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Use a Cross-Platform File Repository
by Andy Clark

December 22, 2004

Perforce SCM System 2004.2 helps you maintain a software configuration management (SCM) file repository and integrate that repository into your applications.

Perforce includes all the capabilities of a complete SCM tool. It lets you place source code in a central repository and track code changes (see Figure 1). You can lock source-code modules so that only one developer at a time can work with a file. It also allows multiple users to work on a file concurrently, and it provides tools that reconcile the different copies. Perforce tracks file versions, and it labels the versions that your software releases contain. You can group changes in order to identify the work done to correct a bug or implement a change.

Perforce has a particularly impressive set of reports for tracking changes over time. The Revision Graph report displays your file in a separate window and shows different versions as you move through the file history with a slider bar. However, this feature doesn't seem to work with filenames with embedded spaces such as "my code.cs."

Perforce also lets you define triggers that fire when files change. You can use triggers to run batch jobs that perform maintenance chores, a feature you can leverage to automate building and testing processes within your SCM.

You manage the Perforce repository through a server that must reside on a Unix, Mac OS, or Windows platform. Windows clients can work through a standalone Explorer-like client, a Web client, several IDEs (including Visual Studio and VS.NET), a command-line interface, or API calls. Note that Perforce integrates directly into Office, Visual Studio, and VS.NET environments. Perforce clients are also available for Unix, VMS, Linux, Macintosh, and other platforms, making Perforce ideal for cross-platform development teams.

This flexibility also offers you the intriguing possibility of using Perforce's file repository for more than SCM. The API interface gives you the option of integrating the Perforce repository into apps that work with collaborative documents. This type of repository might not work well with heavily formatted documents, such as word-processing or spreadsheet files, but it could give you a useful toolset for managing collaborative flat-text, HTML, and XML files.

The Perforce staff is prompt, helpful, and knowledgeable. The documentation is well written.

Perforce requires you to do a fair amount of planning and setup before it's functional. Your development group might need to give someone the job of administering the Perforce server and assisting in client configuration. Large staffs might require a full-time administrator. However, this is probably true of any SCM tool.

Perforce is a powerful tool for distributed development. The planning you must do to get the most out of it is well worth the effort, particularly for cross-platform development teams.

Perforce SCM System 2004.2
Perforce Software Inc.
Web: www.perforce.com
Phone: 510-864-7400
Price: Starts at $750 per user
Quick Facts: Flexible multiplatform software configuration management system.
Pros: Provides a file repository you can access through TCP/IP from a variety of clients. Features tools for viewing change history.
Cons: Requires extensive up-front planning and setup work.

About the Author
Andy Clark is a consultant with iGate Inc. in the Richmond, Va., area. He holds PMP, MCSD, and SJCP certifications. Reach him at .