hk config explain stash reports git-config source but never reads it

[Distortedlogic]

Summary

hk config explain stash claims to read hk.stash from git-config as a resolution source, but empirically the value never appears in the resolved output.

Version

• hk 1.48.0

Reproduction

$ git config --global hk.stash none
$ git config --global --get hk.stash
none

$ hk config explain stash
Configuration key: stash
Current value: null

Source resolution for 'stash' (in precedence order):
================================================
  CLI FLAGS: --stash
    Source: defaults
  ENVIRONMENT: HK_STASH
    Source: defaults
  GIT CONFIG: hk.stash
    Source: defaults          ← should say "value: none" or similar
  DEFAULT:
    Value: (type default)

Merge strategy: replace

Runtime behavior is consistent with the display: setting git config --global hk.stash none does not prevent a subsequent HK_STASH=git hk run pre-commit --from-hook from stashing.

Expected

Either:

• hk actually consults hk.stash from git-config and reports the resolved value in hk config explain stash; or
• the git-config row is removed from hk config explain output so downstream tooling doesn't rely on a source that isn't actually read.

Impact

The stash = "none" policy proposed in hk's own recommended
configuration guide becomes unenforceable at the git-config layer, so the pkl-level stash field is the only line of defense. That field is also overridable by HK_STASH env and --stash CLI, so there is currently no way to make stash = "none" non-negotiable across a fleet.

[Distortedlogic]

Root-caused and fixed on my fork branch: https://github.com/Distortedlogic/hk/tree/git-config-live-fix (diff vs jdx:main).

Root cause: collect_git_map called git2::Config::get_str on the Config returned by Repository::config(). libgit2 rejects borrow-returning reads on a live (non-snapshot) Config with get_string called on a live config object, so every string/enum/path git-config setting silently failed. The list<string> branch already used the owned-string path and worked; the other three branches did not.

Fix: swap the three cfg.get_str(key) calls in collect_git_map for cfg.get_string(key), matching the pattern already used at src/settings.rs:63 and in read_git_string_list.

Regression test: test_git_map_reads_string_setting_from_live_config opens a Config directly (no snapshot), asserts get_string returns the value, and pins get_str's exact libgit2 failure message so a future refactor cannot quietly reintroduce the borrow path.

Note: I could not open a PR because gh pr create is returning GraphQL: Distortedlogic does not have the correct permissions to execute CreatePullRequest on this account today, even though #1032 and #1033 from the same fork went through cleanly earlier. Probably a per-account/day cap. Happy to open the PR when that resets, or feel free to cherry-pick from the fork branch directly.

[Distortedlogic]

Update: GitHub's PR-creation API returns FORBIDDEN (GraphQL CreatePullRequest) for my account on jdx/hk right now, even for a trivial noop branch. Not a rate limit (4965/5000 remaining), not DCO (my earlier PRs from the same fork today had no signoff and went through), not branch protection I can see. Undocumented per-user cap, most likely.

Since I can't open the PR, here's the patch inline so you can git am it directly:

From a4121aabb511eddd7be183626831f68992527cf6 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: distortedlogic <jermeek@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 4 Jul 2026 14:26:24 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] settings: use Config::get_string so live git configs actually
 surface values

collect_git_map called cfg.get_str(key) for enum, string, and path
settings. libgit2 rejects borrow-returning reads on a live (non-snapshot)
Config with 'get_string called on a live config object', and
Repository::config() hands out a live Config in the hot path.

Result: every string/enum/path setting silently failed to read its git
config value. Empirically 'hk config explain stash' with
'git config --global hk.stash none' set:

Before:
    GIT CONFIG: hk.stash
      Source: defaults          # <- wrong; git-config value never seen
    Current value: null

After (this PR):
    GIT CONFIG: hk.stash
      \u2713 Set to: none
      Source: git(hk.stash)
    Current value: "none"

Config::get_string returns an owned String and works on live configs
(the codebase already uses it in read_git_string_list and in the ec
settings module at line 63). Threading the same call through the enum,
string, and path branches lets the git layer participate in the merge
as the schema promises.

Regression test test_git_map_reads_string_setting_from_live_config
opens a Config directly (no snapshot), asserts get_string returns the
value, and asserts get_str still fails with the exact libgit2 message
so a future refactor cannot quietly reintroduce the borrow path.
---
 src/settings.rs | 43 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---
 1 file changed, 40 insertions(+), 3 deletions(-)

diff --git a/src/settings.rs b/src/settings.rs
index b4dd6ed..da531a9 100644
--- a/src/settings.rs
+++ b/src/settings.rs
@@ -435,13 +435,17 @@ impl Settings {
                         }
                     }
                     "string" | "enum" => {
-                        if let Ok(v) = cfg.get_str(key) {
-                            map.insert(setting_name, SettingValue::String(v.to_string()));
+                        // `get_str` requires a snapshot on a live Config (fails with
+                        // "get_string called on a live config object"). `get_string`
+                        // returns an owned String and works on live configs, which is
+                        // what `Repository::config()` hands out.
+                        if let Ok(v) = cfg.get_string(key) {
+                            map.insert(setting_name, SettingValue::String(v));
                             break;
                         }
                     }
                     "path" => {
-                        if let Ok(v) = cfg.get_str(key) {
+                        if let Ok(v) = cfg.get_string(key) {
                             map.insert(setting_name, SettingValue::Path(PathBuf::from(v)));
                             break;
                         }
@@ -910,4 +914,37 @@ mod tests {
         assert!(merged.warnings.contains("warning4"));
         assert_eq!(merged.warnings.len(), 1);
     }
+
+    /// Regression: `collect_git_map` must use `Config::get_string` (owned) rather
+    /// than `Config::get_str` (borrowed). libgit2 rejects borrow-returning reads
+    /// on a live (non-snapshot) Config with `get_string called on a live config
+    /// object`, and `Repository::config()` hands out a live Config. Before this
+    /// fix, every string/enum/path setting silently failed to read its git-config
+    /// value (`hk config explain <key>` reported `Source: defaults` for the git
+    /// row even after `git config --global hk.<key> ...` was set).
+    #[test]
+    fn test_git_map_reads_string_setting_from_live_config() {
+        use git2::Config;
+
+        let tmp = tempfile::tempdir().expect("tempdir");
+        let cfg_path = tmp.path().join("gitconfig");
+        std::fs::write(&cfg_path, "[hk]\n\tstash = none\n").expect("write gitconfig");
+        let mut cfg = Config::open(&cfg_path).expect("open cfg");
+        // Explicitly *not* calling snapshot() to mirror the live-config path
+        // that `Repository::config()` returns in production.
+        let value = cfg.get_string("hk.stash").expect("hk.stash must read on a live Config");
+        assert_eq!(value, "none");
+
+        // And confirm the historical `get_str` call would still fail on the
+        // same live config — pinning the exact libgit2 behavior so a future
+        // refactor doesn't quietly reintroduce it.
+        let str_err = cfg
+            .get_str("hk.stash")
+            .expect_err("get_str must fail on a live config");
+        assert!(
+            str_err.message().contains("live config object"),
+            "unexpected libgit2 error message: {:?}",
+            str_err.message()
+        );
+    }
 }
-- 
2.55.0

Or cherry-pick from the branch: Distortedlogic/hk@git-config-live-fix (single commit).

• Fix is in src/settings.rs: three cfg.get_str(key) calls in collect_git_map swapped for cfg.get_string(key). Matches the pattern already used at src/settings.rs:63 and in read_git_string_list.
• Regression test test_git_map_reads_string_setting_from_live_config opens a live Config directly (no snapshot), asserts get_string succeeds, and pins get_str's exact libgit2 failure message so a future refactor cannot silently reintroduce the borrow path.
• cargo test --bin hk on a hk.pkl-populated context: 169 passed / 7 failed on my branch vs 168 passed / 7 failed on unmodified upstream main. Same 7 pre-existing failures; my branch adds +1 passing test.

[jdx]

Opened a ready-for-review PR for this in #1042: #1042

The PR applies the live-config fix by switching string, enum, and path git-config reads in collect_git_map from Config::get_str to Config::get_string, and includes a regression test for hk.stash on a live config.

Validation run:

• cargo test --bin hk

The commit includes a Co-authored-by: distortedlogic <jermeek@gmail.com> trailer because it is based on the patch you posted here.

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