1. Microsoft Visual Source Safe How & Why
William Gunkel

2. What is Source Safe Graphical Win 95 / 98 / NT Repository
Stores any work product that can be saved on a PC
Historical version tracking
Stores each version with user entered comments
Accessibility to any past versions
Admin Selected Access Control
Read Only
Check-in Check-out (Read / Write)
Add Rename Delete
All including destroy (unrecoverable delete)
Project Tracking / Reporting Features
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3. Why Use Source Safe Centralized storage of work product
Controlled access to stored work product
Version tracking of work product
Tracking and change comments stored with saved work product
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4. Getting Starting You will need the Source Safe client
Request a account from SQA
User name will be your RWC network log in name
Default password will be your log in name
From swgroup2/vss folder run the Netsetup program
Install the Source Safe client on your PC
SQA will supply the CD key to complete the installation
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5. Starting Source Safe Click on the Source Safe Icon
Enter your user name and password. Press OK
If you do not already have a database selected you will need to select one
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6. A Few Source Safe Terms Working Folder Project Files Project Label
User working area
On your local computer or a network folder owned by you
You must have read/write permission for the folder
Project
Group of files and/or folders
Files
Any work product that can be saved as a Win NT file
Project Label
Logical tag for a group of files and/or folders
Current Version
All file(s) / project(s) operations work on last checked in copy of selected file(s) or project(s)
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7. Major Commands Get Check out Check in Show Difference Show History
Copies latest or user option historical version of file(s) or project(s) to your local (working) folder
Check out
Gets the latest version of file(s) or project(s) and locks file as checked out by you. Others may get copy of file, while the file is in check out it, BUT is effectively read only for all other users
Check in
Updates Source Safe copy of file from you local folder. Optionally may keep file check out
Show Difference
ASCII File’s: show difference(s) in a side by side window, of same file in your local working folder
Project’s: Shows list of difference between local project and Source Safe project
Show History
File’s: Shows list of version(s) of the selected file. View, Get, Show Difference of old vs.. same file(s) in your local folder
Project’s: Using a project label Get or View old version(s) of project
Add File(s)
Add File(s) to exciting project folder from your local folder
Also may use Drag and Drop to add file(s) or folder(s), avoids copying your local system path into Source Safe Project
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8. Working Folders Working Folder must point to a folder on your computer
Source Safe will copy (Get) file(s) to your local folder, or Check out file(s)
Each Project requires setting the Working Folder
Top of Project tree must have working folder set
By default Source Safe automatically expands sub-projects, when you Get or Check out a Project
Your project tree by default will mirror that of source safe
Source Safe remembers your working folders
You may set a different working folder for each project an/or sub-project
You may override default project tree with this feature
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9. Tool & Project Status Bar
First time that you access a project, to perform a Check out or Get. You will need to set a Working Folder
All future operations are referenced from the currently selected Source Safe file or project to YOUR local working folder
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10. Window Frames Files Processed window Process Status Bar Project Window
File Window
Shows file check out status
Date/Time is LAST update
Files Processed window
Process Status Bar
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11. File Window Frame File is check out (and not shared)
File is shared (Note multiple icon layers)
File may appear in one or more other project folders. Check out or check in effects all ‘copies’ of the shared file.
Two check marks on a file indicates that the file is checkout by two people
Files is not checked out
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12. From the ‘File’ menu select ‘Open SourceSafe Database’
Selecting Database
From the ‘File’ menu select ‘Open SourceSafe Database’
Currently RWC has two VSS database, one under swgroup and the second under swgroup2. Use this dialog to switch between the databases
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13. Projects The Power of Source Safe
In Source Safe a folder, or directory is treated as a Project. A Project may have many sub-projects or folders
Get, Check out, Check in, Show Difference, History commands can be executed on a Project
Select the Project and Source Safe will build the same tree in your local folder OR
Set a Working Folder in each ‘sub-project’ and you may change the default tree
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14. Changing Default Project Tree
Set working folder to c:\myfolder
Set working folder to c:\myfolder\build
Set working folder to c:\myfolder\data
Set working folder to c:\myfolder\Sounds
This procedure allows overriding the default project tree in your local folder
Use the ‘override’ feature if the default project tree dose not meet your requirements
Note: Note any folder not ‘overridden’ will default to its ‘base’ folder + the sub-folder name
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15. Getting Files Press tool bar button after
Selecting the file or files you wish to Get (copy) to your Working Folder.
Or right click selection and
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16. Checking Out Files Press tool bar button after
Selecting the file or files you wish to Check out to your Working Folder.
Or right click selection and
This feature will work on a file, group of select files or an entire project if you use the ‘recursive’ option
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17. Checking In Files Press tool bar button after
Selecting the file or files you wish to Check in from your Working Folder.
Or right click selection and
This feature will work on a file, group of select files or an entire project if you use the ‘recursive’ option
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18. Check in Dialog Select to check in a project (multiple folders)
Update changes only Does not unlock files. All your local folder changes are copied into the Source Safe database, but the file remains checked out to you (locked)
CHECK IN COMMENTS
This is the history comments. This field is effectively unlimited in size. Detail your changes here. Choose your words wisely. Comment should include Why change was make, what was changed and project version
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19. Show Differences Press tool bar button after
Selecting the file you wish to Show Differences of
Or right click selection and
This command can be used to ‘diff’ files within the project
Use the command at the project level to compare the entire project to in your local folder. IT IS RECOMMENED that you use the feature before any operation on a project to validate that you local folder is not out of sync in unexpected ways.
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20. Show History Press tool bar button after
Selecting the file you wish to Show History
Or right click selection and
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21. Show History Dialog Show file in read only editor Show comment details
Get a read only copy of file
Show Difference of file
Project Label, by using this label you can retrieve a complete copy of the project that was ‘tagged by this label
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22. Add Files Press tool bar button to display Add Files dialog OR
Drag and Drop to add file(s) or folder(s)
This command is used to add files to an existing project or adding files to a newly created project
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23. Add Files Dialog Files not already in project window 12/26/2018
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24. Project Labels
After checking in a complete project, place a tag with comments on that project. MAKE LIBERAL USE OF PROJCT LABELS
Without the project label You CAN NOT ‘get’ that same set of files for future reference. Use the label feature any time you wish to take a ‘snap shot’ of a project or group of files belonging to that project. Use project version as label tag, the comment field should give brief statement as to changes in this version. Label automatically works recursively, therefore all sub-project & files will be tagged with the same label
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25. User Options Use to change display for Show difference command
Points to your preferred editor for viewing files (defaults to notepad)
Default options
Generally changing is not required
Be sure you have a local directory selected here
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26. File Sharing Select file(s) to share to “EXE” folder
Select if you which to have an unlinked copy of file
First select folder to be shared to, then select from SourceSafe menu “Share”. Find the file(s) or folder(s) you which to share and select “Share” command from the Share dialog. The selected file(s) or folder(s) are now shared.
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27. Rules of Use Never leave out a check-in comment
check in comments must be more than “misc changes”
Its better to over comment changes, than under comment
Avoid checking in files that have not at least compiled and linked (if applicable)
Do not change Read Only attribute of source files
An unchecked out file is marked Read Only by source safe
Use as reminder that if changes are needed you need to check out that file
Avoid moving files or projects from your local working folder after check out
Make LIBERAL use of project labels
Without the label you can not get a old version of a project
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28. VSS ADMIN SQA maintains the Visual Source Safe
New project are create by SQA
New users are added by SQA
Project access privileges are set by SQA
Project team member(s) will given access based on project
Full access to your project(s), but read only to all others
Database maintenance
performed each Monday, database off line till 9:00 AM
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