When attempting to clone a repository across my local network between Ubuntu machines, I encountered persistent "does not appear to be a git repository" errors, despite:

• Successful ping and network access
• Working Windows SMB access (using //192.168.100.18/repo/intranet.git)
• Multiple protocol attempts (file://, smb://, raw paths)

Ubuntu's default Git installation doesn't automatically handle Windows-style SMB paths like //server/share. The key issues:

# These WON'T work directly in Ubuntu:
git clone //192.168.100.18/repo/repository.git
git clone smb://pc-name/repo/repository.git

Method 1: Mount the Share First

The most reliable approach is mounting the network share before Git operations:

# Create mount point
sudo mkdir /mnt/git_repo

# Mount with credentials
sudo mount -t cifs //192.168.100.18/repo /mnt/git_repo -o username=user,password=pass

# Now clone normally
git clone /mnt/git_repo/repository.git

Method 2: Use Proper file:// Protocol Syntax

The correct file:// format requires mounted paths:

# If mounted at /media/share
git clone file:///media/share/repo/repository.git

Note: Triple slashes (file:///) are correct for local paths after mount.

Method 3: SSH Alternative (Recommended)

For frequent access, setup SSH on the remote machine:

git clone user@192.168.100.18:/path/to/repo.git

• Permissions: Ensure the mounted share has execute permissions (chmod +x)
• Credential caching: Use git config --global credential.helper store
• Protocol verification: Test with git ls-remote file:///mounted/path before cloning

Here's a tested sequence that works reliably:

# Install CIFS utils if needed
sudo apt install cifs-utils

# Create credentials file
echo "username=myuser" > ~/.smbcredentials
echo "password=mypass" >> ~/.smbcredentials
chmod 600 ~/.smbcredentials

# Add to fstab for persistence
echo "//192.168.100.18/repo /mnt/git_repo cifs credentials=/home/user/.smbcredentials,uid=1000 0 0" | sudo tee -a /etc/fstab

# Mount and clone
sudo mount -a
git clone /mnt/git_repo/repository.git

This approach handles authentication, mounting, and Git operations in a maintainable way.

---

When attempting to clone repositories across a local network in Ubuntu, several factors come into play that differ from Windows environments. The core requirements are:

• Proper fileshare mounting
• Correct protocol specification
• Authentication handling
• Repository path formatting

The error messages you're seeing typically indicate one of these underlying issues:

# Classic symptoms:
fatal: '//path/repo.git' does not appear to be a git repository
fatal: The remote end hung up unexpectedly

Before using git commands, ensure proper fileshare mounting:

sudo mkdir -p /mnt/git-share
sudo mount -t cifs //192.168.100.18/repo /mnt/git-share -o username=youruser,password=yourpass,uid=$(id -u),gid=$(id -g)

Try these alternative cloning methods after mounting:

# Using direct filesystem path
git clone /mnt/git-share/repository.git

# Using SSH (if configured)
git clone ssh://user@192.168.100.18/repo/repository.git

# Using git protocol with proper escaping
git clone file://192.168.100.18/repo/repository.git

For password-protected shares, consider these approaches:

# Store credentials in .netrc
machine 192.168.100.18
login yourusername
password yourpassword

# Or use credential helper
git config --global credential.helper store

The key differences in path interpretation:

• Windows accepts forward and backward slashes
• Ubuntu requires proper URI encoding
• Network paths need proper protocol prefix

For frequent network access, consider running git daemon:

# On the host machine:
git daemon --base-path=/repo --export-all --enable=receive-pack

Before concluding the repository is inaccessible:

# Check basic connectivity
smbclient -L //192.168.100.18 -U username

# Verify git repository integrity
git fsck --full