You can use command-line options to start the VSS client against a specified database. With these options, you can easily assign different VSS icons to different VSS local or remote databases.
The following command-line options are supported:
| Command-Line option | Description |
| -yuser,pwd | Identifies the user's name and password, avoiding the Login dialog box. |
| -s\\server\share\path | Identifies a specific SRCSAFE.INI file, overriding VSS's normal search method for SRCSAFE.INI. |
| -dvar | Identifies a data path to use in the SRCSAFE.INI file. If specified, this value specifies a DATA_PATH variable used in the SRCSAFE.INI file. |
| -pproject | Identifies the project to open VSS in. For example, SSEXP -p$/Word/Code would launch VSS in that project. |
All of these options are optional, and none are dependent on others.
To use these options effectively, assign the appropriate command line to different VSS icons in your VSS program group. For example, to use one icon to access a VSS database at \\DEV1\SourceSafe, assign the following line to one icon:
SSEXP -s\\DEV1\SourceSafe
The -d option is a powerful feature that can be used to configure a SRCSAFE.INI file with multiple data path variables. (See the VSS Administrator's Help file for more information on the Data_Path variable.) For example:
Data_Path (Word) = \\Office\WORD\SSDB
Data_Path (Excel) = \\Office\EXCEL\SSDB
Data_Path (PowerPoint) = \\Office\PPT\SSDB
Using an icon to launch the VSS Explorer on the Powerpoint database, for example, you would assign this command line to a VSS icon:
SSEXP -s\\Office\Source -dPowerpoint
This command causes VSS to search the root folder of the \\Office\Source share for SRCSAFE.INI. In SRCSAFE.INI, VSS would look for the Powerpoint Data_path variable assignment and would be directed to the VSS database at \\Office\PPT\SSDB.
The -p option can be used in e-mail software (that supports icons) to send a pointer to your VSS project, or to create a Windows icon that always opens VSS in a particular project.