Git bash crashes with fork error on windows 64 bit

If you are on a 64-bit windows system, and start bash that’s included with git from a DOS command prompt and experience fork errors like this:

bash-3.1$ dirname
 C:Program FilesGitbinbash.exe: *** fork: can't reserve memory for stack 0x490000 - 0x
 690000, Win32 error 0
 0 [main] bash 1612 sync_with_child: child 4896(0x328) died before initiali
 zation with status code 0x1
 216 [main] bash 1612 sync_with_child: *** child state waiting for longjmp
 bash: fork: Resource temporarily unavailable

… a possible cause can be that your DOS command prompt is the 32-bit version (the default when running cmd with w+r) when you need in fact the 64-bit version. The fix:

c:\windows\syswow64\cmd.exe /c bash

Git bash crashes with fork error on windows 64 bit —12 January 2012