diff --git a/cli/src/utils/git.ts b/cli/src/utils/git.ts
index 77f187c312..427d0f6ad6 100644
--- a/cli/src/utils/git.ts
+++ b/cli/src/utils/git.ts
@@ -170,20 +170,12 @@ export function gitRecordedDatatableMigrationPaths(): RecordedMigrationPaths {
     };
   }
 
-  // `core.quotePath` (on by default) C-quotes any path with a non-ASCII byte, which
-  // matches nothing the caller holds and reads as "never tracked".
+  // `-z`, not `core.quotePath=false`: that setting only stops git C-quoting non-ASCII
+  // bytes, leaving a path holding `"`, `\` or a control character quoted and matching
+  // nothing the caller holds. `-z` emits every path raw, NUL-separated.
   const r = spawnSync(
     "git",
-    [
-      "-c",
-      "core.quotePath=false",
-      "log",
-      "HEAD",
-      "--format=",
-      "--name-only",
-      "--",
-      "migrations/datatable",
-    ],
+    ["log", "HEAD", "--format=", "--name-only", "-z", "--", "migrations/datatable"],
     { encoding: "utf8", stdio: "pipe", maxBuffer: 64 * 1024 * 1024 },
   );
   if ((r.status ?? 1) !== 0) {
@@ -195,7 +187,7 @@ export function gitRecordedDatatableMigrationPaths(): RecordedMigrationPaths {
     };
   }
   const paths = new Set<string>();
-  for (const line of (r.stdout ?? "").split("\n")) {
+  for (const line of (r.stdout ?? "").split("\0")) {
     const p = line.trim();
     if (p.length === 0) continue;
     if (prefix.length > 0) {
diff --git a/cli/test/git_recorded_migrations_unit.test.ts b/cli/test/git_recorded_migrations_unit.test.ts
index d087c14bde..dddfa99b44 100644
--- a/cli/test/git_recorded_migrations_unit.test.ts
+++ b/cli/test/git_recorded_migrations_unit.test.ts
@@ -55,15 +55,23 @@ describe("gitRecordedDatatableMigrationPaths", () => {
     }
   });
 
-  test("records a path with a non-ASCII byte unquoted", () => {
-    // core.quotePath would return "migrations/datatable/dt/1_caf\303\251.up.sql",
-    // which matches no path the caller holds and reads as never recorded.
-    const rel = commitMigration("20260101000000_café.up.sql");
+  test("records paths git would otherwise C-quote", () => {
+    // Non-ASCII is what `core.quotePath=false` covers; `"` and `\` stay quoted under
+    // it and need `-z`. All three read as never recorded when quoted.
+    const rels = [
+      commitMigration("20260101000000_café.up.sql"),
+      commitMigration('20260101000001_a"b.up.sql'),
+      commitMigration("20260101000002_a\\b.up.sql"),
+    ];
     const r = gitRecordedDatatableMigrationPaths();
     expect(r.kind).toBe("known");
-    if (r.kind === "known") expect(r.paths.has(rel)).toBe(true);
+    if (r.kind === "known") {
+      for (const rel of rels) expect(r.paths.has(rel)).toBe(true);
+    }
   });
 
+  // Guards the `-z` parser, not the pre-existing behaviour: the split moved from
+  // newline to NUL, and a deletion still has to leave the path listed.
   test("a committed migration stays recorded after its deletion is committed", () => {
     const rel = commitMigration("20260101000000_a.up.sql");
     fs.rmSync(path.join(dir, rel));