Git Cheat Sheet · Submodules and LFS

Fetch LFS files

Q: Why does git lfs pull do nothing?

Git LFS may not be installed or enabled: run git lfs install, then try again.

git lfs pull

If images or binaries are only a few bytes and contain the text "version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec", they are Git LFS pointers. git lfs pull downloads their real content for the current revision.

By Julien Dudek, author of Merathon · published on 4 November 2026

What it does

Downloads the real content of the LFS files of the current revision.

A use case

After a clone, your images are only a few bytes: they are still pointers.

On the command line

git lfs pull: Downloads and puts in place the LFS files of the current revision.
git lfs pull --include="assets/*": Only some of the files.
git lfs fetch --all: Downloads the LFS files of all revisions, without putting them in place.
GIT_LFS_SKIP_SMUDGE=1 git clone <url>: Clones without downloading LFS files.

In Merathon

"LFS" section, right-click a pattern → "Fetch LFS files".

Frequently asked questions

Why does git lfs pull do nothing?

Git LFS may not be installed or enabled: run git lfs install, then try again.