Repo Starter: Templates for Bitbucket

Repo Starter: documentation and support

Questions, bugs or ideas: email support@dkartashev.dev. We reply within 2 business days.

Install

Open the installation link as a Bitbucket workspace admin, choose your workspace and approve the permissions. The workspace must belong to an Atlassian organization, which is how Bitbucket installs Forge apps.

Quick start

Mark a template. In the repository you want to use as a template, open Repository settings → Forge Apps → Repository template. Give it a name and description, tick any extra branches to create (for example develop), choose whether to copy the repository details and Pipelines settings, and click Mark as template. You need to be an admin of that repository.
Create a repository from it. In the workspace sidebar, open Apps → New repository from template. Pick the template, a project and a name, and choose whether it’s private. The page shows what will be copied before you click Create repository.
Finish the listed steps. The report links straight to the new repository’s webhook and variable settings for anything Bitbucket doesn’t let apps copy.

Already created the repository with Bitbucket’s own Create repository button? Leave it empty, open its Repository settings → Forge Apps → Repository template, and use Apply a template.

Workspace admins can see every template under Workspace settings → Forge Apps → Repository templates.

What gets copied

From the template	In the new repository
Files on the main branch	All of them, as one fresh commit on a branch with the same name. Binary files, executable scripts (`+x`) and symlinks keep their contents and attributes. The template’s history isn’t copied.
Extra branches you ticked	Created from that same fresh commit
Description, language, fork policy	Copied (a public repository always allows forks, because Bitbucket requires it)
Pipelines	Enabled if the template has them enabled. Non-secured repository variables are copied with their values.

What you finish by hand

Webhooks. Bitbucket doesn’t let apps create webhooks, so the report lists each one with its URL and events. Webhook secrets can’t be read back, so enter them again.
Secured Pipelines variables. Bitbucket never reveals secured values; the report lists their names.

What isn’t copied

Branch restrictions and default reviewers. Bitbucket applies your project settings to new repositories, so set them once on the project.
Permissions, Git history, Git LFS files and submodules. The report lists any LFS files or submodules it skipped.

Limits

Templates of up to 500 files and 50 MB can be copied. Bigger templates show a message instead of the Create button.
Apply a template works only on empty repositories, so it can never overwrite existing work.

Permissions

Repo Starter acts as you every time it talks to Bitbucket, so Bitbucket checks your own permissions:

You only see templates you can read.
You can only create repositories in projects where Bitbucket lets you create them.
Only repository admins can mark, edit or stop using a template.

The app’s code runs on Atlassian’s infrastructure (Forge). It stores only each template’s name, description and options, never your repository contents. See the privacy policy.

Troubleshooting

A template is missing from the list. You can’t read its repository, or it was unmarked. Ask the repository’s admins for read access.

“Repository with this Slug and Owner already exists.” Pick another name; Bitbucket derives the URL from it.

“This template can’t be copied.” It’s over the size limit. Move large assets out of the template, for example into Git LFS or a package registry.

The repository was created, but copying files failed. It’s still empty: open its Repository settings → Forge Apps → Repository template and use Apply a template, or delete it.

A setting shows “failed” in the report. The files are in place; the message says why the setting wasn’t applied. Set it by hand in the repository settings.

“Only repository admins can change template settings.” Ask an admin of that repository to mark it.

FAQ

Does it keep a copy of my code? No. File contents are read from the template while the new repository is being created and are never stored.

Will repositories update when the template changes? No. Each repository starts from the template as it is at that moment and is independent from then on.

Can I use {{repo_name}}-style placeholders? Not yet. Tell us if you need them.