Technical Bulletin
Multi-Platform Version Control with SourceSafe

SourceSafe by One Tree Software is designed to be a one point control
center for all your code. This commitment extends beyond providing a
project-oriented model and an accessible interface. It means that if you
port code across different platforms, accessing common files across a
heterogeneous network, you need to be able to store those files in
SourceSafe and access them from all your operating environments.

This document lists the major software platforms which may be important to
your development strategy, and discusses SourceSafe's support for these
platforms. Before listing the platforms, however, a few general points
should be made.

All SourceSafe versions are 100% compatible with each other.

If you check out a file from the Macintosh, the checkout status will appear
on a Windows users' screen. When you update the file back into SourceSafe,
the new file (with your changes) may subsequently be checked out to a UNIX
machine somewhere else on the network.

SourceSafe interfaces on different platforms are similar to each other, in
order to minimize the learning curve.

Of course, each version is also designed to look and act as a user of that
environment would expect. When these twin goals come in conflict, the
interface standards of the operating system are considered paramount.

With only minor variations, the feature set on all versions of SourceSafe
is the same.

Finally--if you are maintaining portable code, SourceSafe's Shared Files
feature can enable you to keep track of which modules are used by which
versions of your program.

See the technical bulletin "Version Control the SourceSafe Way" for more
information about this feature.

DOS

The original version of SourceSafe was a DOS application, and the DOS
product has remained an integral part of the product line. SourceSafe for
DOS actually consists of two programs: a text-based pop-up interface, and
a command-line . The two versions complement each other, providing
different ways of accessing the same functionality.

SourceSafe runs under DOS version 3.3 or higher.

Microsoft Windows

SourceSafe 2.0 added a Windows version of SourceSafe, and introduced
SourceSafe's graphical interface for the first time. SourceSafe for
Windows is not a simple "shell" that spawns a command-line or another
product: it is a full Microsoft Windows application, with an interface
modeled on the File Manager.

SourceSafe runs under Windows version 3.1 or higher. Because of
SourceSafe's advanced interface use, Windows 3.0 is not supported.

Microsoft Windows/NT

Since the July '92 Beta release of the Windows/NT operating system, One
Tree Software has been shipping a full 32-bit NT version of SourceSafe.
The interface is visually identical to the Windows 3.1 version of
SourceSafe, but is a genuine NT application in every respect.

The current shipping version of SourceSafe runs under the March '93 Beta
release of the operating system, and will not run on any earlier
versions.

The Macintosh

SourceSafe 2.1 added to the PC-based product line a Macintosh version.
SourceSafe for the Macintosh is not a standalone application with an
interface instead, it is a command-line application that runs inside the
Macintosh Programmer's Workshop (MPW). The command-line syntax is
identical, in almost all respects, with the command-line used by
SourceSafe for DOS. (A later version of SourceSafe will be a standalone
Macintosh application with a user interface; however, no date is scheduled
for this product.)

SourceSafe is designed to be completely aware of Macintosh-specific issues
such as the resource fork, file information (type, creator, flags), and
the modification and creation date/time of files. Of course, these
attributes may not appear when a file is checked out to another operating
system; but they will be maintained faithfully, and restored whenever a
file is retrieved to a Macintosh.

SourceSafe runs under Macintosh System 7.0, and requires the Macintosh
Programmer's Workshop. (An upcoming release of Think C will support MPW
tools, and will therefore provide an alternative way of running
SourceSafe. Contact One Tree Software if you need information about
obtaining MPW.)

UNIX

As of the date of this writing, the UNIX version of SourceSafe is in Beta
testing. It is scheduled to be released in May of 1993. SourceSafe is not
a graphical (X-Windows) program; it is a command-line application, using a
syntax very similar to that used by SourceSafe for DOS. (A later version
of SourceSafe will support a graphical interface; however, there is no
scheduled date for this product.)

In its initial release, SourceSafe for UNIX will be available on the
following platforms:

* PC versions (SCO, all 5.4 flavors)
* Sun 4
* Sun Sparc (Sun OS and Solaris)
* IBM RS6000
* DecStations (Ultrix)
* HP 700 and 800 series (HPUX).

OS/2

As of the date of this writing, OS/2 2.0 users can run SourceSafe for DOS
(both the command-line and the text-based interface) in a compatibility
box. Because of SourceSafe's use of 3.1 calls, OS/2 2.0 will not run
SourceSafe for Windows.

A native OS/2 port of SourceSafe is scheduled to go into Beta immediately
after the UNIX product is released--currently scheduled for May of 1993.
This product will consist of both an OS/2 command-line version of
SourceSafe, and a Presentation Manager graphical interface. Extended file
attributes will be fully supported; they will not appear on any non-OS/2
station, but will be faithfully maintained and restored whenever a file is
retrieved to an OS/2 machine. HPFS will also be fully supported.

The target release date of SourceSafe for OS/2 is June, 1993.

One Tree Software, PO Box 11639, Raleigh, NC 27604
Sales 800/397-2323;  Business 919/821-2300;  Fax 919/821-5222

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