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TFS: check in file when changes are made locally
I have source code in TFS. I check it out to my local folder and make changes to some files. Now I need to check it in, but, I never checked them out to start with. How can I do this.
BTW, I never know what file will need to be modified when I start, and I am not working in visual studio.
BTW, I never know what file will need to be modified when I start, and I am not working in visual studio.
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1 Solution
You're trying to do CVS-style "Fetch-Edit-Merge" development, which TFS doesn't really support - it's set up to do VSS-style "Checkout-Edit-Checkin" development.
In the context of a checkout-edit-checking source control system (like TFS), this status is known as "Renegade" - meaning the local file has been changed and is now newer than the server version, but has not been checked out. Unfortunately, unlike other SCC systems that recognize that the server check-out status and the local edit status are different things, the TFS client doesn't recognize this status and treats the file as if it's not been modified at all, leading to what you're seeing.
Are there multiple people working on this project at once? If not, and you're on the only developer, what's wrong with checking everything out, making your changes, and then checking everybody back in?
However, if there are multiple developers, you're in a bit of a bind, as TFS/VS don't make this style of development easy for you. However, I've done this before with a bit of a work-around - use Visual Studio to fetch a copy of the files to a folder that you don't modify. Then fetch a second copy to your working folder and modify those to your heart's content. When it's time for your check-in, use some Diff tool (like DiffMerge) to compare the two folders, showing which files you've actually modified. In Visual Studio, check out just those files and then check them back in from your working folder.
In the context of a checkout-edit-checking source control system (like TFS), this status is known as "Renegade" - meaning the local file has been changed and is now newer than the server version, but has not been checked out. Unfortunately, unlike other SCC systems that recognize that the server check-out status and the local edit status are different things, the TFS client doesn't recognize this status and treats the file as if it's not been modified at all, leading to what you're seeing.
Are there multiple people working on this project at once? If not, and you're on the only developer, what's wrong with checking everything out, making your changes, and then checking everybody back in?
However, if there are multiple developers, you're in a bit of a bind, as TFS/VS don't make this style of development easy for you. However, I've done this before with a bit of a work-around - use Visual Studio to fetch a copy of the files to a folder that you don't modify. Then fetch a second copy to your working folder and modify those to your heart's content. When it's time for your check-in, use some Diff tool (like DiffMerge) to compare the two folders, showing which files you've actually modified. In Visual Studio, check out just those files and then check them back in from your working folder.
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If you that regularly changing files without checking them out (so no write protection) then you will unevitably loose work regularly because of making some error in your actions.