Absolutely, this setup is totally feasible—Gerrit’s flexible enough to be used purely as a code review tool without taking over your core Git workflow. Whether you want pre-merge or post-commit reviews, here’s how to pull it off:

核心思路 #

We’ll treat Gerrit as a review-only sidecar to your main Git server:

• Your existing Git repo stays the single source of truth (all pulls/pushes, permission management happen here)
• Gerrit mirrors your main repo to have the latest codebase for review context
• Developers push changes to Gerrit only for feedback (either before or after merging to your main repo)
• Once reviews are signed off, you merge changes directly in your main repo—Gerrit never handles the merge itself

分步配置 #

1. 初始化Gerrit并禁用不必要功能 #

First off, tweak Gerrit’s config to strip out non-review features like permission enforcement and auto-merging:

• Edit your Gerrit’s gerrit.config file (usually located in $GERRIT_SITE/etc/):

  [auth]
    type = DEVELOPMENT_BECOME_ANY_ACCOUNT  # Skips strict permission checks (great for teams; use LDAP/OAuth in production with global review access)
  [sendemail]
    enable = true  # Optional: Turn on email notifications for review requests/feedback
  [repository]
    defaultCloneSection = anonymous  # Let anyone clone Gerrit’s mirror repo for context
  [change]
    submitWholeTopic = false  # Disable Gerrit’s automatic commit submission
  [submit]
    mergeContent = false  # Prevent Gerrit from handling merge operations
  

• Restart Gerrit to apply these changes.

2. Sync Your Main Git Repo to Gerrit #

Gerrit needs a copy of your code to show diffs and context. Set up an automatic mirror sync:

• In Gerrit’s web UI, create a new project with the exact same name as your main repo.
• On your main Git server, add a remote pointing to Gerrit:

  git remote add gerrit ssh://<gerrit-user>@<gerrit-host>:<gerrit-port>/<repo-name>.git
  

• Set up a cron job or post-receive hook to push updates from your main repo to Gerrit automatically:

  # Example cron job (runs every 5 minutes to sync latest code)
  */5 * * * * cd /path/to/your/main/repo && git push gerrit --mirror
  

This ensures Gerrit always has the latest code from your main repo.

3. Configure Developer Workflows #

Developers will work directly with your main Git server, and only push to Gerrit when they need a review:

Option A: Pre-Commit Review (Feedback Before Merging)

• Developers clone from your main server:

  git clone ssh://<main-git-user>@<main-git-host>/<repo-name>.git
  

• They make changes, commit locally, then push the commit to Gerrit’s review reference:

  git push ssh://<gerrit-user>@<gerrit-host>:<gerrit-port>/<repo-name>.git HEAD:refs/for/main
  

  (Replace main with your target branch name)
• Gerrit will auto-create a review request. Once approved, developers push the commit directly to your main repo.

Option B: Post-Commit Review (Feedback After Merging)

If you prefer reviewing commits after they’re merged to your main repo:

• After pushing to your main repo, developers push the same commit to Gerrit’s review ref for post-hoc feedback:

  git push ssh://<gerrit-user>@<gerrit-host>:<gerrit-port>/<repo-name>.git <commit-hash>:refs/for/main
  

• Gerrit will flag the commit as already merged, but reviewers can still leave comments and approvals for audit purposes.

4. Lock Down Gerrit Repo Permissions (Optional) #

To prevent accidental pushes to Gerrit’s main branches (keeping your main repo as the only source of truth):

• In Gerrit’s web UI, go to Projects > Your Repo > Access
• Set permissions for refs/heads/* to No Access for all users
• Only grant access to refs/for/* (review references) for all team members

Quick Notes to Keep in Mind #

• Gerrit stays completely out of core repo operations: no merge conflict handling, no permission checks, no serving as your code’s source of truth.
• You get all Gerrit’s review features: inline comments, approval labels (like Code-Review +2), and full audit trails for feedback.
• If auto-sync feels overkill, developers can manually push the latest main branch to Gerrit whenever they need review context.

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者OkyDokyman