gitignore settings included in commit

Question

I'm trying to commit the right files in git, but having problems configuring my gitignore properly. I followed the instructions here to create the gitignore file (django project):

# File types #
##############
*.pyc
*.swo
*.swp
*.swn

# Directories #
###############
logs/

# Specific files #
##################
projectname/settings.py

# OS generated files #
######################
.DS_Store
ehthumbs.db
Icon
Thumbs.db
*~

The problem is that settings.py is getting included in the commit:

Admin$ git add .
Admin$ git status
# On branch master
# Changes to be committed:
#   (use "git reset HEAD <file>..." to unstage)
#
#   modified:   projectname/settings.py

How can I ignore settings in my gitignore?

Answer 1

It looks like you already have settings.py under version control by git. In this case git will continue to track the file - no matter what you write in .gitignore.

You have to explicitly tell git to forget about settings.py:

1. Add it to .gitignore (As you did)
2. Remove the file from git without deleting the file: git rm --cached projectname/settings.py
3. Commit the change: git commit -m "remove settings.py"

Afterwards git will ignore the file. But be aware that versions which are already commited will stay in your repository.