Git.io: GitHub URL Shortener
Do you have a GitHub URL you’d like to shorten? Use Git.io! $ curl -i https://git.io -F “url=https://github.com/…” HTTP/1.1 201 Created Location: https://git.io/abc123 $ curl -i https://git.io/abc123 HTTP/1.1 302 Found…
Do you have a GitHub URL you’d like to shorten? Use Git.io!
$ curl -i https://git.io -F "url=https://github.com/..."
HTTP/1.1 201 Created
Location: https://git.io/abc123
$ curl -i https://git.io/abc123
HTTP/1.1 302 Found
Location: https://github.com/...
You can specify your own code to setup your own vanity URL:
$ curl -i https://git.io -F "url=https://github.com/technoweenie"
-F "code=t"
HTTP/1.1 201 Created
Location: https://git.io/t
You can currently see Git.io in action on certain 3rd party services, such as Campfire.

The Code
Git.io was written and deployed by myself and @atmos as a big experiment. Our goals:
- Use Riak.
- Deploy on Rackspace Cloud.
You can assemble your own with Guillotine, the URL shortening hobby kit. It’s written in Ruby as a Sinatra app, and supports storing links in Riak or a relational DB.
Though a URL shortener is about the easiest project one could take on, it gave us a chance to experiment. As a result, I’ve been able to spread my excitement about Riak to more people at GitHub. The Riak 1.0 upgrade gave us a chance to experiment with a rolling upgrade across our cluster (for the new version, and the new leveldb backend). We also have better support with our Hubot and puppet scripts for managing deployments through Rackspace Cloud.
Tags:
Written by
Related posts
The ultimate gift guide for the developer in your life
Finding the perfect gift for your favorite developer is easy with our top tips.
Why developers still flock to Python: Guido van Rossum on readability, AI, and the future of programming
Discover how Python changed developer culture—and see why it keeps evolving.
Developers still need the right to challenge junk patents
Calling on developers, startups, and open source organizations to advocate against patent rules that would make it harder to challenge bad patents by the December 2 deadline.