Create and use repository templates

Repository templates enable you to create a new repository using an existing one that is marked is_template. This only copies repository contents without copying the commit history.

To access the new API, you must provide a custom media type in the Accept header:

application/vnd.github.baptiste-preview+json

The following new endpoint is available for you to generate a new repository from a template repository:

• Create a repository using a template

In addition, you can make your repository available as a template when you Create a repository for the authenticated user or Update a repository. You can also Get a repository a repository's information to see if the repository is available to use as a template (is_template key is true) or was generated from a template_repository. For more information, see the Repositories API.

During the preview period, we may change aspects of these APIs based on developer feedback. If we do, we will announce the changes here on the developer blog, but we will not provide any advance notice.

If you have any questions or feedback, please let us know!