How do I change a submodule's name?

Question

I've spent a considerable amount of time reading through this: Rename a git submodule

However my case is actually a bit different. I've already renamed/moved the submodules, but I've noticed that the "name" of the module is the name I initially had when I first added the module.

I believe the --name property can only be used when a module is initially added. But just incase, I thought I'd ask:

Can I change the "name" of the module once it's already been moved? I want to have the entry in the .gitmodules and .git/config changed, as well as the directory structure inside of .git/modules/*

I'm trying to prevent having to remove the modules (there's quite a few) and then re-add them all.

For reference, here's what a current module record in my .gitmodules file looks like:

[submodule "TurtlePHP/application/vendors/PHP-Pixabay"]
    path = TurtlePHP/application/vendors/submodules/PHP-Pixabay
    url = [email protected]:onassar/PHP-Pixabay.git

And here's what I want it to be:

[submodule "TurtlePHP/application/vendors/submodules/PHP-Pixabay"]
    path = TurtlePHP/application/vendors/submodules/PHP-Pixabay
    url = [email protected]:onassar/PHP-Pixabay.git

Thanks!

Spectrohelioscope

Answer 1

I think renaming sections in .git/config and .gitmodules is just fine:

git config                --rename-section submodule.TurtlePHP/application/vendors/PHP-Pixabay submodule.TurtlePHP/application/vendors/submodules/PHP-Pixabay
git config -f .gitmodules --rename-section submodule.TurtlePHP/application/vendors/PHP-Pixabay submodule.TurtlePHP/application/vendors/submodules/PHP-Pixabay

Agnesagnese

What about the actual directory structure within /.git/modules? – Spectrohelioscope

In the context of CLI/git commands, renaming/moving a module is different than changing it's name. Renaming/moving moves the directory and references within .gitmodules and .git/config, whereas changing the name changes the name associated with that submodule. – Spectrohelioscope

The linked question has many good answers, aren't they enough? Just a week ago a I restructured and renamed a submodule from xxx-yyy to xxx/yyy. It was really simple. – Agnesagnese

Moving/renaming a submodule is different than actually changing the module's name. Have you looked into the .gitmodules file, and checked out the name? It's possible (but not 100%) that the name itself it incorrect, if the name was originally defined to be the relative path to the submodule. – Spectrohelioscope