FAQ
General
What is GitGov?
GitGov is a Git governance platform that captures operational metadata from developer workstations (commits, pushes, branches) and sends it to a central Control Plane for audit, compliance, and policy monitoring. It does not read, analyze, or transmit source code.
Who is GitGov for?
GitGov is designed for engineering teams and organizations that need:
- Audit trails for regulatory compliance (SOC 2, ISO 27001, PCI-DSS).
- Visibility into development operations without inspecting code.
- Policy enforcement awareness (e.g., protected branch rules, working hours).
- CI/CD traceability linking commits to Jenkins pipelines and Jira tickets.
- Team and organization governance across multiple repositories.
Is GitGov open source?
GitGov is developed by Yohandry Chirinos, a Venezuelan software engineer with over 10 years of experience in diverse enterprise environments, banking, fintech, and startups. GitGov is not open source — it emerged as a software product designed to improve operational traceability for organizations.
What technology stack does GitGov use?
- Desktop App: Tauri v2 + React 19 + Tailwind v4 + Zustand v5 — native desktop for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
- Control Plane Server: Axum (Rust) — high-performance REST API for event ingestion, policy checks, and the admin dashboard.
- Database: PostgreSQL (Supabase-managed or self-hosted) — stores all audit events, organization data, and integrations.
- Web App: Next.js 15.5 — marketing site and documentation at git-gov.vercel.app.
What GitGov Does NOT Do
Does GitGov read my source code?
No. Only metadata is captured: event type, commit SHA, branch name, author, timestamp, file paths (up to 500), and repository name. Source code, file contents, diffs, and commit message bodies are never transmitted.
Does GitGov monitor my screen, keystrokes, or applications?
No. GitGov only observes Git operations. It has no access to your screen, clipboard, browser, IDE, or any application outside of Git.
Does GitGov analyze code quality or run static analysis?
No. GitGov captures metadata about when and where Git events happen, not what the code contains.
Does GitGov replace CI/CD?
No. GitGov integrates with CI/CD tools (Jenkins, GitHub Actions) to correlate commits with pipeline results. It does not run builds, tests, or deployments.
Does GitGov block Git operations?
No. GitGov is a detection and observability tool. It can flag that a push to a protected branch occurred, but does not prevent the push.
Does GitGov make HR or disciplinary decisions?
No. Signals are advisory observations. The deploying organization is fully responsible for any decisions made based on signals.
Does GitGov profile individual developer productivity?
No. There are no "lines of code", "commit frequency scores", or productivity rankings.
Does GitGov sell or share my data?
No. All data belongs to the deploying organization. No data monetization. No third-party sharing.
Does GitGov store passwords or secrets?
No. API keys are hashed (SHA-256). GitGov never collects passwords, tokens, or .env values.
Does GitGov collect information about my computer?
No. No hardware specs, network info, installed software, or system telemetry. Only the client app version is captured.
Data & Security
Where is my data stored?
Event data is stored in a PostgreSQL database controlled by the deploying organization (Supabase-managed or self-hosted). The desktop app uses a JSONL outbox for offline event queuing and a separate SQLite database for local audit logs. See Security Policy for full details.
Is my data encrypted?
Yes, at multiple layers:
- In transit: TLS (HTTPS) between Desktop and Control Plane.
- At rest: AES-256 disk encryption on Supabase-managed databases; API keys stored as SHA-256 hashes.
- On the workstation: API keys stored in the OS keyring (Windows DPAPI, macOS Keychain, Linux Secret Service).
Can audit records be modified or deleted?
No. Audit event records are append-only by design. PostgreSQL triggers enforce this at the database level. Every data export is logged as an audit event.
Who can see my events?
- Developers see only their own events.
- Admins see all events within their organization.
- Data is scoped by organization — admins of one org cannot see another org's data.
How are API keys protected?
Hashed with SHA-256 before storage. Plaintext shown only once at creation. On desktop, stored in OS keyring. Revocation takes effect immediately.
How long is my data retained?
Audit data: minimum 1,825 days (5 years). Configurable upward. Session data has a shorter, separate retention period.
Can I export my data?
Yes. POST /export provides machine-readable JSON. Each export is logged as an audit event (chain of custody).
Does GitGov support the right to erasure (GDPR)?
Yes. Anonymization/deletion endpoint available within org scope. Returns 404 for non-existent users (privacy-preserving).
Desktop App
What platforms does GitGov Desktop support?
Windows, macOS, and Linux — built with Tauri.
What happens if I lose internet connectivity?
Events are queued in a local JSONL outbox with exponential backoff retries. No events are lost.
Does GitGov require admin privileges to install?
No. Installs in user space.
What does the Desktop App capture?
- Stage files — file paths staged for commit (no content).
- Commit — SHA, branch, file count, status.
- Push — target branch, success/failure, block reasons.
- Branch operations — creation, checkout.
Each event carries a unique event_uuid for deduplication.
Can I set a PIN lock on the Desktop App?
Yes. Optional 4-6 digit PIN in Settings. Protects local access — separate from server authentication.
How do I update the Desktop App?
Settings > Updates: select channel (Stable/Beta), check for updates, download, and install. Changelog available per version.
How do I configure governance policies?
Define a gitgov.toml file in your repository root. See Governance & Policies.
Organizations & Teams
How do I create an organization?
Admin creates an org through the Desktop App's Settings panel. All data (events, members, keys, integrations) is scoped to this org.
How do I add developers to my organization?
Two methods:
- Direct provisioning — Admin enters login, email, and role. Member created immediately.
- Invitation — Admin generates a token with role and expiry. Developer accepts in the Desktop App, which creates their account and issues an API key automatically.
What roles are available?
| Role | Access |
|---|---|
| Admin | Full: events, stats, dashboard, integrations, team management, API keys, policies |
| Developer | Own events only |
| Architect | Same as Developer (reserved for future granular permissions) |
| PM | Same as Developer (reserved for future reporting access) |
Can I disable a team member without deleting them?
Yes. Set status to disabled. API keys stop working immediately. Historical data preserved.
How do invitation tokens work?
Generated by admins, hashed (SHA-256) before storage, with configurable expiration. Once accepted, consumed and non-reusable. Admins can resend or revoke pending invitations.
How do I manage API keys for my team?
Settings > API Keys: list, create (with role), revoke (immediate), or issue for a specific member. Plaintext shown once only.
Dashboard & Analytics
What does the Admin Dashboard show?
- Metrics Grid — Total events, success rate, active repos, pushes, blocked events, active developers.
- Pipeline Health — Jenkins 7-day build metrics: total, success rate, failures, average duration.
- Daily Activity — Commit/push trends (14 days).
- Ticket Coverage — Percentage of commits linked to Jira tickets.
- Event Breakdown — Distribution by type/status, commits without tickets, tickets without commits.
- Recent Commits Table — Paginated events with CI badges, PR badges, Jira ticket links.
- Governance Chat — Integrated AI assistant.
How often does the Dashboard refresh?
Every 30 seconds by default. Toggle on/off available.
What do the CI badges mean?
- Green — Pipeline passed.
- Red — Pipeline failed.
- Yellow — Unstable/aborted.
- No badge — No Jenkins correlation found.
What do the ticket badges mean?
Jira ticket references detected in branch names or commit metadata (e.g., PROJ-123). Click to see ticket detail: status, assignee, related branches/commits/PRs.
What does a Developer see?
Their own commits/pushes and an option to accept org invitations. No org-wide stats or team management.
What timezone does the Dashboard use?
Stored in UTC. Display timezone configurable in Settings (12 IANA zones). Display-only — underlying data stays UTC.
Governance Chat (AI Assistant)
What can I ask the chat?
- Analytics: "Who pushed to main without a ticket this week?", "How many commits did alice make?"
- Configuration: "How do I set up Jenkins?", "How do I configure branch protection?"
- Troubleshooting: "Why am I getting 401?", "Why is my dashboard empty?"
- Product: "What integrations exist?", "What roles are available?"
Does the chat access my source code?
No. Only event metadata and product knowledge. Never source code, diffs, or file contents.
What if the chat doesn't know the answer?
It indicates insufficient data or offers to register a feature request for the product team.
Control Plane & Server
What is the Control Plane?
The central Axum (Rust) server — receives events, processes webhooks, runs policy checks, serves the dashboard.
Can I self-host the Control Plane?
Yes. Any server running Rust binaries + PostgreSQL. See Connect to the Control Plane.
What integrations are supported?
- GitHub — Push/branch webhooks, HMAC validation, audit log streaming.
- Jenkins — Pipeline ingestion, commit-pipeline correlation, health widget, policy advisory.
- Jira — Ticket ingestion, batch correlation, coverage reports, ticket detail.
What happens if the server goes down?
Desktop clients keep working. Events queue locally and sync when the server returns.
How does rate limiting work?
Configurable per endpoint. Defaults: 240 req/min (events), 60 req/min (admin), 120 req/min (Jenkins/Jira). 429 response = increase limits via environment variables.
Compliance
Does GitGov help with SOC 2?
Yes. Append-only audit trails, RBAC, immutable records, export capabilities — key SOC 2 Type II controls.
Does GitGov help with GDPR?
Yes. Data minimization, right of access, portability (export), right to erasure, controller/processor distinction. See Privacy & Signal Liability.
Does GitGov help with ISO 27001?
Yes. Append-only audit trail, RBAC, encrypted storage, exports support Annex A controls.
What is a "signal"?
An automated flag for a potential policy deviation (e.g., unauthorized push to protected branch, commit without ticket). Advisory only — requires human review. See Privacy & Signal Liability.
Can I review and dismiss signals?
Yes. Admins confirm, escalate, or dismiss. Every decision logged with actor, reason, and timestamp.
Related
- Security Policy — Encryption, storage, access controls.
- Privacy & Signal Liability — Legal boundaries and GDPR.
- Privacy Policy — Legal terms for end-users.
- Introduction — Getting started with GitGov.