INFO: Merging SourceSafe Files

WINDOWS             | WINDOWS NT          | MS-DOS

The information in this article applies to:

• Microsoft Visual SourceSafe, versions 4.0, 5.0
• Microsoft SourceSafe for Windows, versions 3.04, 3.1
• Microsoft SourceSafe for Windows NT, versions 3.04, 3.1
• Microsoft SourceSafe for MS-DOS, versions 3.04, 3.1

SUMMARY

If you have shared and separated your working files in SourceSafe and have made changes to each of the versions, you may wish to have these changes reflected in a final project. If multiple checkouts are enabled and more than one user has the file out for editing, you may want to have all the changes reflected in the final project. The MERGE command (Merge Branches in Visual SourceSafe 4.0) allows this capability.

MORE INFORMATION

The MERGE command (Merge Branches in Visual SourceSafe 4.0)takes the two ASCII text files and combines them. SourceSafe merges the original file (the last version of the file in SourceSafe prior to the separate or the multiple checkout action) and the file copies which have been modified.

When two users have a file checked out, the first user to update can do so with no problem. If there is a conflict (see next paragraph), the next user is told that a conflict exists and asked if the files were merged. The file will be copied to the Working directory with the conflicts marked. You should manually edit the file to resolve the conflicts and update the file.

As an example of a conflict, suppose that the original file contains the following line of code: X = 4. This original file is checked out by two users through either the multiple checkout or the share and separate (Branch in Visual SourceSafe 4.0). If one user changes the line of code to read: X = 5 and the other user changes the same line of code to read: X = 3, there is now a conflict. The first person to check in changes and merge has no problem. When the second person tries to check in the file and merge, the following message is given:

   An automatic merge has occurred and there are conflicts.
   Edit <path>\<filename> to resolve them.

      <<<<<<< $/<project1>/<filename>
      X = 3
      =======
      X = 5
      >>>>>>> $/<project2>/<filename>

     <filename> has been merged with no conflicts. Update Now?

NOTE: Merging only works correctly on ASCII files. For instance, FoxPro's SCX and SCT files or Visual Basic's FRX files are binary files and will not be merged correctly by SourceSafe.

To summarize:

1. Checkout, modify, and Update (Check in Visual SourceSafe 4.0) $/PROJECT/STARS.BAS. Highlight the file in the SourceSafe interface.

2. Select Merge (Merge Branches in Visual SourceSafe 4.0) from the SourceSafe menu.

3. The dialog lists a shared version of the file, as well as separated versions. Highlight the specific version you wish to merge with.

4. Select the Merge push button.

5. If there are any conflicts, you will be asked to resolve the conflicts and update the resulting file.