Github/Cygwin error: cygheap base mismatch detected

Question

Git has been giving me this error

    0 [main] sh (47116) C:\\Users\\Marcus\\AppData\\Local\\GitHub\\PortableGit_c7e0cbde92ba565cb218a521411d0e854079a28c\\us         


        

Answer 1

The shell from git-for-windows (based on msys2) is not meant to be run in Cygwin or a different install of msys2.

GitHub Desktop uses an old git-for-windows (2.5.3, Sept. 2015)

For a git bash session, you do not need Cygwin or GitHub Desktop.

Uncompress the latest git-for-windows azrchive you can find:

• PortableGit-2.7.0-64-bit.7z.exe => c:\prgs\git\PortableGit-2.7.0-64-bit

Then:

cd c:\prgs\git
mklink /J latest PortableGit-2.7.0-64-bit
set GIT_ROOT=c:\prgs\git\latest
set PATH=%PATH%;%GIT_ROOT%;%GIT_ROOT%\bin;%GIT_ROOT%\cmd;%GIT_ROOT%\us`\bin

You will then be able to type git-bash to launch a linux-based bash session.

Or, from a regular CMD shell session, you will have access to 200+ unix commands (curl, cat, xargs, ls, ...).
No need for Cygwin.