Folder Capabilities
Glint automatically detects what a folder supports and enables or disables features accordingly. You won’t see tabs for features that aren’t available.
Capabilities
| Capability | Meaning | Detected When |
|---|---|---|
| git | Folder is a git repository | .git directory exists |
| remotes | Folder has a GitHub remote | Owner and repo name detected from a remote URL |
| issues | GitHub issue management available | Same as remotes (requires a GitHub remote) |
| lfs | Git LFS is configured | Git LFS is initialized in the repo |
What Requires Each Capability
Always Available (No Capability Needed)
File Browser, File Editor, Terminal, Context List, Group Tabs
Requires Git
Branches, Changes, Commits, Compare, Diff, Find in Files, Git Graph, Git Hooks, Git Reflog, Git Settings, Git Stashes, LFS, Refs
Requires GitHub Remote
Issues, Pull Requests, Actions, Releases, Labels, Milestones, Create Issue, Create PR, Create Release, Repository
Common Scenarios
| Folder Type | Git | GitHub | Available Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain folder (no git) | No | No | File browsing and editing only |
| Local git repo (no remote) | Yes | No | All git features, no GitHub tabs |
| GitHub-connected repo | Yes | Yes | Everything |
What Happens When a Feature Is Unavailable
- Tabs don’t appear in the tab bar if their capability isn’t met
- Menu items are disabled or hidden for gated features
- Keyboard shortcuts for gated features have no effect
- Session restore silently skips tabs that can no longer open (e.g., if a remote was removed)
If you try to open a gated tab through another path, a toast message explains what’s needed (e.g., “This feature requires a git repository” or “This feature requires a connected provider”).
Unlocking Capabilities
| To unlock… | Do this… |
|---|---|
| Git features | Initialize a git repository (Git menu > Initialize Repository) |
| GitHub features | Add a GitHub remote or publish to GitHub (File menu > Publish Folder to GitHub) |
| LFS features | Install git-lfs and initialize it in the repo |
Submodules and Worktrees
Submodules open as regular Folder tabs and compute their capabilities independently. A submodule with its own GitHub remote gets full GitHub features.
Worktrees inherit capabilities from their parent repository connection.