Troubleshooting Organization Lookup Errors in Azure DevOps Git

1. Introduction

When working with Azure DevOps, remote repositories use a specific URL format that is critical for proper connection and collaboration. When we run commands such as git clone, git pull, or git push, Git must interpret the URL correctly. If Git cannot extract the organization name from the URL, developers sometimes encounter the “Cannot determine the organization name for this dev.azure.com remote URL” error, preventing them from cloning, pulling, or pushing to a repository.

This tutorial explores the root causes of this issue and provides step-by-step solutions to resolve it.

2. Understanding the Issue

When running Git commands such as git clone, git pull, or git push, the following error might appear:

fatal: Cannot determine the organization name for this dev.azure.com remote URL

This error typically occurs due to an incorrectly formatted remote URL, authentication problems, outdated Git versions, or network restrictions.

3. Solutions to Fix the Error

Factors such as an outdated version of Git, problems with authentication credentials, or network restrictions may also lead to the same error. Let’s see how each of these causes can be addressed.

3.1. Verifying the Remote URL Format

Azure DevOps repositories use a specific URL format. Due to this, if the remote URL does not match the expected structure, Git fails to recognize the organization name, causing this issue.

Azure DevOps moved away from an older URL format and toward a new one. In the past, many users set up their remotes with the organization in the domain name:

https://{organization}.visualstudio.com/{project}/_git/{repository}

Azure DevOps now expects the organization to be in the path:

https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_git/{repository}

If our remote is still set to the old format, Git may be unable to parse the organization name from the URL. This mismatch causes the error to occur.

To check our current remote URL, we run the following:

git remote -v

If the output shows an old format, we update it using:

git remote set-url origin https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_git/{repository}

Replacing {organization}, {project}, and {repository} with the appropriate values ensures that Git correctly identifies our organization.

3.2. Updating Git to the Latest Version

Another common source of the problem is an outdated version of Git. Newer versions of Git offer better compatibility with Azure DevOps services.

We check our current version of Git by running:

git --version

If our Git version is not current, we can update it using the method appropriate for our operating system:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install git  # Debian/Ubuntu
sudo yum update git                      # RHEL/CentOS
brew upgrade git                         # macOS (Homebrew)

Upgrading Git allows us to avoid issues that arise from incompatibility between older Git clients and the updated Azure DevOps service.

3.3. Ensuring Authentication Credentials Are Correct

Modern best practices encourage using a Personal Access Token (PAT) rather than a simple password. A PAT offers improved security and permits us to specify the exact permissions needed for our tasks.

To generate a PAT, our team should perform the following steps:

1. Log in to our Azure DevOps account
2. Click on the profile icon and go to User Settings
3. Select Personal Access Tokens
4. Generate a new token with the appropriate repository permissions

Rather than putting our PAT directly in the remote URL, we should use Git’s credential helpers to store it securely.

For example, we can set up the helper with:

git config --global credential.helper store

With this approach, when we run a Git command that needs authentication, Git will prompt us for our PAT. Our token will be then stored safely, keeping it hidden from the URL.

In some cases, cached credentials may cause problems even when the correct details have been updated. We can clear the stored credentials by running these commands:

git credential reject https://dev.azure.com
git credential approve https://dev.azure.com

After clearing the credentials, Git will request our authentication details again when performing operations that require access. At that point, we can provide the new PAT to reauthenticate successfully.

3.4. Checking DNS Resolution and Proxy Settings

Network configurations can also contribute to the error. If our system cannot properly resolve the Azure DevOps address or our network requires a proxy, Git won’t be able to communicate with the server.

We can verify that the Azure DevOps server is reachable by running several network tests. For example, the following commands check connectivity:

nslookup dev.azure.com
ping dev.azure.com
curl -v https://dev.azure.com

If these commands indicate that the server cannot be reached or that there are network issues, we’ll know that network settings require further attention.

A proxy server is necessary to access external services in many corporate environments. If our network requires a proxy, we should configure Git accordingly. For example, if our proxy server is at proxy.server.com and uses port 8080, we run:

git config --global http.proxy http://proxy.server.com:port

We ensure that the details provided are correct for our network environment. Conversely, if our network does not require a proxy, we remove any proxy settings with the following command:

git config --global --unset http.proxy

By adjusting these settings, we can confirm that Git can connect to the Azure DevOps server without network interference.

3.5. Ensuring Repository Permissions Are Correct

If we recently lost access to a repository, the issue might stem from permission changes.

We verify our access in Azure DevOps:

1. Navigate to Project Settings → Repositories
2. Select the affected repository
3. Check the Security tab and ensure our account has Read/Write permissions

We must ensure that our account has the required Read/Write access. In environments where Azure Active Directory is used, we should verify that we are logged in with the correct identity. Ensuring the correct permission settings can eliminate one possible source of the error.

4. Additional Troubleshooting Steps

If the error still persists after trying the above methods, we have a few additional techniques that might help resolve the issue.

4.1. Cloning the Repository Again

Sometimes, the local repository configuration may be corrupted or misconfigured. In such cases, cloning the repository anew can solve the problem:

git clone https://dev.azure.com/{organization}/{project}/_git/{repository}

Cloning creates a new local copy with fresh configuration settings, often resolving errors that originate from local misconfigurations.

4.2. Clearing Git Credentials

Even after updating our credentials, there might be remnants of cached data that cause conflicts. We can run the following commands to ensure that all cached credentials are removed:

git credential reject https://dev.azure.com
git credential reject https://{organization}.visualstudio.com

After this step, the next Git operation requiring authentication will prompt us to enter the new credentials. This method is especially helpful when previous tokens or passwords are causing conflicts.

4.3. Enabling Debugging Mode

When we need additional details about what is causing the error, we can enable Git’s debugging mode. This mode produces a detailed log that can help us pinpoint the source of the issue. We run the following command:

GIT_TRACE=1 GIT_CURL_VERBOSE=1 git pull origin main

This command causes Git to output step-by-step details of its operations. We can review these logs to see whether the error occurs during the connection stage, the authentication stage, or another part of the process. The debug information is useful for isolating and fixing subtle configuration issues.

5. Conclusion

In this article, we discussed various approaches to solve the organization name errors on Azure.

First, we should verify the remote URL. Once the URL is confirmed in the correct format, we need to check that our Git client is updated and that our authentication credentials are current. We then confirm our network settings and review repository permissions on the Azure DevOps portal.

If all these steps have been completed and the error persists, additional measures such as re-cloning the repository and enabling Git debugging mode can provide further insight.