> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://zerv.wisl.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

> ## Agent Instructions
> zerv is a CLI tool that generates version strings from Git state. It is not a service or platform.
> Examples on this site are backed by integration tests; copy them verbatim.
> Flag names are exact: use --output-template, and --dirty takes no value.

# VCS not found: Not in a git repository

> zerv error: VCS not found: Not in a git repository. zerv ran outside a repo. Run inside it, point -C at it, or skip VCS with --source none.

```
Error: VCS not found: Not in a git repository (--source git)
```

zerv could not find a Git repository at — or above — the working directory. It walks parent
directories looking for a repository, and this error means the walk came up empty.

## Reproduce

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
zerv version --source git
# Error: VCS not found: Not in a git repository (--source git)
```

## Fix

* **Run from inside the repository**, or point at it: `zerv version -C /path/to/repo`
* **Versioning something that is not a repo** (a plain artifact, a manual value)? Skip VCS
  entirely:

```bash theme={"theme":{"light":"github-light","dark":"github-dark"}}
zerv version --source none --tag-version 1.2.3 --distance 5
```

Not this error? Every fix lives on [zerv errors and troubleshooting](/troubleshooting).