Git for Windows is the Windows distribution of Git. It offers a native set of tools with the full feature set of Git, plus Git BASH, Git GUI, shell integration and Git Credential Manager.[7] It is a community project with a project lead who sets its strategic direction.[8] Its release notes state that Git is licensed under GPL version 2. They also state that Git for Windows is distributed with other components, such as Bash, zlib, curl, Tcl/Tk, Perl and MSYS2, each governed by its own licence.[1] For a software asset manager, Git for Windows therefore raises two questions: which component licences a redistributor must honour, and which version is installed on each endpoint. Using it inside an organization needs no licence position, because running Git is not restricted.[9] See Git licensing.
Editions
Git for Windows publishes no commercial editions. It publishes several packages of each release:
| Package | Description | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Standalone installer | x64 and ARM64 setup programs, for example Git-2.55.0.5-64-bit.exe | [5][6] |
| Portable (“thumbdrive edition”) | Self-extracting archives, for example PortableGit-2.55.0.5-64-bit.7z.exe | [5][6] |
| MinGit | Minimal, non-interactive distribution for third-party applications, as zip archives for 32-bit, 64-bit and ARM64 | [3][6] |
| BusyBox-based MinGit | Experimental MinGit variant that uses BusyBox-w32 instead of the MSYS2 runtime | [3][6] |
MinGit bundles git.exe and its supporting files. It excludes localized messages, interactive commands, help documents, Tcl/Tk (used only by Git GUI and gitk) and Perl.[3] Catalog proof: MinGit is the Git for Windows distribution intended for bundling in applications.
Metrics
None. Git for Windows is free of charge, and none of the retrieved documents names a licence metric.[5][9]
Counting / floors
Nothing is counted for internal use.[9] What an organization tracks instead is the number of installations, their versions and the packages in use, for patching rather than licensing. See Software asset management practice.
Bundled components and their licences
What the release notes list
The Licenses section of the release notes (update of 2026-08-20) names Bash, zlib, curl, Tcl/Tk, Perl and MSYS2 as examples of the other components in the distribution.[1] The FAQ reproduces a longer version of that section. It says the package contains software from a number of other projects, including libraries and utilities from the GNU project licensed under the GNU GPL. It also says the Perl it contains is dual licensed under the GPL and the Artistic License.[2] Catalog proof: Git for Windows bundles components under their own licences.
The release notes also name the versions of bundled components introduced in each build. Reading the sections up to 2.55.0(5), that build shipped the following:[1]
| Component | Version | Release-notes section that introduced it |
|---|---|---|
| Git | 2.55.0 | Changes since 2.54.0 |
| Bash | 5.3.15 | Changes since 2.54.0 |
| cURL | 8.21.0 | Changes since 2.54.0 |
| OpenSSL | 3.5.7 | Changes since 2.54.0 |
| less | 702 | Changes since 2.54.0 |
| Git Credential Manager | 2.9.0 | Changes since 2.55.0(2) |
| MSYS2 runtime | Git for Windows flavour based on Cygwin 3.6.10 | Changes since 2.55.0(4) |
| OpenSSH | 10.5.P1 | Changes since 2.55.0(4) |
The top section of the notes, headed “Changes since Git for Windows v2.55.0(5)”, lists changes for the next build. These include Git LFS 3.8.0, cURL 8.22.0 and OpenSSL 3.5.8.[1] The release notes do not give each component’s licence. A redistributor has to take them from each component’s own licence file.[1]
Redistribution
Redistributing any Git for Windows package, including MinGit bundled inside a product, redistributes Git. The GPL-2.0 conditions on notices, the licence text and source availability then apply.[9] The terms of each bundled component apply as well.[1] MinGit’s smaller set of components shortens that list. It leaves out Tcl/Tk and Perl, among others.[3] The Git obligations are covered in Git GPL-2.0 obligations and the libgit2 linking exception.
Versions and support
Numbering. Git numbers feature releases vX.Y.0 and maintenance releases vX.Y.Z. A feature release cycle is expected to last eight to ten weeks.[11] Git for Windows generally follows a new Git version within a day. It also issues “out-of-band” releases for Windows-specific critical fixes, marked by appending (2), (3) and so on, as in 2.55.0(5).[2] The matching Git tag is v2.55.0.windows.5, and the asset file names use 2.55.0.5.[6]
Support policy (as retrieved 2026-09-27). Git has no official Long Term Support versions. Fixes go to the maintenance track of the most recent feature release, and older tracks have no formal guarantee of updates. In practice, critical vulnerability fixes are applied to several older tracks.[10] Git for Windows follows only the newest Git version’s maintenance releases. After a new feature version appears, no further builds of the previous version are made.[2] The FAQ calls staying up to date “a good idea”. It advises upgrading from any version older than 2.55.0(4), and lists earlier releases that carried security fixes.[2] Catalog proof: Git has no Long Term Support versions; Git for Windows follows only the newest Git maintenance releases.
Windows versions. Git for Windows supports recent, commercially released x64 versions of Windows. Version 2.46.2 was the last to support Windows 7 and 8, and version 2.40.1 the last with full support for 32-bit Windows.[2] The notes for 2.55.0(5) say that, following MSYS2, Windows 8.1 support will be dropped after Git for Windows 2.55. The notes for the next build say it has been dropped.[1]
Deployment
Packages and installer options. There is no MSI package. Git for Windows ships as an exe installer and a portable package. For managed deployment, the FAQ suggests the portable package, deploying the exe installer with System Center Configuration Manager, deploying the portable package by script, or deploying the Chocolatey package with Puppet or a similar tool.[2] The installer runs silently with switches such as /VERYSILENT /NORESTART /NOCANCEL. It can record its options to a file with /SAVEINF and replay them with /LOADINF, and individual options can be passed as /o:<Key>=<Value>.[4] The official download page also gives the winget command winget install --id Git.Git -e --source winget.[5] Catalog proof: Git for Windows ships as an exe installer and portable package, not MSI.
Updates. Git for Windows includes a tool that checks for updates, git update-git-for-windows, whether or not auto-updates were enabled at installation.[2]
Paths. In the changes listed for the build after 2.55.0(5), /mingw64/bin/git.exe no longer exists and /ucrt64/bin/git.exe takes its place. The release notes describe /cmd/git.exe as guaranteed to stay stable.[1] An installed copy includes its release notes as ReleaseNotes.html in the installation folder.[2]
Software asset management practice
The points below apply the cited documents to inventory work. They are commentary.
- Discovery. Look for the installer package, PortableGit folders and MinGit copies bundled inside other applications. Portable and bundled copies are not installed through the setup program, so they may not appear in installed-programs lists.[2][3]
- Version normalization. Map the Git for Windows version, for example 2.55.0(5), tag v2.55.0.windows.5 or files named 2.55.0.5, to the upstream Git version 2.55.0.[6][1]
- End of support. Because only the newest maintenance track is formally maintained, a version older than the latest feature release has no formal guarantee of fixes. For Git for Windows, only builds of the newest Git version are made.[10][2]
- Licence compliance. No entitlement reconciliation is needed for internal use. Products that ship Git for Windows or MinGit need the GPL-2.0 obligations and the component notices handled at release time.[9][1]
Virtualization & partitioning
Not applicable. Nothing is counted per machine, virtual machine or core.[9]
Cloud / BYOL
Not applicable. Git for Windows on a cloud-hosted Windows virtual machine or desktop is used under the same terms as on a physical PC.[9]
Programs
None. The Git for Windows project offers no paid support, subscription or enterprise program in the retrieved documents.
Out of scope
This article does not reproduce the licence of each bundled component. It does not cover the Git for Windows SDK, third-party Git GUIs for Windows or hosting services such as GitHub and Azure Repos.