Tired of adding the same content to your .gitignore file for every new project? If so, this is the tutorial article for you!

Instead of repeatedly copy-pasting or regenerating the same content for your .gitignore files, simply create a system-wide version that can efficiently manage global rules for excluding files and directories across all repositories on your system.

Step 1: Open a Terminal or Command Prompt

Begin by launching your terminal or command prompt and use the cd command to navigate to the directory where your current .gitconfig file is located or wherever you want to create and store it. This is typically the home directory of the user, but you can put it wherever you prefer, so it'll be wherever you saved it on your system.

cd ~/path-to-your/.gitconfig

Step 2: Create Or Edit Your Git Configuration File

Once you're in the correct folder, launch the Nano or Vim text editor with the name of your .gitconfig file to open it for editing.

nano .gitconfig

If the file already exists, the command above will open it in Nano. If not, a new file will be created.

Step 3: Add System-Wide Configuration

Inside your .gitconfig file, add the following lines to specify the path to the system-wide .gitignore file.

[core]
    excludesfile = /path-to-your/.gitignore_systemwide

Replace "/path-to-your/" with the actual path where you plan to store the ".gitignore_systemwide" file.

Step 4: Save and Exit

Save the changes in Nano by pressing Ctrl + O, then press Enter. To exit Nano, press Ctrl + X.

Step 5: Create The System-Wide .gitignore File

Navigate to the desired location and create the .gitignore_systemwide file using your preferred text editor. Below, I'm using Nano.

nano /path-to-your/.gitignore_systemwide

Populate the file with your global Git ignore rules. You can use the Toptal generator to have them auto-generated for you, or you can check out the resources on GitHub and do it by hand.

Step 6: Save and Exit

Save the changes in Nano, then exit the editor.

That's it! You've successfully created a system-wide .gitignore and now have a centralized mechanism for managing global Git ignore rules across all repositories on your system. Sip some coffee and pat yourself on the back. 😎