Multi-line Git commit message truncated: Lines starting with # are stripped

Problem

Multi-line commit messages entered through the JetBrains IDE Git client are truncated, and any line starting with the # character is removed from the final commit. Issue references such as #5 written on a separate line do not appear in the resulting commit.

Example commit message entered in the IDE Commit tool window:

fix: Add logging file

#5

Resulting commit message after commit:

fix: Add logging file

Cause

When a Git commit template is configured (via commit.template in .gitconfig), JetBrains IDEs invoke git commit with the --cleanup=strip option to remove template comment lines from the final commit.

The --cleanup=strip mode removes every line that begins with the configured Git comment character — # by default — including content added intentionally by the user.

Resolution

Use one of the following approaches:

Add a non-comment prefix to the line

Prefix the issue reference with any text so that the line does not start with #:

fix: Add logging file

Issue: #5

Change the Git comment character

Configure Git to use a different comment character so that # can appear at the start of a commit-message line:

git config --global core.commentChar ";"

After this change, only lines starting with ; are treated as comments and stripped. See the core.commentChar documentation.