Hey there, let's tackle your three core questions first, then fix the sync issue you're facing with your current setup.

1. Can I sync two Perforce directories to different Git branches simultaneously? #

Absolutely, but your current configuration has a critical mistake in how you're mapping Perforce paths to Git branches. The git-p4.branchList setting needs explicit mappings between your Perforce depot paths and their target Git branches—not just shorthand names like Rel1:Rel2.

Fix for your setup: #

First, update your Perforce client spec to explicitly include both target paths (avoid broad //depot/... which confuses branch detection):

//depot/Rel1/cla/... //myws/Rel1/cla/...
//depot/Rel2/cla/... //myws/Rel2/cla/...

Then reconfigure your Git-p4 settings with the correct branch mappings:

git init
git config git-p4.useClientSpec true
git config git-p4.client myws
git config git-p4.branchUser myusername
# Map Perforce paths directly to Git branches
git config git-p4.branchList //depot/Rel1/cla:master,//depot/Rel2/cla:branch1

Now run the sync with branch detection:

git p4 sync --detect-branches --verbose

This will create remote branches remotes/p4/master and remotes/p4/branch1. To pull them into local branches:

git checkout -b master remotes/p4/master
git checkout -b branch1 remotes/p4/branch1

2. Can I sync based on Perforce tags instead of version directories? #

Yes, git-p4 supports syncing from Perforce tags. Here's how to do it:

Option 1: Sync a tag to an existing Git branch #

First, get the revision number associated with your Perforce tag:

p4 label -o Rel1_v1.0 | grep Revision
# Output example: Revision: 1998133

Then sync that specific revision to your target Git branch:

git p4 sync //depot/Rel1/cla@1998133 --branch master

Option 2: Import Perforce tags as Git tags #

If you want to mirror Perforce tags directly in Git, use:

git p4 tag //depot/tags/Rel1_v1.0

This will create a Git tag matching the Perforce tag's name and content.

3. Can I sync only incremental changes weekly? #

100%—git-p4 automatically tracks the last synced Perforce change number in your Git config (under git-p4.lastChange). For weekly incremental syncs, you just need to run:

git p4 sync --detect-branches

It will only pull changes made since your last sync, no full re-scans required.

Why your original setup failed: #

• Incorrect branchList: Your Rel1:Rel2 mapping didn't tell git-p4 which Git branches to map to which Perforce paths.
• Overly broad client spec: Using //depot/... made git-p4 process every file in your depot, causing the infinite runtime.
• Manual changes file: Generating a combined changes list for both branches confused git-p4's branch detection logic, leading it to ignore Rel2 entirely.

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者DevOops