TortoiseSVN + CVI 8.0.1 + PushOK's SCC plugin works fine, except for workspace file...(?)

[JumperBones]

To all CVI developers who might be curious about using cheap software versioning tools with LabWindows/CVI 8.0.1:

I have just set up a couple of my previously created CVI 8.0.1 projects to use Subversion via TortoiseSVN and an SCC provider plugin from PushOK Software, Ltd. (URLs provided below).

Everything seems to works fine (except for one issue, see below), which is great since the PushOK SCC/SVN plugin is only $24.00 (USD) per license, and a license is valid for three "seats" (ex: home, work, laptop).  The TortoiseSVN is open-source and you can't get any cheaper than that.

I can check-in and out, view history, show differences, etc.

I determined that (for my preferences) it works best if you attach the SCC provider on a per-project basis via the "Edit >> Project..." menu (as opposed to setting it globally via the "Options >> Environment..., Source Code Control..." menu.

But either way you choose, there is no apparent method to check-out / check-in the workspace file (*.cws).

So every time I want to save the workspace file (or it wants to auto-save it on its own), I have to step out into Windows Explorer (where the TortoiseSVN pop-up context-menus live) to do the job.

Am I to assume that the workspace should never be considered as part of the project source code?

It doesn't help that the CVI documentation is quite sparse on the topic of Source Code Control.

I sense that a white-paper from an appropriate NI engineer is really needed here.

JB

http://tortoisesvn.tigris.org/

http://www.pushok.com/

http://subversion.tigris.org/

[JumperBones]

I think I got a work-around to my own question here....

To save the *.cws workspace file (or any other file you consider to be part of your CVI 8.0.1 project, for that matter) without having to use TortoiseSVN (until the very end of your CVI development "session", that is), simply use the "Browse..." command-button after you right-click and select "Check Out..." on any other file in your project.  This will get you to a "Select file(s) to check-out" pop-up window, which will have in its listing, at a minimum, the file you were checking out.  But you can now add any other file to that list manually.

And dont forget, if you did not actually want to check out the file you used as a vehicle to get to that "Select file(s) to check-out" pop-up window, make sure you un-check it in the list box.  Even if you forget, you can undo the check-out.

[ And I suppose I can now assume that the NI CVI software team really does NOT consider the *.cws file to be part of the source code in the project.  Because when you use this "Browse..." feature, the drop down filter for file extensions provides *.c, *.h, *.uir, *.fp, *.prj, *.txt, *.dll and *.lib, and the obligatory *.* for anything else.  I have to assume that the CVI team set up those extensions to work with SCC provider plugins since I've got many other files in my project folder out on the file system with lots of other file extensions. ]

Note: you will need to reverse this procedure when you want to check in the *.cws file (using "Check In...").

And at the end of your CVI development session, you will still have to go out to TortoiseSVN in your Windows Explorer context menus and perform a "commit" on your project's root folder to make that *.cws file (and/or any other file you performed the above procedure on) to push your final edits into your repository database.

Again, it appears that LabVIEW has enjoyed a better solution from their software development team.  I also toyed with one of my LabVIEW 8.2 projects, setting up TortoiseSVN and PushOK's SCC plugin in the "SCC Provider" place in the LabVIEW Project Explorer window.  Everything I had once put in my LabVIEW project's "Explorer" window is migrated to and from the SVN repository transparently to the user (the way it should be) with no issues, as far as I can see, so far.

It also is smart enough to add files to the repository that live outside my project folder (such as, for example over in C:\Program Files\... ...\instr.lib )...

...which I'm still not sure is a good thing for me, but it might be for other LabVIEW users out there.

Hope you found this useful.

( Hey, how come this message-editor won't let me give myself a rating for my own reply to my own question? )

JB