Convert CRLF to LF for Git and scripts

Problem

Windows CRLF and Unix LF line endings are both valid, but mixing them in code, scripts, configs, and logs creates noisy diffs and can break Linux execution. A shell script saved with CRLF may show /bin/bash^M errors even though the text looks normal.

When to use this

• Git shows a large diff even though the visible text barely changed.
• A shell script, Docker entrypoint, or CI script fails after being edited on Windows.
• A config, log, or copied text file has mixed CRLF and LF endings before import or automation.

Steps

1. Step 1

   Detect the current line ending mix

   Start with the line ending detector to count CRLF, LF, and CR endings. Mixed counts usually explain noisy diffs and cross-platform failures.

2. Step 2

   Choose the target ending

   Use LF for shell scripts, Linux/macOS tooling, Docker files, and most repositories. Use CRLF only when a Windows-specific target explicitly requires it.

3. Step 3

   Convert CRLF to LF

   Run the CRLF/LF converter and normalize the whole file to the chosen style instead of replacing only the first visible issue.

4. Step 4

   Check BOM if the first line still fails

   If a script still fails at the first line after LF conversion, inspect and remove a BOM because BOM and CRLF often appear together in Windows-created files.

5. Step 5

   Commit with a repository policy

   After conversion, add or verify .gitattributes and editor settings so future commits keep the same line ending policy.

Example

#!/bin/bash\r\necho "deploy"\r\n
Error: /bin/bash^M: bad interpreter

#!/bin/bash\necho "deploy"\n
Action: convert CRLF to LF, then commit the normalized script.

Common mistakes

FAQ