---
name: "patatt"
section: "5"
platform: "linux"
package: "patatt"
version: "0.8.0-1"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/patatt"
---

# patatt(5)

DKIM-like cryptographic patch attestation

## NAME

PATATT - DKIM-like cryptographic patch attestation

## SYNOPSIS

patatt {sign,validate,genkey,install-hook} \[options\]

## DESCRIPTION

This tools allows cryptographically signing patches sent via email by using DKIM-like message headers. This approach is both effective and doesn't interfere with other code review tools the way inline or detached PGP signatures do. For a full overview of core concepts and considerations, please see README.

If you already have a PGP key configured for signing git tags or commits, then you should be able to use patatt without any additional configuration. Try running the following in any git repository:

```
git format-patch -1 --stdout | patatt sign
```

If patatt is not finding your PGP key, try adding the following to your ~/.gitconfig:

```
[user]
    signingkey = [yourkeyid]
```

To find out your keyid, run **gpg --list-secret-keys**. If you want to use a specific subkey, you can specify the subkey ID with a **!** at the end.

## USING AS A GIT HOOK

If you use **git-send-email** for sending patches, then you can get them automatically signed via the **sendemail-validate** hook. To install, run the following command in the repository you want enabled for signing:

```
$ patatt install-hook
```

Or you can install it manually:

```
$ echo 'patatt sign --hook "${1}"' >> .git/hooks/sendemail-validate
$ chmod a+x .git/hooks/sendemail-validate
```

## SUBCOMMANDS

- •

  *sign*: sign stdin or RFC2822 files passed as arguments

- •

  *validate*: basic validation for signed messages

- •

  *genkey*: generate a new ed25519 keypair

- •

  *install-hook*: install sendemail-validate hook in the current repository

You can run **patatt \[subcommand\] --help** to see a summary of flags for each subcommand.

## SUPPORT

Please email *tools@kernel.org* with support requests.

## AUTHOR

mricon@kernel.org

License: MIT-0

## COPYRIGHT

The Linux Foundation and contributors