diff --git a/meta-yocto/conf/site.conf.sample b/meta-yocto/conf/site.conf.sample
index d438298e84..68d1da91a9 100644
--- a/meta-yocto/conf/site.conf.sample
+++ b/meta-yocto/conf/site.conf.sample
@@ -22,17 +22,25 @@ SCONF_VERSION = "1"
 #GIT_PROXY_PORT = "81"
 #export GIT_PROXY_COMMAND = "${COREBASE}/scripts/oe-git-proxy-command"
 
-# GIT_PROXY_IGNORE_* lines define hosts which do not require a proxy to access
+# Set to yes to have a gitconfig generated for handling proxies; you
+# might not want this if you have all that set in your global git
+# configuration. If you don't enable it, the rest of the entries
+# (_PROXY_IGNORE, etc) don't really work that well
 #GIT_CORE_CONFIG = "Yes"
-#GIT_PROXY_IGNORE_1 = "host.server.com"
-#GIT_PROXY_IGNORE_2 = "another.server.com"
+
+# Space separate list of hosts to ignore for GIT proxy
+#GIT_PROXY_IGNORE = "host.server.com another.server.com"
 
 # If SOCKS is available run the following command to comple a simple transport
 # gcc scripts/oe-git-proxy-socks.c -o oe-git-proxy-socks
 # and then share that binary somewhere in PATH, then use the following settings
 #GIT_PROXY_HOST = "proxy.example.com"
 #GIT_PROXY_PORT = "81"
-#export GIT_PROXY_COMMAND = "${COREBASE}/scripts/oe-git-proxy-socks-command"
+
+# GIT_PROXY_COMMAND is used by git to override all proxy settings from
+# configuration files, so we prefix OE_ to avoid breaking havoc on the
+# generated (or local) gitconfig's.
+#OE_GIT_PROXY_COMMAND = "${COREBASE}/scripts/oe-git-proxy-socks-command"
 
 
 # Uncomment this to use a shared download directory
diff --git a/meta/classes/base.bbclass b/meta/classes/base.bbclass
index e80e874360..a76fe55b89 100644
--- a/meta/classes/base.bbclass
+++ b/meta/classes/base.bbclass
@@ -111,16 +111,17 @@ python base_do_unpack() {
             raise bb.build.FuncFailed(e)
 }
 
-GIT_CONFIG = "${STAGING_DIR_NATIVE}/usr/etc/gitconfig"
+GIT_CONFIG_PATH = "${STAGING_DIR_NATIVE}/etc"
+GIT_CONFIG = "${GIT_CONFIG_PATH}/gitconfig"
 
 def generate_git_config(e):
         from bb import data
 
         if data.getVar('GIT_CORE_CONFIG', e.data, True):
                 gitconfig_path = e.data.getVar('GIT_CONFIG', True)
-                proxy_command = "    gitproxy = %s\n" % data.getVar('GIT_PROXY_COMMAND', e.data, True)
+                proxy_command = "    gitProxy = %s\n" % data.getVar('OE_GIT_PROXY_COMMAND', e.data, True)
 
-                bb.mkdirhier(bb.data.expand("${STAGING_DIR_NATIVE}/usr/etc/", e.data))
+                bb.mkdirhier(bb.data.expand("${GIT_CONFIG_PATH}", e.data))
                 if (os.path.exists(gitconfig_path)):
                         os.remove(gitconfig_path)
 
@@ -128,7 +129,7 @@ def generate_git_config(e):
                 f.write("[core]\n")
                 ignore_hosts = data.getVar('GIT_PROXY_IGNORE', e.data, True).split()
                 for ignore_host in ignore_hosts:
-                        f.write("    gitproxy = none for %s\n" % ignore_host)
+                        f.write("    gitProxy = none for %s\n" % ignore_host)
                 f.write(proxy_command)
                 f.close