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Sign in and connect

GitMCloud opens with a short wizard: sign in to GitHub, pick a repository, choose a branch and display name, and connect. After that it remembers your connection.

Administer a company on GitM? This page is the GitHub door, for viewing projects. Company administrators sign in through the outlined Company admin sign in link on the landing screen to reach the Tandem portal, where they manage the company's connections, projects, members, seats, and plan.

Just invited to a project? Start here

If a teammate added you to a project, this is the whole first-touch flow:

  1. Sign in to GitMCloud with your GitHub account (below) — you can view the project's files, BOM, versions, and team right in the browser, no SolidWorks needed.
  2. Get the desktop add-in to actually work on the CAD files in SolidWorks. Download it from the ? (Help) menu → Download desktop add-in, or the New to GitM? Get the desktop add-in card shown after you sign in. Both point at the stable installer link, gitmcloud.gojain.com/download.
  3. Install and open SolidWorks — see Install GitM on a workstation. The GitM task pane signs in with the same GitHub account and opens your project.

GitHub also emails you its own invitation; your admin may additionally send a branded welcome email with these same links. Either way, the download and sign-in are the two steps that matter.

Prerequisites

  • A GitHub account with access to the repository you want to view.
  • Your account (or the repo's owner) granted onboarding access. If it isn't, the wizard blocks you at the access step — ask your company admin or Tandem operator to grant access through the Tandem portal.

Sign in

GitMCloud offers two ways to authenticate:

  • Sign in with GitHub (recommended) — uses GitHub's device flow: GitMCloud shows a short code and opens github.com/login/device; you enter the code and authorize. No password is typed into GitMCloud. (This button only appears if the deployment has an OAuth client ID configured; if it's missing, ask whoever operates your GitMCloud deployment.)
  • Personal Access Token (PAT) — paste a GitHub token instead. Always available, even without an OAuth app configured.

Your token is stored in the browser's localStorage and used only to call the GitHub API. It is never logged or sent anywhere except GitHub.

Connect to a repository

  1. Sign in.
  2. Pick the repository to view (one you have access to on GitHub).
  3. Choose the branch GitMCloud should read and, optionally, a display name for the project.
  4. GitMCloud runs the access check. If your owner is allowlisted, it connects; otherwise it blocks here.

Expected result

  • The dashboard opens on the Files tab, with Snapshots, BOM, Branch, and Team tabs available.
  • Your connection (owner, repo, branch, display name) is remembered, so reopening GitMCloud reconnects automatically — re-running the access check each time.

Project entry and discovery

You don't re-run the wizard every time:

  • One saved project → GitMCloud resumes it instantly.
  • Two or more, on a fresh visit (new tab or first load of the day) → a "Welcome back" picker appears before connecting, listing your saved projects (the last-active one highlighted) plus any "Available" projects you're invited to but haven't opened here yet. Pick one to continue; the other doors (Company admin sign in, Supplier Exchange) stay visible.
  • Same-tab reload → resumes the last-active project directly (no picker).

Available projects come from your GitHub membership. You automatically see GitM projects (.gitm/ repositories) under any GitHub owner your company admin has connected in the Tandem portal — no manual list to curate. Get invited to such a repo on GitHub, and it shows up here. Only a Company (Customer) Admin can bring owners into scope; a regular member cannot connect an undeclared personal repo (the access check denies it).

Switch projects any time from the @owner/repo pill in the dashboard header (a count badge shows when you have 2+): one click, no re-sign-in. The same menu has Company admin portal ↗ and Switch account….

Settings

Click the gear icon (top-right of the dashboard) to open Settings. Changes here take effect immediately without re-running the wizard.

Repository tab

  • Repository nickname — the label shown in the dashboard header instead of the repo path.
  • Branch — switch which branch GitMCloud reads.
  • Switch Repository… — return to the repo picker. (Day to day, the header @owner/repo pill is the faster way to switch between connected projects.)

Account tab

  • Shows which GitHub account is signed in and the auth method in use.
  • Verify Now — checks the stored credential still works.
  • Switch Account — re-authenticate with a different GitHub account. Warns first that files you have checked out stay locked to the current account (the new account can't check them in) — check them in first if you're done. Also available from the header switcher menu.
  • Company admin portal ↗ — opens the Tandem portal in a new tab; you stay signed in here.
  • Disconnect — clears the stored token and returns to the wizard.
  • Edit Profile… — set your display name, contact email, and avatar.

Preferences tab

  • Viewer and display options (3D viewer engine, mass unit, show virtual components, compact rows) and the update-check interval.

Team & Sharing tab

  • The repo-shared, admin-gated policy: Part Numbers, File Policy, Release Control, Library Sources, and Supplier Exchange.
  • Supplier Exchange — install or remove the GitMCloud Exchange GitHub App for your account, and set the per-repo sharing policy. Requires Administrator role. See Share files with suppliers. Shows Active when the app is installed for the account, or Not installed otherwise.

Diagnostics tab

  • Shows the raw connection state, stored token (last four characters), branch, and other debug information useful when reporting issues.

Troubleshooting

Symptom Cause Fix
No "Sign in with GitHub" button The deployment has no OAuth client ID configured Use the PAT option, or ask whoever operates your GitMCloud deployment to set VITE_GITHUB_CLIENT_ID
Blocked at the access step Owner not granted onboarding access Ask your company admin or Tandem operator to grant your account access
Repository not in the list Your GitHub account lacks access Get access to the repo on GitHub
Auto-reconnect suddenly fails Allowlist changed, or token expired Re-check the allowlist; sign in again
Settings gear not visible Not connected (wizard not complete) Complete the wizard first

Known limitations

  • The allowlist is fail-closed and checked on every reconnect. If ALLOWED_OWNERS is empty or your owner is removed, you lose access immediately.
  • Tokens live in browser localStorage; signing out or clearing site data removes them.