diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
index 8c0e759..3121c41 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -84,6 +84,35 @@ jobs:
         shell: bash
         run: __test__/verify-lfs.sh
 
+      # Submodules false
+      - name: Submodules false checkout
+        uses: ./
+        with:
+          ref: test-data/v2/submodule
+          path: submodules-false
+      - name: Verify submodules false
+        run: __test__/verify-submodules-false.sh
+
+      # Submodules one level
+      - name: Submodules true checkout
+        uses: ./
+        with:
+          ref: test-data/v2/submodule
+          path: submodules-true
+          submodules: true
+      - name: Verify submodules true
+        run: __test__/verify-submodules-true.sh
+
+      # Submodules recursive
+      - name: Submodules recursive checkout
+        uses: ./
+        with:
+          ref: test-data/v2/submodule
+          path: submodules-recursive
+          submodules: recursive
+      - name: Verify submodules recursive
+        run: __test__/verify-submodules-recursive.sh
+
       # Basic checkout using REST API
       - name: Remove basic
         if: runner.os != 'windows'
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 54b3429..9233a25 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -70,6 +70,11 @@ Refer [here](https://github.com/actions/checkout/blob/v1/README.md) for previous
     # Whether to download Git-LFS files
     # Default: false
     lfs: ''
+
+    # Whether to checkout submodules: `true` to checkout submodules or `recursive` to
+    # recursively checkout submodules.
+    # Default: false
+    submodules: ''
 ```
 <!-- end usage -->
 
diff --git a/__test__/git-auth-helper.test.ts b/__test__/git-auth-helper.test.ts
index fab9f37..68926f2 100644
--- a/__test__/git-auth-helper.test.ts
+++ b/__test__/git-auth-helper.test.ts
@@ -8,10 +8,13 @@ import {IGitSourceSettings} from '../lib/git-source-settings'
 
 const testWorkspace = path.join(__dirname, '_temp', 'git-auth-helper')
 const originalRunnerTemp = process.env['RUNNER_TEMP']
+const originalHome = process.env['HOME']
 let workspace: string
-let gitConfigPath: string
+let localGitConfigPath: string
+let globalGitConfigPath: string
 let runnerTemp: string
-let git: IGitCommandManager
+let tempHomedir: string
+let git: IGitCommandManager & {env: {[key: string]: string}}
 let settings: IGitSourceSettings
 
 describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
@@ -23,11 +26,24 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
     // Mock setSecret
     jest.spyOn(core, 'setSecret').mockImplementation((secret: string) => {})
+
+    // Mock error/warning/info/debug
+    jest.spyOn(core, 'error').mockImplementation(jest.fn())
+    jest.spyOn(core, 'warning').mockImplementation(jest.fn())
+    jest.spyOn(core, 'info').mockImplementation(jest.fn())
+    jest.spyOn(core, 'debug').mockImplementation(jest.fn())
   })
 
   afterEach(() => {
     // Unregister mocks
     jest.restoreAllMocks()
+
+    // Restore HOME
+    if (originalHome) {
+      process.env['HOME'] = originalHome
+    } else {
+      delete process.env['HOME']
+    }
   })
 
   afterAll(() => {
@@ -38,10 +54,11 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
     }
   })
 
-  const configuresAuthHeader = 'configures auth header'
-  it(configuresAuthHeader, async () => {
+  const configureAuth_configuresAuthHeader =
+    'configureAuth configures auth header'
+  it(configureAuth_configuresAuthHeader, async () => {
     // Arrange
-    await setup(configuresAuthHeader)
+    await setup(configureAuth_configuresAuthHeader)
     expect(settings.authToken).toBeTruthy() // sanity check
     const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
 
@@ -49,7 +66,9 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
     await authHelper.configureAuth()
 
     // Assert config
-    const configContent = (await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)).toString()
+    const configContent = (
+      await fs.promises.readFile(localGitConfigPath)
+    ).toString()
     const basicCredential = Buffer.from(
       `x-access-token:${settings.authToken}`,
       'utf8'
@@ -61,32 +80,39 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
     ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
   })
 
-  const configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse =
-    'configures auth header even when persist credentials false'
-  it(configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse, async () => {
-    // Arrange
-    await setup(configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse)
-    expect(settings.authToken).toBeTruthy() // sanity check
-    settings.persistCredentials = false
-    const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
-
-    // Act
-    await authHelper.configureAuth()
-
-    // Assert config
-    const configContent = (await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)).toString()
-    expect(
-      configContent.indexOf(
-        `http.https://github.com/.extraheader AUTHORIZATION`
+  const configureAuth_configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse =
+    'configureAuth configures auth header even when persist credentials false'
+  it(
+    configureAuth_configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse,
+    async () => {
+      // Arrange
+      await setup(
+        configureAuth_configuresAuthHeaderEvenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse
       )
-    ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
-  })
+      expect(settings.authToken).toBeTruthy() // sanity check
+      settings.persistCredentials = false
+      const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
 
-  const registersBasicCredentialAsSecret =
-    'registers basic credential as secret'
-  it(registersBasicCredentialAsSecret, async () => {
+      // Act
+      await authHelper.configureAuth()
+
+      // Assert config
+      const configContent = (
+        await fs.promises.readFile(localGitConfigPath)
+      ).toString()
+      expect(
+        configContent.indexOf(
+          `http.https://github.com/.extraheader AUTHORIZATION`
+        )
+      ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
+    }
+  )
+
+  const configureAuth_registersBasicCredentialAsSecret =
+    'configureAuth registers basic credential as secret'
+  it(configureAuth_registersBasicCredentialAsSecret, async () => {
     // Arrange
-    await setup(registersBasicCredentialAsSecret)
+    await setup(configureAuth_registersBasicCredentialAsSecret)
     expect(settings.authToken).toBeTruthy() // sanity check
     const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
 
@@ -103,14 +129,139 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
     expect(setSecretSpy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(expectedSecret)
   })
 
-  const removesToken = 'removes token'
-  it(removesToken, async () => {
+  const configureGlobalAuth_copiesGlobalGitConfig =
+    'configureGlobalAuth copies global git config'
+  it(configureGlobalAuth_copiesGlobalGitConfig, async () => {
     // Arrange
-    await setup(removesToken)
+    await setup(configureGlobalAuth_copiesGlobalGitConfig)
+    await fs.promises.writeFile(globalGitConfigPath, 'value-from-global-config')
+    const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+
+    // Act
+    await authHelper.configureAuth()
+    await authHelper.configureGlobalAuth()
+
+    // Assert original global config not altered
+    let configContent = (
+      await fs.promises.readFile(globalGitConfigPath)
+    ).toString()
+    expect(configContent).toBe('value-from-global-config')
+
+    // Assert temporary global config
+    expect(git.env['HOME']).toBeTruthy()
+    const basicCredential = Buffer.from(
+      `x-access-token:${settings.authToken}`,
+      'utf8'
+    ).toString('base64')
+    configContent = (
+      await fs.promises.readFile(path.join(git.env['HOME'], '.gitconfig'))
+    ).toString()
+    expect(
+      configContent.indexOf('value-from-global-config')
+    ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
+    expect(
+      configContent.indexOf(
+        `http.https://github.com/.extraheader AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`
+      )
+    ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
+  })
+
+  const configureGlobalAuth_createsNewGlobalGitConfigWhenGlobalDoesNotExist =
+    'configureGlobalAuth creates new git config when global does not exist'
+  it(
+    configureGlobalAuth_createsNewGlobalGitConfigWhenGlobalDoesNotExist,
+    async () => {
+      // Arrange
+      await setup(
+        configureGlobalAuth_createsNewGlobalGitConfigWhenGlobalDoesNotExist
+      )
+      await io.rmRF(globalGitConfigPath)
+      const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+
+      // Act
+      await authHelper.configureAuth()
+      await authHelper.configureGlobalAuth()
+
+      // Assert original global config not recreated
+      try {
+        await fs.promises.stat(globalGitConfigPath)
+        throw new Error(
+          `Did not expect file to exist: '${globalGitConfigPath}'`
+        )
+      } catch (err) {
+        if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+          throw err
+        }
+      }
+
+      // Assert temporary global config
+      expect(git.env['HOME']).toBeTruthy()
+      const basicCredential = Buffer.from(
+        `x-access-token:${settings.authToken}`,
+        'utf8'
+      ).toString('base64')
+      const configContent = (
+        await fs.promises.readFile(path.join(git.env['HOME'], '.gitconfig'))
+      ).toString()
+      expect(
+        configContent.indexOf(
+          `http.https://github.com/.extraheader AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`
+        )
+      ).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0)
+    }
+  )
+
+  const configureSubmoduleAuth_doesNotConfigureTokenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse =
+    'configureSubmoduleAuth does not configure token when persist credentials false'
+  it(
+    configureSubmoduleAuth_doesNotConfigureTokenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse,
+    async () => {
+      // Arrange
+      await setup(
+        configureSubmoduleAuth_doesNotConfigureTokenWhenPersistCredentialsFalse
+      )
+      settings.persistCredentials = false
+      const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+      await authHelper.configureAuth()
+      ;(git.submoduleForeach as jest.Mock<any, any>).mockClear() // reset calls
+
+      // Act
+      await authHelper.configureSubmoduleAuth()
+
+      // Assert
+      expect(git.submoduleForeach).not.toHaveBeenCalled()
+    }
+  )
+
+  const configureSubmoduleAuth_configuresTokenWhenPersistCredentialsTrue =
+    'configureSubmoduleAuth configures token when persist credentials true'
+  it(
+    configureSubmoduleAuth_configuresTokenWhenPersistCredentialsTrue,
+    async () => {
+      // Arrange
+      await setup(
+        configureSubmoduleAuth_configuresTokenWhenPersistCredentialsTrue
+      )
+      const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+      await authHelper.configureAuth()
+      ;(git.submoduleForeach as jest.Mock<any, any>).mockClear() // reset calls
+
+      // Act
+      await authHelper.configureSubmoduleAuth()
+
+      // Assert
+      expect(git.submoduleForeach).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1)
+    }
+  )
+
+  const removeAuth_removesToken = 'removeAuth removes token'
+  it(removeAuth_removesToken, async () => {
+    // Arrange
+    await setup(removeAuth_removesToken)
     const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
     await authHelper.configureAuth()
     let gitConfigContent = (
-      await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)
+      await fs.promises.readFile(localGitConfigPath)
     ).toString()
     expect(gitConfigContent.indexOf('http.')).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(0) // sanity check
 
@@ -118,9 +269,37 @@ describe('git-auth-helper tests', () => {
     await authHelper.removeAuth()
 
     // Assert git config
-    gitConfigContent = (await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)).toString()
+    gitConfigContent = (
+      await fs.promises.readFile(localGitConfigPath)
+    ).toString()
     expect(gitConfigContent.indexOf('http.')).toBeLessThan(0)
   })
+
+  const removeGlobalAuth_removesOverride = 'removeGlobalAuth removes override'
+  it(removeGlobalAuth_removesOverride, async () => {
+    // Arrange
+    await setup(removeGlobalAuth_removesOverride)
+    const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+    await authHelper.configureAuth()
+    await authHelper.configureGlobalAuth()
+    const homeOverride = git.env['HOME'] // Sanity check
+    expect(homeOverride).toBeTruthy()
+    await fs.promises.stat(path.join(git.env['HOME'], '.gitconfig'))
+
+    // Act
+    await authHelper.removeGlobalAuth()
+
+    // Assert
+    expect(git.env['HOME']).toBeUndefined()
+    try {
+      await fs.promises.stat(homeOverride)
+      throw new Error(`Should have been deleted '${homeOverride}'`)
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+        throw err
+      }
+    }
+  })
 })
 
 async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
@@ -129,14 +308,19 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
   // Directories
   workspace = path.join(testWorkspace, testName, 'workspace')
   runnerTemp = path.join(testWorkspace, testName, 'runner-temp')
+  tempHomedir = path.join(testWorkspace, testName, 'home-dir')
   await fs.promises.mkdir(workspace, {recursive: true})
   await fs.promises.mkdir(runnerTemp, {recursive: true})
+  await fs.promises.mkdir(tempHomedir, {recursive: true})
   process.env['RUNNER_TEMP'] = runnerTemp
+  process.env['HOME'] = tempHomedir
 
   // Create git config
-  gitConfigPath = path.join(workspace, '.git', 'config')
-  await fs.promises.mkdir(path.join(workspace, '.git'), {recursive: true})
-  await fs.promises.writeFile(path.join(workspace, '.git', 'config'), '')
+  globalGitConfigPath = path.join(tempHomedir, '.gitconfig')
+  await fs.promises.writeFile(globalGitConfigPath, '')
+  localGitConfigPath = path.join(workspace, '.git', 'config')
+  await fs.promises.mkdir(path.dirname(localGitConfigPath), {recursive: true})
+  await fs.promises.writeFile(localGitConfigPath, '')
 
   git = {
     branchDelete: jest.fn(),
@@ -144,12 +328,20 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
     branchList: jest.fn(),
     checkout: jest.fn(),
     checkoutDetach: jest.fn(),
-    config: jest.fn(async (key: string, value: string) => {
-      await fs.promises.appendFile(gitConfigPath, `\n${key} ${value}`)
-    }),
+    config: jest.fn(
+      async (key: string, value: string, globalConfig?: boolean) => {
+        const configPath = globalConfig
+          ? path.join(git.env['HOME'] || tempHomedir, '.gitconfig')
+          : localGitConfigPath
+        await fs.promises.appendFile(configPath, `\n${key} ${value}`)
+      }
+    ),
     configExists: jest.fn(
-      async (key: string): Promise<boolean> => {
-        const content = await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)
+      async (key: string, globalConfig?: boolean): Promise<boolean> => {
+        const configPath = globalConfig
+          ? path.join(git.env['HOME'] || tempHomedir, '.gitconfig')
+          : localGitConfigPath
+        const content = await fs.promises.readFile(configPath)
         const lines = content
           .toString()
           .split('\n')
@@ -157,6 +349,7 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
         return lines.some(x => x.startsWith(key))
       }
     ),
+    env: {},
     fetch: jest.fn(),
     getWorkingDirectory: jest.fn(() => workspace),
     init: jest.fn(),
@@ -165,18 +358,29 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
     lfsInstall: jest.fn(),
     log1: jest.fn(),
     remoteAdd: jest.fn(),
-    setEnvironmentVariable: jest.fn(),
+    removeEnvironmentVariable: jest.fn((name: string) => delete git.env[name]),
+    setEnvironmentVariable: jest.fn((name: string, value: string) => {
+      git.env[name] = value
+    }),
+    submoduleForeach: jest.fn(async () => {
+      return ''
+    }),
+    submoduleSync: jest.fn(),
+    submoduleUpdate: jest.fn(),
     tagExists: jest.fn(),
     tryClean: jest.fn(),
     tryConfigUnset: jest.fn(
-      async (key: string): Promise<boolean> => {
-        let content = await fs.promises.readFile(gitConfigPath)
+      async (key: string, globalConfig?: boolean): Promise<boolean> => {
+        const configPath = globalConfig
+          ? path.join(git.env['HOME'] || tempHomedir, '.gitconfig')
+          : localGitConfigPath
+        let content = await fs.promises.readFile(configPath)
         let lines = content
           .toString()
           .split('\n')
           .filter(x => x)
           .filter(x => !x.startsWith(key))
-        await fs.promises.writeFile(gitConfigPath, lines.join('\n'))
+        await fs.promises.writeFile(configPath, lines.join('\n'))
         return true
       }
     ),
@@ -191,6 +395,8 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
     commit: '',
     fetchDepth: 1,
     lfs: false,
+    submodules: false,
+    nestedSubmodules: false,
     persistCredentials: true,
     ref: 'refs/heads/master',
     repositoryName: 'my-repo',
diff --git a/__test__/git-directory-helper.test.ts b/__test__/git-directory-helper.test.ts
index 4383e1d..c39a2a5 100644
--- a/__test__/git-directory-helper.test.ts
+++ b/__test__/git-directory-helper.test.ts
@@ -363,7 +363,11 @@ async function setup(testName: string): Promise<void> {
     lfsInstall: jest.fn(),
     log1: jest.fn(),
     remoteAdd: jest.fn(),
+    removeEnvironmentVariable: jest.fn(),
     setEnvironmentVariable: jest.fn(),
+    submoduleForeach: jest.fn(),
+    submoduleSync: jest.fn(),
+    submoduleUpdate: jest.fn(),
     tagExists: jest.fn(),
     tryClean: jest.fn(async () => {
       return true
diff --git a/__test__/input-helper.test.ts b/__test__/input-helper.test.ts
index 53c7000..00732ef 100644
--- a/__test__/input-helper.test.ts
+++ b/__test__/input-helper.test.ts
@@ -130,11 +130,4 @@ describe('input-helper tests', () => {
     expect(settings.ref).toBe('refs/heads/some-other-ref')
     expect(settings.commit).toBeFalsy()
   })
-
-  it('gives good error message for submodules input', () => {
-    inputs.submodules = 'true'
-    assert.throws(() => {
-      inputHelper.getInputs()
-    }, /The input 'submodules' is not supported/)
-  })
 })
diff --git a/__test__/verify-submodules-false.sh b/__test__/verify-submodules-false.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..733e247
--- /dev/null
+++ b/__test__/verify-submodules-false.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-false/regular-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected regular file does not exist"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ -f "./submodules-false/submodule-level-1/submodule-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Unexpected submodule file exists"
+    exit 1
+fi
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/__test__/verify-submodules-not-checked-out.sh b/__test__/verify-submodules-not-checked-out.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index dcc0487..0000000
--- a/__test__/verify-submodules-not-checked-out.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,11 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-
-if [ ! -f "./submodules-not-checked-out/regular-file.txt" ]; then
-    echo "Expected regular file does not exist"
-    exit 1
-fi
-
-if [ -f "./submodules-not-checked-out/submodule-level-1/submodule-file.txt" ]; then
-    echo "Unexpected submodule file exists"
-    exit 1
-fi
diff --git a/__test__/verify-submodules-recursive.sh b/__test__/verify-submodules-recursive.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..1b68f9b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/__test__/verify-submodules-recursive.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-recursive/regular-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected regular file does not exist"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-recursive/submodule-level-1/submodule-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected submodule file does not exist"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-recursive/submodule-level-1/submodule-level-2/nested-submodule-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected nested submodule file does not exists"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Testing persisted credential"
+pushd ./submodules-recursive/submodule-level-1/submodule-level-2
+git config --local --name-only --get-regexp http.+extraheader && git fetch
+if [ "$?" != "0" ]; then
+    echo "Failed to validate persisted credential"
+    popd
+    exit 1
+fi
+popd
diff --git a/__test__/verify-submodules-true.sh b/__test__/verify-submodules-true.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..43769fe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/__test__/verify-submodules-true.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-true/regular-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected regular file does not exist"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ ! -f "./submodules-true/submodule-level-1/submodule-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Expected submodule file does not exist"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ -f "./submodules-true/submodule-level-1/submodule-level-2/nested-submodule-file.txt" ]; then
+    echo "Unexpected nested submodule file exists"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Testing persisted credential"
+pushd ./submodules-true/submodule-level-1
+git config --local --name-only --get-regexp http.+extraheader && git fetch
+if [ "$?" != "0" ]; then
+    echo "Failed to validate persisted credential"
+    popd
+    exit 1
+fi
+popd
diff --git a/action.yml b/action.yml
index 9650409..a411037 100644
--- a/action.yml
+++ b/action.yml
@@ -30,6 +30,11 @@ inputs:
   lfs:
     description: 'Whether to download Git-LFS files'
     default: false
+  submodules:
+    description: >
+      Whether to checkout submodules: `true` to checkout submodules or `recursive` to
+      recursively checkout submodules.
+    default: false
 runs:
   using: node12
   main: dist/index.js
diff --git a/dist/index.js b/dist/index.js
index 4b06982..3a29067 100644
--- a/dist/index.js
+++ b/dist/index.js
@@ -5074,21 +5074,35 @@ var __importStar = (this && this.__importStar) || function (mod) {
     result["default"] = mod;
     return result;
 };
+var __importDefault = (this && this.__importDefault) || function (mod) {
+    return (mod && mod.__esModule) ? mod : { "default": mod };
+};
 Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
+const assert = __importStar(__webpack_require__(357));
 const core = __importStar(__webpack_require__(470));
 const fs = __importStar(__webpack_require__(747));
+const io = __importStar(__webpack_require__(1));
+const os = __importStar(__webpack_require__(87));
 const path = __importStar(__webpack_require__(622));
+const regexpHelper = __importStar(__webpack_require__(528));
+const v4_1 = __importDefault(__webpack_require__(826));
 const IS_WINDOWS = process.platform === 'win32';
 const HOSTNAME = 'github.com';
-const EXTRA_HEADER_KEY = `http.https://${HOSTNAME}/.extraheader`;
 function createAuthHelper(git, settings) {
     return new GitAuthHelper(git, settings);
 }
 exports.createAuthHelper = createAuthHelper;
 class GitAuthHelper {
     constructor(gitCommandManager, gitSourceSettings) {
+        this.tokenConfigKey = `http.https://${HOSTNAME}/.extraheader`;
+        this.temporaryHomePath = '';
         this.git = gitCommandManager;
         this.settings = gitSourceSettings || {};
+        // Token auth header
+        const basicCredential = Buffer.from(`x-access-token:${this.settings.authToken}`, 'utf8').toString('base64');
+        core.setSecret(basicCredential);
+        this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ***`;
+        this.tokenConfigValue = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`;
     }
     configureAuth() {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
@@ -5098,37 +5112,110 @@ class GitAuthHelper {
             yield this.configureToken();
         });
     }
+    configureGlobalAuth() {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            // Create a temp home directory
+            const runnerTemp = process.env['RUNNER_TEMP'] || '';
+            assert.ok(runnerTemp, 'RUNNER_TEMP is not defined');
+            const uniqueId = v4_1.default();
+            this.temporaryHomePath = path.join(runnerTemp, uniqueId);
+            yield fs.promises.mkdir(this.temporaryHomePath, { recursive: true });
+            // Copy the global git config
+            const gitConfigPath = path.join(process.env['HOME'] || os.homedir(), '.gitconfig');
+            const newGitConfigPath = path.join(this.temporaryHomePath, '.gitconfig');
+            let configExists = false;
+            try {
+                yield fs.promises.stat(gitConfigPath);
+                configExists = true;
+            }
+            catch (err) {
+                if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+                    throw err;
+                }
+            }
+            if (configExists) {
+                core.info(`Copying '${gitConfigPath}' to '${newGitConfigPath}'`);
+                yield io.cp(gitConfigPath, newGitConfigPath);
+            }
+            else {
+                yield fs.promises.writeFile(newGitConfigPath, '');
+            }
+            // Configure the token
+            try {
+                core.info(`Temporarily overriding HOME='${this.temporaryHomePath}' before making global git config changes`);
+                this.git.setEnvironmentVariable('HOME', this.temporaryHomePath);
+                yield this.configureToken(newGitConfigPath, true);
+            }
+            catch (err) {
+                // Unset in case somehow written to the real global config
+                core.info('Encountered an error when attempting to configure token. Attempting unconfigure.');
+                yield this.git.tryConfigUnset(this.tokenConfigKey, true);
+                throw err;
+            }
+        });
+    }
+    configureSubmoduleAuth() {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            if (this.settings.persistCredentials) {
+                // Configure a placeholder value. This approach avoids the credential being captured
+                // by process creation audit events, which are commonly logged. For more information,
+                // refer to https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/identity/ad-ds/manage/component-updates/command-line-process-auditing
+                const output = yield this.git.submoduleForeach(`git config "${this.tokenConfigKey}" "${this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue}" && git config --local --show-origin --name-only --get-regexp remote.origin.url`, this.settings.nestedSubmodules);
+                // Replace the placeholder
+                const configPaths = output.match(/(?<=(^|\n)file:)[^\t]+(?=\tremote\.origin\.url)/g) || [];
+                for (const configPath of configPaths) {
+                    core.debug(`Replacing token placeholder in '${configPath}'`);
+                    this.replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath);
+                }
+            }
+        });
+    }
     removeAuth() {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             yield this.removeToken();
         });
     }
-    configureToken() {
+    removeGlobalAuth() {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            core.info(`Unsetting HOME override`);
+            this.git.removeEnvironmentVariable('HOME');
+            yield io.rmRF(this.temporaryHomePath);
+        });
+    }
+    configureToken(configPath, globalConfig) {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            // Validate args
+            assert.ok((configPath && globalConfig) || (!configPath && !globalConfig), 'Unexpected configureToken parameter combinations');
+            // Default config path
+            if (!configPath && !globalConfig) {
+                configPath = path.join(this.git.getWorkingDirectory(), '.git', 'config');
+            }
             // Configure a placeholder value. This approach avoids the credential being captured
             // by process creation audit events, which are commonly logged. For more information,
             // refer to https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/identity/ad-ds/manage/component-updates/command-line-process-auditing
-            const placeholder = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ***`;
-            yield this.git.config(EXTRA_HEADER_KEY, placeholder);
-            // Determine the basic credential value
-            const basicCredential = Buffer.from(`x-access-token:${this.settings.authToken}`, 'utf8').toString('base64');
-            core.setSecret(basicCredential);
-            // Replace the value in the config file
-            const configPath = path.join(this.git.getWorkingDirectory(), '.git', 'config');
+            yield this.git.config(this.tokenConfigKey, this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue, globalConfig);
+            // Replace the placeholder
+            yield this.replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath || '');
+        });
+    }
+    replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath) {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            assert.ok(configPath, 'configPath is not defined');
             let content = (yield fs.promises.readFile(configPath)).toString();
-            const placeholderIndex = content.indexOf(placeholder);
+            const placeholderIndex = content.indexOf(this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue);
             if (placeholderIndex < 0 ||
-                placeholderIndex != content.lastIndexOf(placeholder)) {
-                throw new Error('Unable to replace auth placeholder in .git/config');
+                placeholderIndex != content.lastIndexOf(this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue)) {
+                throw new Error(`Unable to replace auth placeholder in ${configPath}`);
             }
-            content = content.replace(placeholder, `AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`);
+            assert.ok(this.tokenConfigValue, 'tokenConfigValue is not defined');
+            content = content.replace(this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue, this.tokenConfigValue);
             yield fs.promises.writeFile(configPath, content);
         });
     }
     removeToken() {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             // HTTP extra header
-            yield this.removeGitConfig(EXTRA_HEADER_KEY);
+            yield this.removeGitConfig(this.tokenConfigKey);
         });
     }
     removeGitConfig(configKey) {
@@ -5138,6 +5225,8 @@ class GitAuthHelper {
                 // Load the config contents
                 core.warning(`Failed to remove '${configKey}' from the git config`);
             }
+            const pattern = regexpHelper.escape(configKey);
+            yield this.git.submoduleForeach(`git config --local --name-only --get-regexp ${pattern} && git config --local --unset-all ${configKey} || :`, true);
         });
     }
 }
@@ -5172,6 +5261,7 @@ const exec = __importStar(__webpack_require__(986));
 const fshelper = __importStar(__webpack_require__(618));
 const io = __importStar(__webpack_require__(1));
 const path = __importStar(__webpack_require__(622));
+const regexpHelper = __importStar(__webpack_require__(528));
 const retryHelper = __importStar(__webpack_require__(587));
 const git_version_1 = __webpack_require__(559);
 // Auth header not supported before 2.9
@@ -5263,17 +5353,26 @@ class GitCommandManager {
             yield this.execGit(args);
         });
     }
-    config(configKey, configValue) {
+    config(configKey, configValue, globalConfig) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            yield this.execGit(['config', '--local', configKey, configValue]);
+            yield this.execGit([
+                'config',
+                globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+                configKey,
+                configValue
+            ]);
         });
     }
-    configExists(configKey) {
+    configExists(configKey, globalConfig) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            const pattern = configKey.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9_]/g, x => {
-                return `\\${x}`;
-            });
-            const output = yield this.execGit(['config', '--local', '--name-only', '--get-regexp', pattern], true);
+            const pattern = regexpHelper.escape(configKey);
+            const output = yield this.execGit([
+                'config',
+                globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+                '--name-only',
+                '--get-regexp',
+                pattern
+            ], true);
             return output.exitCode === 0;
         });
     }
@@ -5343,9 +5442,45 @@ class GitCommandManager {
             yield this.execGit(['remote', 'add', remoteName, remoteUrl]);
         });
     }
+    removeEnvironmentVariable(name) {
+        delete this.gitEnv[name];
+    }
     setEnvironmentVariable(name, value) {
         this.gitEnv[name] = value;
     }
+    submoduleForeach(command, recursive) {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            const args = ['submodule', 'foreach'];
+            if (recursive) {
+                args.push('--recursive');
+            }
+            args.push(command);
+            const output = yield this.execGit(args);
+            return output.stdout;
+        });
+    }
+    submoduleSync(recursive) {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            const args = ['submodule', 'sync'];
+            if (recursive) {
+                args.push('--recursive');
+            }
+            yield this.execGit(args);
+        });
+    }
+    submoduleUpdate(fetchDepth, recursive) {
+        return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
+            const args = ['-c', 'protocol.version=2'];
+            args.push('submodule', 'update', '--init', '--force');
+            if (fetchDepth > 0) {
+                args.push(`--depth=${fetchDepth}`);
+            }
+            if (recursive) {
+                args.push('--recursive');
+            }
+            yield this.execGit(args);
+        });
+    }
     tagExists(pattern) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
             const output = yield this.execGit(['tag', '--list', pattern]);
@@ -5358,9 +5493,14 @@ class GitCommandManager {
             return output.exitCode === 0;
         });
     }
-    tryConfigUnset(configKey) {
+    tryConfigUnset(configKey, globalConfig) {
         return __awaiter(this, void 0, void 0, function* () {
-            const output = yield this.execGit(['config', '--local', '--unset-all', configKey], true);
+            const output = yield this.execGit([
+                'config',
+                globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+                '--unset-all',
+                configKey
+            ], true);
             return output.exitCode === 0;
         });
     }
@@ -5551,48 +5691,66 @@ function getSource(settings) {
             core.info(`The repository will be downloaded using the GitHub REST API`);
             core.info(`To create a local Git repository instead, add Git ${gitCommandManager.MinimumGitVersion} or higher to the PATH`);
             yield githubApiHelper.downloadRepository(settings.authToken, settings.repositoryOwner, settings.repositoryName, settings.ref, settings.commit, settings.repositoryPath);
+            return;
         }
-        else {
-            // Save state for POST action
-            stateHelper.setRepositoryPath(settings.repositoryPath);
-            // Initialize the repository
-            if (!fsHelper.directoryExistsSync(path.join(settings.repositoryPath, '.git'))) {
-                yield git.init();
-                yield git.remoteAdd('origin', repositoryUrl);
+        // Save state for POST action
+        stateHelper.setRepositoryPath(settings.repositoryPath);
+        // Initialize the repository
+        if (!fsHelper.directoryExistsSync(path.join(settings.repositoryPath, '.git'))) {
+            yield git.init();
+            yield git.remoteAdd('origin', repositoryUrl);
+        }
+        // Disable automatic garbage collection
+        if (!(yield git.tryDisableAutomaticGarbageCollection())) {
+            core.warning(`Unable to turn off git automatic garbage collection. The git fetch operation may trigger garbage collection and cause a delay.`);
+        }
+        const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings);
+        try {
+            // Configure auth
+            yield authHelper.configureAuth();
+            // LFS install
+            if (settings.lfs) {
+                yield git.lfsInstall();
             }
-            // Disable automatic garbage collection
-            if (!(yield git.tryDisableAutomaticGarbageCollection())) {
-                core.warning(`Unable to turn off git automatic garbage collection. The git fetch operation may trigger garbage collection and cause a delay.`);
+            // Fetch
+            const refSpec = refHelper.getRefSpec(settings.ref, settings.commit);
+            yield git.fetch(settings.fetchDepth, refSpec);
+            // Checkout info
+            const checkoutInfo = yield refHelper.getCheckoutInfo(git, settings.ref, settings.commit);
+            // LFS fetch
+            // Explicit lfs-fetch to avoid slow checkout (fetches one lfs object at a time).
+            // Explicit lfs fetch will fetch lfs objects in parallel.
+            if (settings.lfs) {
+                yield git.lfsFetch(checkoutInfo.startPoint || checkoutInfo.ref);
             }
-            const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings);
-            try {
-                // Configure auth
-                yield authHelper.configureAuth();
-                // LFS install
-                if (settings.lfs) {
-                    yield git.lfsInstall();
+            // Checkout
+            yield git.checkout(checkoutInfo.ref, checkoutInfo.startPoint);
+            // Submodules
+            if (settings.submodules) {
+                try {
+                    // Temporarily override global config
+                    yield authHelper.configureGlobalAuth();
+                    // Checkout submodules
+                    yield git.submoduleSync(settings.nestedSubmodules);
+                    yield git.submoduleUpdate(settings.fetchDepth, settings.nestedSubmodules);
+                    yield git.submoduleForeach('git config --local gc.auto 0', settings.nestedSubmodules);
+                    // Persist credentials
+                    if (settings.persistCredentials) {
+                        yield authHelper.configureSubmoduleAuth();
+                    }
                 }
-                // Fetch
-                const refSpec = refHelper.getRefSpec(settings.ref, settings.commit);
-                yield git.fetch(settings.fetchDepth, refSpec);
-                // Checkout info
-                const checkoutInfo = yield refHelper.getCheckoutInfo(git, settings.ref, settings.commit);
-                // LFS fetch
-                // Explicit lfs-fetch to avoid slow checkout (fetches one lfs object at a time).
-                // Explicit lfs fetch will fetch lfs objects in parallel.
-                if (settings.lfs) {
-                    yield git.lfsFetch(checkoutInfo.startPoint || checkoutInfo.ref);
+                finally {
+                    // Remove temporary global config override
+                    yield authHelper.removeGlobalAuth();
                 }
-                // Checkout
-                yield git.checkout(checkoutInfo.ref, checkoutInfo.startPoint);
-                // Dump some info about the checked out commit
-                yield git.log1();
             }
-            finally {
-                // Remove auth
-                if (!settings.persistCredentials) {
-                    yield authHelper.removeAuth();
-                }
+            // Dump some info about the checked out commit
+            yield git.log1();
+        }
+        finally {
+            // Remove auth
+            if (!settings.persistCredentials) {
+                yield authHelper.removeAuth();
             }
         }
     });
@@ -9428,6 +9586,22 @@ module.exports.Singular = Hook.Singular
 module.exports.Collection = Hook.Collection
 
 
+/***/ }),
+
+/***/ 528:
+/***/ (function(__unusedmodule, exports) {
+
+"use strict";
+
+Object.defineProperty(exports, "__esModule", { value: true });
+function escape(value) {
+    return value.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9_]/g, x => {
+        return `\\${x}`;
+    });
+}
+exports.escape = escape;
+
+
 /***/ }),
 
 /***/ 529:
@@ -13731,10 +13905,6 @@ function getInputs() {
     // Clean
     result.clean = (core.getInput('clean') || 'true').toUpperCase() === 'TRUE';
     core.debug(`clean = ${result.clean}`);
-    // Submodules
-    if (core.getInput('submodules')) {
-        throw new Error("The input 'submodules' is not supported in actions/checkout@v2");
-    }
     // Fetch depth
     result.fetchDepth = Math.floor(Number(core.getInput('fetch-depth') || '1'));
     if (isNaN(result.fetchDepth) || result.fetchDepth < 0) {
@@ -13744,6 +13914,19 @@ function getInputs() {
     // LFS
     result.lfs = (core.getInput('lfs') || 'false').toUpperCase() === 'TRUE';
     core.debug(`lfs = ${result.lfs}`);
+    // Submodules
+    result.submodules = false;
+    result.nestedSubmodules = false;
+    const submodulesString = (core.getInput('submodules') || '').toUpperCase();
+    if (submodulesString == 'RECURSIVE') {
+        result.submodules = true;
+        result.nestedSubmodules = true;
+    }
+    else if (submodulesString == 'TRUE') {
+        result.submodules = true;
+    }
+    core.debug(`submodules = ${result.submodules}`);
+    core.debug(`recursive submodules = ${result.nestedSubmodules}`);
     // Auth token
     result.authToken = core.getInput('token');
     // Persist credentials
diff --git a/src/git-auth-helper.ts b/src/git-auth-helper.ts
index 7f7f11f..dd76fe9 100644
--- a/src/git-auth-helper.ts
+++ b/src/git-auth-helper.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import * as fs from 'fs'
 import * as io from '@actions/io'
 import * as os from 'os'
 import * as path from 'path'
+import * as regexpHelper from './regexp-helper'
 import * as stateHelper from './state-helper'
 import {default as uuid} from 'uuid/v4'
 import {IGitCommandManager} from './git-command-manager'
@@ -12,11 +13,13 @@ import {IGitSourceSettings} from './git-source-settings'
 
 const IS_WINDOWS = process.platform === 'win32'
 const HOSTNAME = 'github.com'
-const EXTRA_HEADER_KEY = `http.https://${HOSTNAME}/.extraheader`
 
 export interface IGitAuthHelper {
   configureAuth(): Promise<void>
+  configureGlobalAuth(): Promise<void>
+  configureSubmoduleAuth(): Promise<void>
   removeAuth(): Promise<void>
+  removeGlobalAuth(): Promise<void>
 }
 
 export function createAuthHelper(
@@ -27,8 +30,12 @@ export function createAuthHelper(
 }
 
 class GitAuthHelper {
-  private git: IGitCommandManager
-  private settings: IGitSourceSettings
+  private readonly git: IGitCommandManager
+  private readonly settings: IGitSourceSettings
+  private readonly tokenConfigKey: string = `http.https://${HOSTNAME}/.extraheader`
+  private readonly tokenPlaceholderConfigValue: string
+  private temporaryHomePath = ''
+  private tokenConfigValue: string
 
   constructor(
     gitCommandManager: IGitCommandManager,
@@ -36,6 +43,15 @@ class GitAuthHelper {
   ) {
     this.git = gitCommandManager
     this.settings = gitSourceSettings || (({} as unknown) as IGitSourceSettings)
+
+    // Token auth header
+    const basicCredential = Buffer.from(
+      `x-access-token:${this.settings.authToken}`,
+      'utf8'
+    ).toString('base64')
+    core.setSecret(basicCredential)
+    this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ***`
+    this.tokenConfigValue = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`
   }
 
   async configureAuth(): Promise<void> {
@@ -46,48 +62,132 @@ class GitAuthHelper {
     await this.configureToken()
   }
 
+  async configureGlobalAuth(): Promise<void> {
+    // Create a temp home directory
+    const runnerTemp = process.env['RUNNER_TEMP'] || ''
+    assert.ok(runnerTemp, 'RUNNER_TEMP is not defined')
+    const uniqueId = uuid()
+    this.temporaryHomePath = path.join(runnerTemp, uniqueId)
+    await fs.promises.mkdir(this.temporaryHomePath, {recursive: true})
+
+    // Copy the global git config
+    const gitConfigPath = path.join(
+      process.env['HOME'] || os.homedir(),
+      '.gitconfig'
+    )
+    const newGitConfigPath = path.join(this.temporaryHomePath, '.gitconfig')
+    let configExists = false
+    try {
+      await fs.promises.stat(gitConfigPath)
+      configExists = true
+    } catch (err) {
+      if (err.code !== 'ENOENT') {
+        throw err
+      }
+    }
+    if (configExists) {
+      core.info(`Copying '${gitConfigPath}' to '${newGitConfigPath}'`)
+      await io.cp(gitConfigPath, newGitConfigPath)
+    } else {
+      await fs.promises.writeFile(newGitConfigPath, '')
+    }
+
+    // Configure the token
+    try {
+      core.info(
+        `Temporarily overriding HOME='${this.temporaryHomePath}' before making global git config changes`
+      )
+      this.git.setEnvironmentVariable('HOME', this.temporaryHomePath)
+      await this.configureToken(newGitConfigPath, true)
+    } catch (err) {
+      // Unset in case somehow written to the real global config
+      core.info(
+        'Encountered an error when attempting to configure token. Attempting unconfigure.'
+      )
+      await this.git.tryConfigUnset(this.tokenConfigKey, true)
+      throw err
+    }
+  }
+
+  async configureSubmoduleAuth(): Promise<void> {
+    if (this.settings.persistCredentials) {
+      // Configure a placeholder value. This approach avoids the credential being captured
+      // by process creation audit events, which are commonly logged. For more information,
+      // refer to https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/identity/ad-ds/manage/component-updates/command-line-process-auditing
+      const output = await this.git.submoduleForeach(
+        `git config "${this.tokenConfigKey}" "${this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue}" && git config --local --show-origin --name-only --get-regexp remote.origin.url`,
+        this.settings.nestedSubmodules
+      )
+
+      // Replace the placeholder
+      const configPaths: string[] =
+        output.match(/(?<=(^|\n)file:)[^\t]+(?=\tremote\.origin\.url)/g) || []
+      for (const configPath of configPaths) {
+        core.debug(`Replacing token placeholder in '${configPath}'`)
+        this.replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath)
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
   async removeAuth(): Promise<void> {
     await this.removeToken()
   }
 
-  private async configureToken(): Promise<void> {
+  async removeGlobalAuth(): Promise<void> {
+    core.info(`Unsetting HOME override`)
+    this.git.removeEnvironmentVariable('HOME')
+    await io.rmRF(this.temporaryHomePath)
+  }
+
+  private async configureToken(
+    configPath?: string,
+    globalConfig?: boolean
+  ): Promise<void> {
+    // Validate args
+    assert.ok(
+      (configPath && globalConfig) || (!configPath && !globalConfig),
+      'Unexpected configureToken parameter combinations'
+    )
+
+    // Default config path
+    if (!configPath && !globalConfig) {
+      configPath = path.join(this.git.getWorkingDirectory(), '.git', 'config')
+    }
+
     // Configure a placeholder value. This approach avoids the credential being captured
     // by process creation audit events, which are commonly logged. For more information,
     // refer to https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/identity/ad-ds/manage/component-updates/command-line-process-auditing
-    const placeholder = `AUTHORIZATION: basic ***`
-    await this.git.config(EXTRA_HEADER_KEY, placeholder)
-
-    // Determine the basic credential value
-    const basicCredential = Buffer.from(
-      `x-access-token:${this.settings.authToken}`,
-      'utf8'
-    ).toString('base64')
-    core.setSecret(basicCredential)
-
-    // Replace the value in the config file
-    const configPath = path.join(
-      this.git.getWorkingDirectory(),
-      '.git',
-      'config'
+    await this.git.config(
+      this.tokenConfigKey,
+      this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue,
+      globalConfig
     )
+
+    // Replace the placeholder
+    await this.replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath || '')
+  }
+
+  private async replaceTokenPlaceholder(configPath: string): Promise<void> {
+    assert.ok(configPath, 'configPath is not defined')
     let content = (await fs.promises.readFile(configPath)).toString()
-    const placeholderIndex = content.indexOf(placeholder)
+    const placeholderIndex = content.indexOf(this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue)
     if (
       placeholderIndex < 0 ||
-      placeholderIndex != content.lastIndexOf(placeholder)
+      placeholderIndex != content.lastIndexOf(this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue)
     ) {
-      throw new Error('Unable to replace auth placeholder in .git/config')
+      throw new Error(`Unable to replace auth placeholder in ${configPath}`)
     }
+    assert.ok(this.tokenConfigValue, 'tokenConfigValue is not defined')
     content = content.replace(
-      placeholder,
-      `AUTHORIZATION: basic ${basicCredential}`
+      this.tokenPlaceholderConfigValue,
+      this.tokenConfigValue
     )
     await fs.promises.writeFile(configPath, content)
   }
 
   private async removeToken(): Promise<void> {
     // HTTP extra header
-    await this.removeGitConfig(EXTRA_HEADER_KEY)
+    await this.removeGitConfig(this.tokenConfigKey)
   }
 
   private async removeGitConfig(configKey: string): Promise<void> {
@@ -98,5 +198,11 @@ class GitAuthHelper {
       // Load the config contents
       core.warning(`Failed to remove '${configKey}' from the git config`)
     }
+
+    const pattern = regexpHelper.escape(configKey)
+    await this.git.submoduleForeach(
+      `git config --local --name-only --get-regexp ${pattern} && git config --local --unset-all ${configKey} || :`,
+      true
+    )
   }
 }
diff --git a/src/git-command-manager.ts b/src/git-command-manager.ts
index 2b0d054..4cbfe4a 100644
--- a/src/git-command-manager.ts
+++ b/src/git-command-manager.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import * as exec from '@actions/exec'
 import * as fshelper from './fs-helper'
 import * as io from '@actions/io'
 import * as path from 'path'
+import * as regexpHelper from './regexp-helper'
 import * as retryHelper from './retry-helper'
 import {GitVersion} from './git-version'
 
@@ -16,8 +17,12 @@ export interface IGitCommandManager {
   branchList(remote: boolean): Promise<string[]>
   checkout(ref: string, startPoint: string): Promise<void>
   checkoutDetach(): Promise<void>
-  config(configKey: string, configValue: string): Promise<void>
-  configExists(configKey: string): Promise<boolean>
+  config(
+    configKey: string,
+    configValue: string,
+    globalConfig?: boolean
+  ): Promise<void>
+  configExists(configKey: string, globalConfig?: boolean): Promise<boolean>
   fetch(fetchDepth: number, refSpec: string[]): Promise<void>
   getWorkingDirectory(): string
   init(): Promise<void>
@@ -26,10 +31,14 @@ export interface IGitCommandManager {
   lfsInstall(): Promise<void>
   log1(): Promise<void>
   remoteAdd(remoteName: string, remoteUrl: string): Promise<void>
+  removeEnvironmentVariable(name: string): void
   setEnvironmentVariable(name: string, value: string): void
+  submoduleForeach(command: string, recursive: boolean): Promise<string>
+  submoduleSync(recursive: boolean): Promise<void>
+  submoduleUpdate(fetchDepth: number, recursive: boolean): Promise<void>
   tagExists(pattern: string): Promise<boolean>
   tryClean(): Promise<boolean>
-  tryConfigUnset(configKey: string): Promise<boolean>
+  tryConfigUnset(configKey: string, globalConfig?: boolean): Promise<boolean>
   tryDisableAutomaticGarbageCollection(): Promise<boolean>
   tryGetFetchUrl(): Promise<string>
   tryReset(): Promise<boolean>
@@ -124,16 +133,32 @@ class GitCommandManager {
     await this.execGit(args)
   }
 
-  async config(configKey: string, configValue: string): Promise<void> {
-    await this.execGit(['config', '--local', configKey, configValue])
+  async config(
+    configKey: string,
+    configValue: string,
+    globalConfig?: boolean
+  ): Promise<void> {
+    await this.execGit([
+      'config',
+      globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+      configKey,
+      configValue
+    ])
   }
 
-  async configExists(configKey: string): Promise<boolean> {
-    const pattern = configKey.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9_]/g, x => {
-      return `\\${x}`
-    })
+  async configExists(
+    configKey: string,
+    globalConfig?: boolean
+  ): Promise<boolean> {
+    const pattern = regexpHelper.escape(configKey)
     const output = await this.execGit(
-      ['config', '--local', '--name-only', '--get-regexp', pattern],
+      [
+        'config',
+        globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+        '--name-only',
+        '--get-regexp',
+        pattern
+      ],
       true
     )
     return output.exitCode === 0
@@ -208,10 +233,48 @@ class GitCommandManager {
     await this.execGit(['remote', 'add', remoteName, remoteUrl])
   }
 
+  removeEnvironmentVariable(name: string): void {
+    delete this.gitEnv[name]
+  }
+
   setEnvironmentVariable(name: string, value: string): void {
     this.gitEnv[name] = value
   }
 
+  async submoduleForeach(command: string, recursive: boolean): Promise<string> {
+    const args = ['submodule', 'foreach']
+    if (recursive) {
+      args.push('--recursive')
+    }
+    args.push(command)
+
+    const output = await this.execGit(args)
+    return output.stdout
+  }
+
+  async submoduleSync(recursive: boolean): Promise<void> {
+    const args = ['submodule', 'sync']
+    if (recursive) {
+      args.push('--recursive')
+    }
+
+    await this.execGit(args)
+  }
+
+  async submoduleUpdate(fetchDepth: number, recursive: boolean): Promise<void> {
+    const args = ['-c', 'protocol.version=2']
+    args.push('submodule', 'update', '--init', '--force')
+    if (fetchDepth > 0) {
+      args.push(`--depth=${fetchDepth}`)
+    }
+
+    if (recursive) {
+      args.push('--recursive')
+    }
+
+    await this.execGit(args)
+  }
+
   async tagExists(pattern: string): Promise<boolean> {
     const output = await this.execGit(['tag', '--list', pattern])
     return !!output.stdout.trim()
@@ -222,9 +285,17 @@ class GitCommandManager {
     return output.exitCode === 0
   }
 
-  async tryConfigUnset(configKey: string): Promise<boolean> {
+  async tryConfigUnset(
+    configKey: string,
+    globalConfig?: boolean
+  ): Promise<boolean> {
     const output = await this.execGit(
-      ['config', '--local', '--unset-all', configKey],
+      [
+        'config',
+        globalConfig ? '--global' : '--local',
+        '--unset-all',
+        configKey
+      ],
       true
     )
     return output.exitCode === 0
diff --git a/src/git-source-provider.ts b/src/git-source-provider.ts
index 34b822c..90f97c9 100644
--- a/src/git-source-provider.ts
+++ b/src/git-source-provider.ts
@@ -61,63 +61,91 @@ export async function getSource(settings: IGitSourceSettings): Promise<void> {
       settings.commit,
       settings.repositoryPath
     )
-  } else {
-    // Save state for POST action
-    stateHelper.setRepositoryPath(settings.repositoryPath)
+    return
+  }
 
-    // Initialize the repository
-    if (
-      !fsHelper.directoryExistsSync(path.join(settings.repositoryPath, '.git'))
-    ) {
-      await git.init()
-      await git.remoteAdd('origin', repositoryUrl)
+  // Save state for POST action
+  stateHelper.setRepositoryPath(settings.repositoryPath)
+
+  // Initialize the repository
+  if (
+    !fsHelper.directoryExistsSync(path.join(settings.repositoryPath, '.git'))
+  ) {
+    await git.init()
+    await git.remoteAdd('origin', repositoryUrl)
+  }
+
+  // Disable automatic garbage collection
+  if (!(await git.tryDisableAutomaticGarbageCollection())) {
+    core.warning(
+      `Unable to turn off git automatic garbage collection. The git fetch operation may trigger garbage collection and cause a delay.`
+    )
+  }
+
+  const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
+  try {
+    // Configure auth
+    await authHelper.configureAuth()
+
+    // LFS install
+    if (settings.lfs) {
+      await git.lfsInstall()
     }
 
-    // Disable automatic garbage collection
-    if (!(await git.tryDisableAutomaticGarbageCollection())) {
-      core.warning(
-        `Unable to turn off git automatic garbage collection. The git fetch operation may trigger garbage collection and cause a delay.`
-      )
+    // Fetch
+    const refSpec = refHelper.getRefSpec(settings.ref, settings.commit)
+    await git.fetch(settings.fetchDepth, refSpec)
+
+    // Checkout info
+    const checkoutInfo = await refHelper.getCheckoutInfo(
+      git,
+      settings.ref,
+      settings.commit
+    )
+
+    // LFS fetch
+    // Explicit lfs-fetch to avoid slow checkout (fetches one lfs object at a time).
+    // Explicit lfs fetch will fetch lfs objects in parallel.
+    if (settings.lfs) {
+      await git.lfsFetch(checkoutInfo.startPoint || checkoutInfo.ref)
     }
 
-    const authHelper = gitAuthHelper.createAuthHelper(git, settings)
-    try {
-      // Configure auth
-      await authHelper.configureAuth()
+    // Checkout
+    await git.checkout(checkoutInfo.ref, checkoutInfo.startPoint)
 
-      // LFS install
-      if (settings.lfs) {
-        await git.lfsInstall()
+    // Submodules
+    if (settings.submodules) {
+      try {
+        // Temporarily override global config
+        await authHelper.configureGlobalAuth()
+
+        // Checkout submodules
+        await git.submoduleSync(settings.nestedSubmodules)
+        await git.submoduleUpdate(
+          settings.fetchDepth,
+          settings.nestedSubmodules
+        )
+        await git.submoduleForeach(
+          'git config --local gc.auto 0',
+          settings.nestedSubmodules
+        )
+
+        // Persist credentials
+        if (settings.persistCredentials) {
+          await authHelper.configureSubmoduleAuth()
+        }
+      } finally {
+        // Remove temporary global config override
+        await authHelper.removeGlobalAuth()
       }
+    }
 
-      // Fetch
-      const refSpec = refHelper.getRefSpec(settings.ref, settings.commit)
-      await git.fetch(settings.fetchDepth, refSpec)
-
-      // Checkout info
-      const checkoutInfo = await refHelper.getCheckoutInfo(
-        git,
-        settings.ref,
-        settings.commit
-      )
-
-      // LFS fetch
-      // Explicit lfs-fetch to avoid slow checkout (fetches one lfs object at a time).
-      // Explicit lfs fetch will fetch lfs objects in parallel.
-      if (settings.lfs) {
-        await git.lfsFetch(checkoutInfo.startPoint || checkoutInfo.ref)
-      }
-
-      // Checkout
-      await git.checkout(checkoutInfo.ref, checkoutInfo.startPoint)
-
-      // Dump some info about the checked out commit
-      await git.log1()
-    } finally {
-      // Remove auth
-      if (!settings.persistCredentials) {
-        await authHelper.removeAuth()
-      }
+    // Dump some info about the checked out commit
+    await git.log1()
+  } finally {
+    // Remove auth
+    if (!settings.persistCredentials) {
+      await authHelper.removeAuth()
     }
   }
 }
diff --git a/src/git-source-settings.ts b/src/git-source-settings.ts
index 49d8825..e411fad 100644
--- a/src/git-source-settings.ts
+++ b/src/git-source-settings.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ export interface IGitSourceSettings {
   clean: boolean
   fetchDepth: number
   lfs: boolean
+  submodules: boolean
+  nestedSubmodules: boolean
   authToken: string
   persistCredentials: boolean
 }
diff --git a/src/input-helper.ts b/src/input-helper.ts
index e50dbc5..3769350 100644
--- a/src/input-helper.ts
+++ b/src/input-helper.ts
@@ -85,13 +85,6 @@ export function getInputs(): IGitSourceSettings {
   result.clean = (core.getInput('clean') || 'true').toUpperCase() === 'TRUE'
   core.debug(`clean = ${result.clean}`)
 
-  // Submodules
-  if (core.getInput('submodules')) {
-    throw new Error(
-      "The input 'submodules' is not supported in actions/checkout@v2"
-    )
-  }
-
   // Fetch depth
   result.fetchDepth = Math.floor(Number(core.getInput('fetch-depth') || '1'))
   if (isNaN(result.fetchDepth) || result.fetchDepth < 0) {
@@ -103,6 +96,19 @@ export function getInputs(): IGitSourceSettings {
   result.lfs = (core.getInput('lfs') || 'false').toUpperCase() === 'TRUE'
   core.debug(`lfs = ${result.lfs}`)
 
+  // Submodules
+  result.submodules = false
+  result.nestedSubmodules = false
+  const submodulesString = (core.getInput('submodules') || '').toUpperCase()
+  if (submodulesString == 'RECURSIVE') {
+    result.submodules = true
+    result.nestedSubmodules = true
+  } else if (submodulesString == 'TRUE') {
+    result.submodules = true
+  }
+  core.debug(`submodules = ${result.submodules}`)
+  core.debug(`recursive submodules = ${result.nestedSubmodules}`)
+
   // Auth token
   result.authToken = core.getInput('token')
 
diff --git a/src/regexp-helper.ts b/src/regexp-helper.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ec76c3a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/regexp-helper.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+export function escape(value: string): string {
+  return value.replace(/[^a-zA-Z0-9_]/g, x => {
+    return `\\${x}`
+  })
+}