Forward Only: Enforces strict linear history for provenance.
  • Atomic Publishes: "Publishing" is just a pointer update (CAS).
  • Infinite History: Every draft save is a commit. Scrub back to any point in time.

Development

Start the Server (Dev Mode)

npm run dev
# OR
docker compose up app

The API and Admin UI will be available at http://localhost:4638.

Run Tests

npm test
# OR
docker compose run --rm test

Installation

# From source (recommended until npm publish):
git clone https://github.com/flyingrobots/git-cms.git
cd git-cms
npm link

# After publish, global install will work:
# npm install -g git-cms

Usage

1. Initialize a "Stargate" (The Gateway)

To use git-cms securely, you should pair it with git-stargate.

Stargate is a minimal, bash-based Git gateway that enforces:

  • Fast-Forward Only: No force pushes allowed.
  • Signed Commits: Every update must be cryptographically signed by an authorized key.
  • Mirroring: Validated updates are automatically mirrored to public repositories (like GitHub).
# Bootstrap a local stargate for testing
./scripts/bootstrap-stargate.sh ~/git/_blog-stargate.git

# Link it
git remote add stargate ~/git/_blog-stargate.git
git config remote.stargate.push "+refs/_blog/*:refs/_blog/*"

2. Encryption & Attachments

Attachments are encrypted client-side (AES-256-GCM) before they are ever committed to the repository.

  • Keys are managed securely via your OS Keychain (macOS/Linux/Windows).
  • The "Stargate" receives only opaque, encrypted blobs.
  • This effectively gives you "Row Level Security" on a file system—only users with the key can decrypt the assets.

3. Write a Draft

Content is stored in refs/_blog/articles/<slug>.

echo "# Hello World" | git cms draft hello-world "My First Post"

4. List Articles

git cms list
# -> refs/_blog/articles/hello-world My First Post

5. Publish

Publishing fast-forwards refs/_blog/published/<slug> to match the draft.

git cms publish hello-world

License

Copyright © 2026 James Ross. This software is licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0