diff --git a/_common/git-tag.js b/_common/git-tag.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7c63b0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/_common/git-tag.js
@@ -0,0 +1,145 @@
+'use strict';
+
+require('dotenv').config({ path: '.env' });
+if (!process.env.REPO_BASE_DIR) {
+  // for stderr
+  console.error('[Warn] REPO_BASE_DIR= not set, using ./repos/');
+}
+// ../ because this script is one directory deep
+let repoBaseDir = process.env.REPO_BASE_DIR || '../repos';
+
+var Crypto = require('crypto');
+var util = require('util');
+var exec = util.promisify(require('child_process').exec);
+var Fs = require('node:fs/promises');
+
+var Repos = {};
+
+Repos.clone = async function (gitUrl, repoPath) {
+  let uuid = Crypto.randomUUID();
+  let tmpPath = `${repoPath}.${uuid}.tmp`;
+  await exec(`git clone --bare --filter=tree:0 ${gitUrl} ${tmpPath}`);
+  await Fs.rename(tmpPath, repoPath);
+};
+
+Repos.checkExists = async function (repoPath) {
+  let err = await Fs.access(repoPath).catch(Object);
+  if (!err) {
+    return true;
+  }
+
+  if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+    throw err;
+  }
+  return false;
+};
+
+Repos.getTags = async function (repoPath) {
+  var { stdout } = await exec(`git --git-dir=${repoPath} tag`);
+  var rawTags = stdout.trim().split('\n');
+
+  let tags = [];
+  for (let tag of rawTags) {
+    // ex: v1, v2, v1.1, 1.1.0-rc
+    let maybeVersionRe = /^(v\d+|v?\d+\.\d+)/;
+    let maybeVersion = maybeVersionRe.test(tag);
+    if (maybeVersion) {
+      tags.push(tag);
+    }
+
+    // TODO date versions
+    // let maybeVersionDate = /^v?\d{4}[._-]\d{2}[._-]\d{2}[._-]\D/.test(tag);
+  }
+
+  tags = tags.reverse();
+  return tags;
+};
+
+Repos.getCommitInfo = async function (repoPath, commitish) {
+  var { stdout } = await exec(
+    `git --git-dir=${repoPath} log -1 --format="%h %H %ad %cd" --date=iso-strict ${commitish}`,
+  );
+  stdout = stdout.trim();
+  var commitParts = stdout.split(/\s+/g);
+  return {
+    commit_id: `${commitParts[0]}`,
+    commit: `${commitParts[1]}`,
+    date: commitParts[2],
+    date_authored: commitParts[3],
+  };
+};
+
+/**
+ * Lists GitHub Releases (w/ uploaded assets)
+ *
+ * @param request
+ * @param {string} owner
+ * @param {string} gitUrl
+ * @returns {PromiseLike<any> | Promise<any>}
+ */
+async function getAllReleases(gitUrl) {
+  let all = {
+    releases: [],
+    download: '',
+  };
+
+  let repoName = gitUrl.split('/').pop();
+  repoName = repoName.replace(/\.git$/, '');
+
+  let repoPath = `${repoBaseDir}/${repoName}.git`;
+
+  let isCloned = await Repos.checkExists(repoPath);
+  if (!isCloned) {
+    await Repos.clone(gitUrl, repoPath);
+  }
+
+  let releases = [];
+  let tags = await Repos.getTags(repoPath);
+  for (let tag of tags) {
+    let commitInfo = await Repos.getCommitInfo(repoPath, tag);
+    let date = new Date(commitInfo.date);
+    let version = tag.replace(/^v/, '');
+
+    let rel = {
+      name: `${repoName}-v${version}`,
+      version: tag,
+      git_tag: tag,
+      git_commit_hash: commitInfo.commit_id,
+      //git_long_commit_hash: commitInfo.commit,
+      lts: false,
+      channel: '',
+      date: date.toISOString(),
+      os: '*',
+      arch: '*',
+      ext: 'git',
+      //command: `git clone --depth=1 --single-branch --branch ${tag} ${gitUrl}`,
+      download: gitUrl,
+    };
+
+    releases.push(rel);
+  }
+  all.releases = releases;
+
+  return all;
+}
+
+module.exports = getAllReleases;
+
+if (module === require.main) {
+  (async function main() {
+    let all = await getAllReleases('https://github.com/dense-analysis/ale.git');
+    // for stderr
+    let sample = JSON.stringify(all.releases[0], null, 2);
+    console.error('Sample:');
+    console.error(sample);
+
+    all = require('../_webi/normalize.js')(all);
+    console.info(JSON.stringify(all, null, 2));
+  })()
+    .then(function () {
+      process.exit(0);
+    })
+    .catch(function (err) {
+      console.error(err);
+    });
+}
diff --git a/_common/git.js b/_common/git.js
deleted file mode 100644
index ba47464..0000000
--- a/_common/git.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,97 +0,0 @@
-'use strict';
-
-require('dotenv').config({ path: '.env' });
-if (!process.env.REPO_BASE_DIR) {
-  console.warn('[Warn] REPO_BASE_DIR= not set, using ./repos/');
-}
-// ../ because this script is one directory deep
-let repoBaseDir = process.env.REPO_BASE_DIR || '../repos';
-
-const util = require('util');
-const exec = util.promisify(require('child_process').exec);
-const fs = require('fs').promises;
-
-/**
- * Lists GitHub Releases (w/ uploaded assets)
- *
- * @param request
- * @param {string} owner
- * @param {string} gitUrl
- * @returns {PromiseLike<any> | Promise<any>}
- */
-async function getAllReleases(gitUrl) {
-  const all = {
-    releases: [],
-    download: ''
-  };
-
-  const repoName = gitUrl.split('/').pop();
-  const repoPath = `${repoBaseDir}/${repoName}`;
-
-  // Function to clone the repository if it doesn't exist
-  async function cloneRepository() {
-    if (!(await repoExists())) {
-      await exec(`git clone --bare ${gitUrl} ${repoPath}`);
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Function to check if the repository already exists
-  async function repoExists() {
-    try {
-      await fs.access(repoPath);
-      return true;
-    } catch (error) {
-      return false;
-    }
-  }
-
-  // Function to list all version tags
-  async function listVersionTags() {
-    await cloneRepository();
-    const { stdout } = await exec(`git --git-dir=${repoPath} tag`);
-    const tags = stdout.trim().split('\n');
-    return tags;
-  }
-
-  // Function to create an array of release info objects
-  async function createReleaseInfo() {
-    const tags = await listVersionTags();
-    const releaseInfo = [];
-
-    for (const tag of tags) {
-      const { stdout: tagDate } = await exec(
-        `git --git-dir=${repoPath} log -1 --format=%ad --date=iso ${tag}`
-      );
-      const tagObject = {
-        name: `${repoName}-v${tag}`,
-        version: tag,
-        date: tagDate.trim(),
-        ext: 'git',
-        command: `git clone --depth=1 --single-branch --branch ${tag} ${gitUrl}`
-      };
-      releaseInfo.push(tagObject);
-    }
-
-    return releaseInfo;
-  }
-
-  all.releases = await createReleaseInfo();
-
-  return all;
-}
-module.exports = getAllReleases;
-
-if (module === require.main) {
-  (async function main() {
-    let all = await getAllReleases('https://github.com/jshint/jshint');
-    console.log(all.releases[0]);
-    all = require('../_webi/normalize.js')(all);
-    console.info(JSON.stringify(all, null, 2));
-  })()
-    .then(function () {
-      process.exit(0);
-    })
-    .catch(function (err) {
-      console.error(err);
-    });
-}
diff --git a/_webi/normalize.js b/_webi/normalize.js
index a81d296..1f7e912 100644
--- a/_webi/normalize.js
+++ b/_webi/normalize.js
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@ Object.keys(osMap).forEach(function (name) {
   maps.oses[name] = true;
 });
 
-var formats = ['zip', 'xz', 'tar', 'pkg', 'msi', 'git', 'exe', 'dmg'];
+var formats = ['zip', 'xz', 'tar', 'pkg', 'msi', 'git', 'exe', 'dmg', 'git'];
 formats.forEach(function (name) {
   maps.formats[name] = true;
 });
diff --git a/_webi/releases.js b/_webi/releases.js
index 5468b9f..684b765 100644
--- a/_webi/releases.js
+++ b/_webi/releases.js
@@ -114,6 +114,10 @@ Releases.renderBash = async function (
               .replace(/^\s*#?WEBI_MINOR=.*/m, 'WEBI_MINOR=' + v.minor)
               .replace(/^\s*#?WEBI_PATCH=.*/m, 'WEBI_PATCH=' + v.patch)
               .replace(/^\s*#?WEBI_BUILD=.*/m, 'WEBI_BUILD=' + v.build)
+              .replace(
+                /^\s*#?WEBI_GIT_TAG=.*/m,
+                "WEBI_GIT_TAG='" + rel.git_tag + "'",
+              )
               .replace(/^\s*#?WEBI_LTS=.*/m, 'WEBI_LTS=' + rel.lts)
               .replace(/^\s*#?WEBI_CHANNEL=.*/m, 'WEBI_CHANNEL=' + rel.channel)
               .replace(
@@ -187,32 +191,44 @@ Releases.renderPowerShell = async function (
         .readFile(path.join(__dirname, 'template.ps1'), 'utf8')
         .then(function (tplTxt) {
           var pkgver = pkg + '@' + ver;
-          return tplTxt
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_HOST\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:WEBI_HOST = '" + baseurl + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:WEBI_PKG = '" + pkgver + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:PKG_NAME\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:PKG_NAME = '" + pkg + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_VERSION\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:WEBI_VERSION = '" + rel.version + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG_URL\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:WEBI_PKG_URL = '" + rel.download + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(
-              /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG_FILE\s*=.*/im,
-              "$Env:WEBI_PKG_FILE = '" + rel.name + "'",
-            )
-            .replace(reInstallTpl, '\n' + installTxt);
+          return (
+            tplTxt
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_HOST\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_HOST = '" + baseurl + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_PKG = '" + pkgver + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:PKG_NAME\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:PKG_NAME = '" + pkg + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_VERSION\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_VERSION = '" + rel.version + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_GIT_TAG\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_GIT_TAG = '" + rel.git_tag + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG_URL\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_PKG_URL = '" + rel.download + "'",
+              )
+              // TODO replace WEBI_PKG_FILE (which is sometimes a dir)
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG_PATHNAME\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_PKG_PATHNAME = '" + rel.name + "'",
+              )
+              // TODO deprecate
+              .replace(
+                /^(#)?\$Env:WEBI_PKG_FILE\s*=.*/im,
+                "$Env:WEBI_PKG_FILE = '" + rel.name + "'",
+              )
+              .replace(reInstallTpl, '\n' + installTxt)
+          );
         });
     });
 };
diff --git a/_webi/template.sh b/_webi/template.sh
index 0b4f713..1cc7327 100644
--- a/_webi/template.sh
+++ b/_webi/template.sh
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ __bootstrap_webi() {
     #WEBI_PATCH=
     # TODO not sure if BUILD is the best name for this
     #WEBI_BUILD=
+    #WEBI_GIT_TAG=
     #WEBI_LTS=
     #WEBI_CHANNEL=
     #WEBI_EXT=
@@ -248,6 +249,32 @@ __bootstrap_webi() {
         echo "Saved as ${my_dl_rel}"
     }
 
+    webi_git_clone() { (
+        my_url="${1}"
+        my_dl="${2}"
+
+        my_dl_rel="$(
+            webi_sub_home "${my_dl}"
+        )"
+        if [ -e "${my_dl}" ]; then
+            echo "Found ${my_dl_rel}"
+
+            cp -RPp "${my_dl}" "${WEBI_TMP}/${WEBI_PKG_FILE}/"
+            return 0
+        fi
+
+        echo "Cloning ${my_url}"
+        cmd_git="git clone --config advice.detachedHead=false --quiet --depth=1 --single-branch"
+        rm -rf "${my_dl}.part"
+        if ! $cmd_git "${my_url}" --branch "${WEBI_GIT_TAG}" "${my_dl}.part"; then
+            echo >&2 "failed to git clone ${WEBI_PKG_URL}"
+            exit 1
+        fi
+        mv "${my_dl}.part" "${my_dl}"
+
+        cp -RPp "${my_dl}" "${WEBI_TMP}/${WEBI_PKG_FILE}/"
+    ); }
+
     # detect which archives can be used
     webi_extract() {
         (
@@ -265,6 +292,9 @@ __bootstrap_webi() {
             elif [ "exe" = "$WEBI_EXT" ]; then
                 echo "Moving ${my_dl_rel}"
                 mv "${WEBI_PKG_PATH}/$WEBI_PKG_FILE" .
+            elif [ "git" = "$WEBI_EXT" ]; then
+                echo "Moving ${my_dl_rel}"
+                mv "${WEBI_PKG_PATH}/$WEBI_PKG_FILE" .
             elif [ "xz" = "$WEBI_EXT" ]; then
                 echo "Inflating ${my_dl_rel}"
                 unxz -c "${WEBI_PKG_PATH}/$WEBI_PKG_FILE" > "$(basename "$WEBI_PKG_FILE")"
@@ -456,6 +486,12 @@ __bootstrap_webi() {
     webi_pre_install() {
         webi_check_installed
         webi_check_available
+        if test "git" = "${WEBI_EXT}"; then
+            webi_git_clone \
+                "${WEBI_PKG_URL}" \
+                "${WEBI_PKG_PATH}/${WEBI_PKG_FILE}"
+            return 0
+        fi
         webi_download \
             "${WEBI_PKG_URL}" \
             "${WEBI_PKG_PATH}/${WEBI_PKG_FILE}"
diff --git a/_webi/transform-releases.js b/_webi/transform-releases.js
index 590ef16..2870a15 100644
--- a/_webi/transform-releases.js
+++ b/_webi/transform-releases.js
@@ -182,14 +182,18 @@ async function filterReleases(
 
   function selectMatches(rel) {
     if (os) {
-      if (rel.os !== os) {
-        return false;
+      if (rel.os !== '*') {
+        if (rel.os !== os) {
+          return false;
+        }
       }
     }
 
     if (arch) {
-      if (rel.arch !== arch) {
-        return false;
+      if (rel.arch !== '*') {
+        if (rel.arch !== arch) {
+          return false;
+        }
       }
     }
 
diff --git a/_webi/webi-pwsh.ps1 b/_webi/webi-pwsh.ps1
index e0c965d..088699c 100644
--- a/_webi/webi-pwsh.ps1
+++ b/_webi/webi-pwsh.ps1
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ if ($exename -eq "-V" -or $exename -eq "--version" -or $exename -eq "version" -o
 
 # Fetch <whatever>.ps1
 # TODO detect formats
-$PKG_URL = "$Env:WEBI_HOST/api/installers/$exename.ps1?formats=zip,exe,tar"
+$PKG_URL = "$Env:WEBI_HOST/api/installers/$exename.ps1?formats=zip,exe,tar,git"
 Write-Output "Downloading $PKG_URL"
 # Invoke-WebRequest -UserAgent "Windows amd64" "$PKG_URL" -OutFile ".\.local\tmp\$exename.install.ps1"
 & curl.exe -fsSL -A "$Env:WEBI_UA" "$PKG_URL" -o .\.local\tmp\$exename.install.ps1