Rice University Engineers Without Borders

All of Rice EWB's files are stored in a system called Subversion. This page details how to access EWB files. Bookmark this page. It will help you. First you need to understand a few basic concepts of how the file system works. The concepts section is actually really important, so make sure you read it thoroughly.

Concepts

The system that holds all the files is called Subversion. It's usually abbreviated svn, so you'll see that around a lot. Subversion keeps copies of all the files ever used in it -- even the deleted ones. The files are stored in something called a repository. It also allows you to share files between different people. Subversion allows you to do different actions. The important ones are: check out, update, commit, add, delete, resolve, and revert.

Checking out - Downloading all the files in a specific location to your computer. You generally only need to do this once per computer. You can only check out folders, not single files.
Updating - Getting the newest versions of files on your computer. It is possible to update just a single file or a whole folder.
Committing - Submitting changed files to the repository. When you commit, you make your changes (such as updated, added, or deleted files) available to everyone in your team. You should always update before you commit. It is possible to commit just a single file or a whole folder.
Adding - Mark files to be added to the repository. They are not actually added until you commit. It is possible to add just a single file or a whole folder.
Deleting - Removes a file from the repository. The file is not actually removed until you commit. When you are working with files in the repository, you should always use Subversion to delete the file, instead of deleting it from My Computer or from your Documents folder. It is possible to delete just a single file or a whole folder.
Reverting - You can erase all the changes you made to a file by reverting. It is possible to revert just a single file or a whole folder.

Here's where it gets a bit hairy:
Suppose you and Alice are working on the same file, unknowingly. Both of you update at the same time, but Alice changes a file and commits it. Before you commit your changes, you remember to update first. There are two things that can happen: If the file is plain text (or some Microsoft Word documents) it can be merged as long as you and Alice are working in different parts of the file (her on the top half, you on the bottom half, for example). If the file is not plain text (such as an AutoCAD drawing, or an image), there will be a conflict. The file in conflict will be listed with "conflict" next to its name in the dialog that shows up when you update. It's pretty rare when you have a conflict, but if you do, there will be a bunch of files created to help you merge your file with Alice's. Where your file was there will be three files. Suppose your file is MyFile.jpg. The three files you'll have in a conflict will be:

MyFile.jpg.mine -- your file that you've worked on.
MyFile.jpg.r000 (where 000 is a number less than the next file) -- the file before you worked on it
MyFile.jpg.r111 (where 111 is a number greater than the previous file) -- the file Alice made

Once you sort out the conflict, you can perform the "resolve" action on the conflicted file. Then you can commit your file.

Now that you know about how Subversion works, here are some more specific details about how to get it working on your computer.

Install the software

First, you need a program called a client to access the files. There are various Subversion clients, but the most common ones are TortoiseSVN (Windows) and Versions (Mac). All Windows Rice computers have TortoiseSVN already installed, so you can skip this step if you're using a Rice Windows computer. Otherwise, download the installer for your system:

For TortoiseSVN: http://tortoisesvn.net/downloads (You want the MSI file, and probably the 32 bit one. If you're unsure, you want the 32 bit one).
1. 1. Download the file
2. 2. Run it to install TortoiseSVN
For Versions: http://www.versionsapp.com/ (Download in the top-right corner)
1. Download the file
2. Unzip it (just double click it to open it)
3. Take the application from the unzipped download and place it on your desktop

Once you have your client installed, you need to check out the files. You usually only need to do this once.

Checking Out Files

For Windows + TortoiseSVN:
1. Create a foler to hold all your EWB files. If you're using a Rice Windows computer, put it on your U: drive. Your desktop is part of your U: drive. Putting it there ensures that a) only you can access the files, and b) you can access the files from any Rice computer. You can also access your U: drive from your laptop/desktop in your room, but it's your responsibility to set that up (See the help desk).
2. Open that folder and right click in the window, then select "SVN Checkout..."
3. Enter the URL given to you by your project leaders
4. Click OK
5. You will get a message saying that there is an invalid certificate. Click "Accept Permanently"
6. When prompted for your username and password, enter the the username and password given to you by your team leader.
  Make sure you check the box saying to save the username and password, then click OK.
  Note: This username and password will only work for about a week or two. It will soon change to your NetID and password. When it does, you'll be asked to enter a username and password again -- put in your NetID and password.
7. All the El Pital files will be downloaded to your computer
For Mac + Versions:
1. Create a folder to hold all your El Sal / EWB files. If you're using a Rice Mac computer, put it in your Documents folder. Putting it there ensures that a) only you can access the files, and b) you can access the files from any Rice computer. You can also access your Documents folder from your laptop/desktop in your room, but it's your responsibility to set that up (See the help desk).
2. Run Versions
3. Create a New Repository Bookmark. Name it something like your team name or project name. The location is the URL given to you by your team leader.
4. When prompted for your username and password, enter the the username and password given to you by your team leader.
  Make sure you check the box saying to save the username and password, then click OK.
  Note: This username and password will only work for about a week or two. It will soon change to your NetID and password. When it does, you'll be asked to enter a username and password again -- put in your NetID and password.
5. Click OK.
6. Click the Bookmark you just created. It is in the list on the left hand side.
7. Select the folder that is at the top of the list of files shown.
8. Click the Check Out button at the top. Select the folder you just created to download the El Pital files to. All the El Pital files will be downloaded to your computer.

Updating

For Windows + TortoiseSVN:
Right click on the file or folder you want to update, then go to Tortoise SVN -> Update.
For Mac + Versions:
Open Versions, select the bookmark, and browse to the file or folder you want to update. Click the Update button on the toolbar

Committing

The same as updating, but select Commit instead. Fill in the description box with a description of what you're changing. Windows users: pay attention to checking files you want to add or delete (noted below).

Adding

For Windows + TortoiseSVN:
Create the file, then right click and go to Tortoise SVN -> Add. Make sure you commit your file too.

-- OR --
Create the file, then when you commit, check the check box next to the file in the list shown. This will ensure that it's committed.

For Mac + Versions:
Create the file. Open Versions, select the bookmark, and browse to where you create the file. The file will have a question mark next to it. Select it and then click the Add button at the top. Make sure you commit when you're done adding files.

Deleting

For Windows + TortoiseSVN:
Right click on the file, then go to Tortoise SVN -> Delete. Don't forget to commit.
-- OR --
Just delete the file, then when you commit, check the check box next to the file in the list shown. This will ensure that it's deleted when it's committed.

For Mac + Versions:
The same as adding, just use the Delete button.

Reverting and Resolving

The same as Adding and Deleting, just select Revert or Resolve.

Conclusions

Subversion has a lot of features, but we won't be using most of them, since the basic features cover all of our needs. Be careful what you commit -- it will be there forever with your name on it. Don't submit useless files. Don't commit backup (older) files since it's easy to recover them. If you want to try finding older files on your own, you can search for Subversion tutorials or TortoiseSVN tutorials. If not, feel free to email the webmaster using the Contact page below.