How to fix error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object in Git

What this error means

The "Server does not allow request for unadvertised object" error indicates that Git is trying to fetch a specific commit by its SHA hash directly, but the remote server refuses this request. Git servers maintain a list of "advertised" references (branches and tags) that clients can fetch. By default, most Git servers including GitHub and GitLab do not allow fetching arbitrary commits by their hash - only commits reachable from advertised refs. This restriction exists for security and performance reasons. Allowing direct object fetches could expose commits that were force-pushed away or exist in private forks. The error most commonly occurs in these scenarios: 1. **Submodule commit not pushed**: You updated a submodule, pushed the parent repository, but forgot to push the submodule itself. The parent references a commit that doesn't exist on the submodule's remote. 2. **Squash merge removed the commit**: When a pull request is squash-merged, the original commits are replaced with a single squash commit. If a submodule referenced one of those original commits, that reference becomes invalid. 3. **Shallow clone limitations**: When cloning with `--depth`, only recent commits are fetched. Submodules referencing older commits will fail to fetch. 4. **Force push removed the commit**: If someone force-pushed to the submodule repository, commits may have been removed from the remote.

Typical symptoms

• git submodule update --init fails with 'unadvertised object' error
• git clone --recursive fails when initializing submodules
• CI/CD pipeline fails during submodule checkout
• Error includes a specific commit SHA that cannot be fetched
• Fresh clone fails but existing clone works fine
• Error occurs after merging a pull request with squash
• Submodule works on author's machine but fails for others
• Error appears after someone force-pushed to the submodule repository

Common causes

1. Submodule commit was never pushed to the remote repository
2. Pull request was squash-merged, removing the referenced commit
3. Repository was cloned with --depth (shallow clone) missing older commits
4. Submodule URL changed but .gitmodules wasn't synced
5. Force push removed the referenced commit from the remote
6. Git server has uploadpack.allowReachableSHA1InWant disabled (default)
7. Submodule points to a commit in a private fork or deleted branch
8. Using --shallow-submodules with commits not at branch tips

How to fix "error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object"

# Sync submodule URLs from .gitmodules to .git/config
git submodule sync

# Update submodules recursively
git submodule update --init --recursive

# Force update using remote branch instead of recorded commit
git submodule update --force --recursive --init --remote

git add .
git commit -m "Update submodule to latest"

# Go to the submodule directory
cd path/to/submodule

# Check the current state
git status
git log --oneline -5

# Push the submodule
git push origin HEAD

# Return to parent repo
cd ..

# Now update should work
git submodule update --init --recursive

# Check submodules before push (fails if unpushed)
git push --recurse-submodules=check

# Automatically push submodules first
git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand

# Check if repository is shallow
git rev-parse --is-shallow-repository
# Returns "true" if shallow

# Fetch complete history
git fetch --unshallow

# Then update submodules
git submodule update --init --recursive

- uses: actions/checkout@v4
  with:
    fetch-depth: 0  # Fetch all history
    submodules: recursive

variables:
  GIT_DEPTH: 0
  GIT_SUBMODULE_STRATEGY: recursive

# Go to the submodule
cd path/to/submodule

# Find a valid commit (check the default branch)
git fetch origin
git log origin/main --oneline -10

# Checkout a valid commit
git checkout origin/main

# Go back to parent and update the reference
cd ..
git add path/to/submodule
git commit -m "Update submodule to valid commit after squash merge"

# Remove the submodule
git submodule deinit -f path/to/submodule
rm -rf .git/modules/path/to/submodule
git rm -f path/to/submodule

# Re-add the submodule
git submodule add <repository-url> path/to/submodule

# Initialize and update
git submodule update --init --recursive

# Commit the change
git add .
git commit -m "Re-add submodule with valid reference"

# On the Git server, enable SHA fetching
git config uploadpack.allowReachableSHA1InWant true

# Or allow any SHA (less restrictive)
git config uploadpack.allowAnySHA1InWant true

# For hidden refs as well
git config uploadpack.allowTipSHA1InWant true

Advanced notes

git push --recurse-submodules=on-demand

git config -f .gitmodules submodule.path.branch main
   git submodule update --remote

# GitHub Actions
- uses: actions/checkout@v4
  with:
    fetch-depth: 0
    submodules: recursive

# If submodules still fail, add explicit sync
- run: |
    git submodule sync --recursive
    git submodule update --init --recursive --force

# Show submodule status
git submodule status --recursive

# Check what commit is expected
cat .gitmodules
git ls-tree HEAD path/to/submodule

# Verify if commit exists on remote
cd path/to/submodule
git fetch origin
git cat-file -t <commit-sha>  # Should output "commit"
git branch -r --contains <commit-sha>  # Should list branches

Frequently asked questions

What does "error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object" mean?

The "Server does not allow request for unadvertised object" error indicates that Git is trying to fetch a specific commit by its SHA hash directly, but the remote server refuses this request. Git servers maintain a list of "advertised" references (branches and tags) that clients can fetch. By default, most Git servers including GitHub and GitLab do not allow fetching arbitrary commits by their hash - only commits reachable from advertised refs.

How do I fix "error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object"?

This Git error occurs when trying to fetch a specific commit by its SHA hash, but the Git server is configured to only allow fetching advertised references like branches and tags. This commonly happens with submodules pointing to commits that don't exist on the remote or were removed during squash merges.

What causes "error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object"?

Submodule commit was never pushed to the remote repository Pull request was squash-merged, removing the referenced commit Repository was cloned with --depth (shallow clone) missing older commits

Is the "error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object" error serious?

It is a medium-severity error — more of a blocker than a risk. The steps above resolve it.

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Official resources & further reading

• 📚Git Official Documentation
• 💬
  Stack Overflow - How to solve git error: Server does not allow request for unadvertised object(Stack Overflow)
• 💬
  Super User - What does the git error message mean(Stack Overflow)
• 💬
  Stack Overflow - Server does not allow request for unadvertised object(Stack Overflow)
• 🐙
  GitHub - submodule update --init error(GitHub)
• 📖
  DeployHQ - Direct fetching of commit failed(Official Docs)
• 📖
  Git Docs - git-submodule(Official Docs)