diff --git a/src/Composer/Downloader/GitDownloader.php b/src/Composer/Downloader/GitDownloader.php
index d1c072ecf..492468871 100644
--- a/src/Composer/Downloader/GitDownloader.php
+++ b/src/Composer/Downloader/GitDownloader.php
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
     public function doDownload(PackageInterface $package, $path)
     {
         $this->cleanEnv();
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
 
         $ref = $package->getSourceReference();
         $flag = defined('PHP_WINDOWS_VERSION_MAJOR') ? '/D ' : '';
@@ -50,6 +51,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
     public function doUpdate(PackageInterface $initial, PackageInterface $target, $path)
     {
         $this->cleanEnv();
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
 
         $ref = $target->getSourceReference();
         $this->io->write("    Checking out ".$ref);
@@ -74,6 +76,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     public function getLocalChanges($path)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         if (!is_dir($path.'/.git')) {
             return;
         }
@@ -91,6 +94,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     protected function cleanChanges($path, $update)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         if (!$changes = $this->getLocalChanges($path)) {
             return;
         }
@@ -163,6 +167,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     protected function reapplyChanges($path)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         if ($this->hasStashedChanges) {
             $this->hasStashedChanges = false;
             $this->io->write('    <info>Re-applying stashed changes');
@@ -385,6 +390,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     protected function getCommitLogs($fromReference, $toReference, $path)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         $command = sprintf('git log %s..%s --pretty=format:"%%h - %%an: %%s"', $fromReference, $toReference);
 
         if (0 !== $this->process->execute($command, $output, $path)) {
@@ -400,6 +406,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     protected function discardChanges($path)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         if (0 !== $this->process->execute('git reset --hard', $output, $path)) {
             throw new \RuntimeException("Could not reset changes\n\n:".$this->process->getErrorOutput());
         }
@@ -411,6 +418,7 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
      */
     protected function stashChanges($path)
     {
+        $path = $this->normalizePath($path);
         if (0 !== $this->process->execute('git stash', $output, $path)) {
             throw new \RuntimeException("Could not stash changes\n\n:".$this->process->getErrorOutput());
         }
@@ -427,4 +435,25 @@ class GitDownloader extends VcsDownloader
         // added in git 1.7.1, prevents prompting the user for username/password
         putenv('GIT_ASKPASS=echo');
     }
+
+    protected function normalizePath($path)
+    {
+        if (defined('PHP_WINDOWS_VERSION_MAJOR') && strlen($path) > 0) {
+            $basePath = $path;
+            $removed = array();
+
+            while (!is_dir($basePath) && $basePath !== '\\') {
+                array_unshift($removed, basename($basePath));
+                $basePath = dirname($basePath);
+            }
+
+            if ($basePath === '\\') {
+                return $path;
+            }
+
+            $path = rtrim(realpath($basePath) . '/' . implode('/', $removed), '/');
+        }
+
+        return $path;
+    }
 }
diff --git a/src/Composer/Util/ProcessExecutor.php b/src/Composer/Util/ProcessExecutor.php
index 16657ba96..c0925186e 100644
--- a/src/Composer/Util/ProcessExecutor.php
+++ b/src/Composer/Util/ProcessExecutor.php
@@ -42,15 +42,21 @@ class ProcessExecutor
      */
     public function execute($command, &$output = null, $cwd = null)
     {
-        $this->captureOutput = count(func_get_args()) > 1;
-        $this->errorOutput = null;
-        $process = new Process($command, $cwd, null, null, static::getTimeout());
-
         if ($this->io && $this->io->isDebug()) {
             $safeCommand = preg_replace('{(://[^:/\s]+:)[^@\s/]+}i', '$1****', $command);
             $this->io->write('Executing command ('.($cwd ?: 'CWD').'): '.$safeCommand);
         }
 
+        // make sure that null translate to the proper directory in case the dir is a symlink
+        // and we call a git command, because msysgit does not handle symlinks properly
+        if (null === $cwd && defined('PHP_WINDOWS_VERSION_BUILD') && false !== strpos($command, 'git') && getcwd()) {
+            $cwd = realpath(getcwd());
+        }
+
+        $this->captureOutput = count(func_get_args()) > 1;
+        $this->errorOutput = null;
+        $process = new Process($command, $cwd, null, null, static::getTimeout());
+
         $callback = is_callable($output) ? $output : array($this, 'outputHandler');
         $process->run($callback);
 
diff --git a/tests/Composer/Test/Downloader/GitDownloaderTest.php b/tests/Composer/Test/Downloader/GitDownloaderTest.php
index 2da584c03..842a8d3f0 100644
--- a/tests/Composer/Test/Downloader/GitDownloaderTest.php
+++ b/tests/Composer/Test/Downloader/GitDownloaderTest.php
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
             ->will($this->returnValue('dev-master'));
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'https://example.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://example.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'https://example.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://example.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(0))
             ->method('execute')
             ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand))
@@ -68,17 +68,17 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
 
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(1))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git branch -r")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git branch -r")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(2))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git checkout 'master'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git checkout 'master'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(3))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git reset --hard '1234567890123456789012345678901234567890'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git reset --hard '1234567890123456789012345678901234567890'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $downloader = $this->getDownloaderMock(null, null, $processExecutor);
@@ -99,28 +99,28 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
             ->will($this->returnValue('1.0.0'));
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'git://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'git://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(0))
             ->method('execute')
             ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand))
             ->will($this->returnValue(1));
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'https://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'https://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(2))
             ->method('execute')
             ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand))
             ->will($this->returnValue(1));
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'http://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'http://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'http://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'http://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(4))
             ->method('execute')
             ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git remote set-url --push origin 'git@github.com:composer/composer.git'");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git remote set-url --push origin 'git@github.com:composer/composer.git'");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(5))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(6))
@@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
 
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(7))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git checkout 'ref' && git reset --hard 'ref'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git checkout 'ref' && git reset --hard 'ref'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $downloader = $this->getDownloaderMock(null, new Config(), $processExecutor);
@@ -151,7 +151,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
             ->will($this->returnValue('1.0.0'));
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
 
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'http://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'http://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'http://github.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'http://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(0))
             ->method('execute')
             ->with($this->equalTo($expectedGitCommand))
@@ -173,7 +173,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
      */
     public function testDownloadThrowsRuntimeExceptionIfGitCommandFails()
     {
-        $expectedGitCommand = $this->getCmd("git clone 'https://example.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://example.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
+        $expectedGitCommand = $this->winCompat("git clone 'https://example.com/composer/composer' 'composerPath' && cd 'composerPath' && git remote add composer 'https://example.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer");
         $packageMock = $this->getMock('Composer\Package\PackageInterface');
         $packageMock->expects($this->any())
             ->method('getSourceReference')
@@ -208,7 +208,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
 
     public function testUpdate()
     {
-        $expectedGitUpdateCommand = $this->getCmd("git remote set-url composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer && git fetch --tags composer");
+        $expectedGitUpdateCommand = $this->winCompat("git remote set-url composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer && git fetch --tags composer");
 
         $packageMock = $this->getMock('Composer\Package\PackageInterface');
         $packageMock->expects($this->any())
@@ -223,7 +223,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(0))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git remote -v")))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git remote -v")))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(1))
             ->method('execute')
@@ -235,7 +235,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(3))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git checkout 'ref' && git reset --hard 'ref'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo('composerPath'))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git checkout 'ref' && git reset --hard 'ref'")), $this->equalTo(null), $this->equalTo($this->winCompat('composerPath')))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
 
         $downloader = $this->getDownloaderMock(null, new Config(), $processExecutor);
@@ -247,7 +247,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
      */
     public function testUpdateThrowsRuntimeExceptionIfGitCommandFails()
     {
-        $expectedGitUpdateCommand = $this->getCmd("git remote set-url composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer && git fetch --tags composer");
+        $expectedGitUpdateCommand = $this->winCompat("git remote set-url composer 'git://github.com/composer/composer' && git fetch composer && git fetch --tags composer");
 
         $packageMock = $this->getMock('Composer\Package\PackageInterface');
         $packageMock->expects($this->any())
@@ -259,7 +259,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(0))
             ->method('execute')
-            ->with($this->equalTo($this->getCmd("git remote -v")))
+            ->with($this->equalTo($this->winCompat("git remote -v")))
             ->will($this->returnValue(0));
         $processExecutor->expects($this->at(1))
             ->method('execute')
@@ -272,7 +272,7 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
 
     public function testRemove()
     {
-        $expectedGitResetCommand = $this->getCmd("cd 'composerPath' && git status --porcelain --untracked-files=no");
+        $expectedGitResetCommand = $this->winCompat("cd 'composerPath' && git status --porcelain --untracked-files=no");
 
         $packageMock = $this->getMock('Composer\Package\PackageInterface');
         $processExecutor = $this->getMock('Composer\Util\ProcessExecutor');
@@ -297,10 +297,11 @@ class GitDownloaderTest extends \PHPUnit_Framework_TestCase
         $this->assertEquals('source', $downloader->getInstallationSource());
     }
 
-    private function getCmd($cmd)
+    private function winCompat($cmd)
     {
         if (defined('PHP_WINDOWS_VERSION_BUILD')) {
             $cmd = str_replace('cd ', 'cd /D ', $cmd);
+            $cmd = str_replace('composerPath', getcwd().'/composerPath', $cmd);
 
             return strtr($cmd, "'", '"');
         }