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Wiki: CVS Frequently Asked Questions

CVS FAQ

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How does Project Tracker Integration with CVS/Subversion help?

Project tracker Integration with CVS/Subversion enforces the committers to enter an artifact ID in the commit log message. The artifact is then updated with the commit message and also a link to the artifact is added in the CVS/Subversion log message in ViewVC page. This simplifies tracking changes to the source code through the Project tracking component.

Why does the command "cvs checkout ." not work?

The dot (.) notation in CVS means the user wants to check out every module. While this may not be a problem for some implementations of CVS, we have many clients for which this would, and has, overwhelmed the CVS system. The same situation is in place for checkouts using the keyword 'world' instead of '. CollabNet has updated the look/www/masters/CVSROOT_modules.vm to disallow the dot and 'world' checkout. This is because in CollabNet Enterprise Edition, we have the role based access system. A user must be able to checkout only those modules on which he/she has permissions. Hence checking out 'all' modules has been disabled.

How come my project homepage (or any other web-published page in my project) has signs like the following <<< and >>>?

This is the classic symptom of a merge error. The version control system has reported back that there are conflicts between the two files that need to be manually corrected. However, the file is posted to the website with the conflict messages in it.

What is automated CVS lock removal script?

Automated CVS lock remove script is a Python script called cvsminder.py. It runs at predetermined intervals to clean up the CVS processes that are not responding. This script can be run by CVS administrators only. It was initially known as cvscleanup.pl.

What is CVS-on-a-box?

CPU, memory, and I/O increase load on sites configured to run on a single CEE node. This affects overall performance and reliability. By distributing CEE services across multiple nodes, load is distributed to improve performance. The 'CVS on a box' effort focuses primarily on the following goals:

• Load balance CEE by distributing CVS from CEE to a separate node.
• Guarantee CVS failover.

How do we stop CVS watch notifications?

The only way to stop CVS notifications is that the users must 'unset' the watch themselves. The project owners do not have control on the individual watch settings.

How do I share source code across CVS projects?

It is not possible to directly share code from one repository to another. Hence it is ideal to store the reusable code in one CVS repository. We can only check out the required code from the reusable code repository and use it for further development.

Why is my CVS working copy read-only?

In your CVS client settings, you can define if the files should be read-only during the checkout process. If you are using a command line client, the command to turn this setting off is: cvs watch off -R

How do I provide direct links to files under cvs or Subversion but *above the www folder* (trunk in case of Subversion)?

The link must be given as: http://projectname.DOMAIN/source/browse/*checkout*/projectname/folder/file

What is CVSup and how do I configure it?

CVSup is a mirroring tool that is used for mirroring CVS repositories. This tool is run on two servers, the primary server where repository is hosted and the server on which mirroring is to be performed. It is also known as CVS replication daemon. The copy can be used for local development and also as a back up. However, the checkin/commits must be performed on the primary server since bidirectional activity is not allowed. This configuration decreases the overhead on the primary server. By default, this functionality is inactive and inaccessible but may be activated at request. CollabNet Operations team can have this activated, but as a paid service. Here's a useful link on this: http://www.cvsup.org/

What is CVS Admin?

CVS Admin is a feature that allows permanent deletion and renaming of files and folders in a CVS repository. The change done using CVS Admin cannot be reverted. It is a work around for the limitations in the way CollabNet Enterprise Edition hosts CVS. It allows site administrators and Project Owners to make changes to the CVS repository that they cannot do via the CVS command-line, such as renaming or deleting files without any historical records of these actions. It is a feature that must be used carefully since the purpose of CVS is to track every change ever made to the repository and CVS Admin subverts that concept.

How to trouble shoot "CVS connection timed out" error?

The following checks can be performed when a "CVS connection timed out" error is thrown:

• Ping CVS server (for eg cvs.dev.java.net). Ping will determine the network connectivity.
• Login to CEE with the same username and password. If this fails then the password could be the problem. Change it by going to the 'My profile' page.
• Check the CVS client details. The client must be compatible with the actual CVS version on the CEE instance
• Check the firewall settings. Firewall could be blocking access to 2401 port where CVS runs. Output of telnet cvs.dev.java.net 2401 will be helpful in determining this

• Try the command: cvs -t -d :pserver:mlangloi@cvs.dev.java.net:/cvs login The output will provide debug statements which can help in troubleshooting. If none of the above helps, try connecting using some other CVS client or an IDE.

• If connection time out is thrown during a checkout, this could be due to repository size and the session expires by the time its checked out completely. Required subdirectories can be checked out in this case One of the above checks will help in determining the reason for the error.

Why is the following error thrown when I try to checkout the contents of a CVS repository? cvs checkout: in directory .: cvs [checkout aborted]: *PANIC* administration files missing

This error is thrown when we try to checkout the contents of a CVS repository to a folder with the name 'CVS'. When we checkout the contents of a CVS repository, a hidden folder named 'CVS' is created within all the folders in the working copy. This folder contains the pristine copy of all files of the working copy and is called as the 'Working Copy Administrative Area'. Hence no other folder can be named 'CVS' in a Working Copy.