Skip to content

Repository links and local directories

AI-translated from Russian.

Such links are used in developing_project, in dependencies, in odoo_git_link, and in the --init parameter.

Three ways to specify a code source

Method Example When to use
HTTPS https://github.com/org/repo.git Public repositories, machines without an SSH key
SSH git@github.com:org/repo.git Day-to-day work, private repositories
Local directory file:///home/user/my_addons Code only on disk, no remote git

After the address, separated by a space, you may specify a branch and optionally a commit:

git@github.com:org/odoo.git 19.0
git@github.com:org/odoo.git 19.0 a1b2c3d4e5f6789abcdef0123456789abcdef012

Why file:// has three slashes in a row

A file address in URL notation is: scheme, colon, two slashes, then path.

  • file:// — “file on disk” scheme (two slashes after the colon is normal for URLs).
  • On Linux and macOS an absolute path starts with /.
  • The result is file:// + /home/user/project = file:///home/user/project — three slashes in a row.

This is not a typo. file://home/user without the third slash for an absolute path on Unix is wrong.

On WSL on Windows, for directories inside Linux use the same form: file:///home/user/....

Type odpm action
HTTPS, SSH, git@ Clone into ODOO_PROJECTS_DIR from .env, then select branch/commit per version pinning rules
file:// No clone — the directory is used as-is at the given path

For file://, the lock file stores a content fingerprint of the directory, not a git hash — a remote repository is more reliable for shared builds.

In odpm.json and in developing_project you can write paths and hosts via variables so one manifest in git fits different machines:

"odoo_git_link": "file://${ODOO_PLATFORM_DIR}",
"dependencies": ["file://${OCA_WEB_PATH}"],
"developing_project": "file://${DEVELOPING_PROJECT_DIR}"

Values are set in the project .env or in the process environment (CI). After expansion odpm works with a normal file:// or git URL. Details: odpm.json, .env variables.

Where to specify in configuration

  • Developing project: --init <link> or developing_project in user_settings.json.
  • Odoo platform: odoo_git_link in odpm.json or --odoo-git-link at initialization.
  • Dependencies: dependencies array in odpm.json.

Practical tips

  • For a team in shared git, store remote repository addresses, not file://.
  • file:// — for local work, a monorepo, or code not published to a server.
  • For private GitHub/GitLab, configure SSH (~/.ssh/config); PATH_TO_SSH_KEY in .env — only when standard SSH is unavailable (often on a build machine).