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Q139359: INFO: Readme.wri: Section 2, General Notes and Tips

Article: Q139359
Product(s): Microsoft SourceSafe
Version(s): 4.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbSSafe400 kbVBp400
Last Modified: 18-FEB-2002

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual SourceSafe for Windows, version 4.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

This article holds Section 2, General Notes and Tips, of the Visual SourceSafe
Version4.0 Readme.wri file found in the main Visual SourceSafe directory
(Vssafe). For more information about other sections of the Readme.wri file,
please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q139358 Readme.wri: Section 1, Software Installation Information

  Q139361 Readme.wri: Section 3, Issues and Considerations

  Q139360 Readme.wri: Section 4, Documentation Notes

  Q139362 Readme.wri: Section 5, New Features of Visual SourceSafe


MORE INFORMATION
================

Back Up Your Visual SourceSafe Database
---------------------------------------

Before installing an upgrade to Visual SourceSafe, back up your previous Visual
SourceSafe database. The upgrade process involves a major data conversion, which
is irreversible in case of problems.

Once Visual SourceSafe is installed, you should still back up your database on a
very regular basis.

Database corruption is uncommon, but could occur. The Analyze.exe program detects
any problems in the database. A backup will help you recover gracefully should
you need to recreate your database. If you receive any errors after running the
Analyze program, please contact Microsoft Support. For information on the
Analyze.exe program, please see Appendix C in the Microsoft Visual SourceSafe
User's Guide or Help file for the Admin program.

Visual SourceSafe 32-Bit and Visual SourceSafe 16-Bit
-----------------------------------------------------

There are two versions of Visual SourceSafe for Windows: 32-bit and 16-bit.

Users of MS-DOS should use Visual SourceSafe for MS-DOS, a command-line only
product.

Users of Microsoft Windows 3.1 and Microsoft Windows for Workgroups should use
the 16-bit version of Visual SourceSafe for Windows.

Users of Microsoft Windows NT and Microsoft Windows 95 should use the 32-bit
version of Visual SourceSafe for Windows.

Notes for Users of Previous Versions of SourceSafe
--------------------------------------------------

Users of SourceSafe 3.x will note a number of major changes to the product. New
features are listed separately below, but some of the important miscellaneous
changes include:

1. The SourceSafe directory structure has changed, and the SourceSafe program
  files have different names. For example, if you have an icon pointing to
  R:\Vss\Winnt\Ssnt.Exe, that directory and file no longer exist. The new
  location is R:\Vss\Win32\Ssexp.Exe. The client Setup program creates new
  program manager icons that point to the appropriate executables.

2. The SourceSafe text-based interface for MS-DOS (SS.EXE) is not supported in
  4.0 or future versions of Visual SourceSafe.

3. Several SourceSafe commands have been renamed. The most prominent are:

  Update     -->  Check In
  Uncheckout -->  Undo Checkout
  Separate   -->  Branch
  Remove     -->  Delete
  Scan       -->  Find in Files
  Merge      -->  Merge Branches

4. The PIN command is new. It replaces the SHARE command in the History of File
  dialog box and allows you to "stick a pin" through a specific version of a
  file, freezing it at that specific version. The PIN command's complement, the
  UNPIN command, allows you to "unstick" a file that has been pinned.

Design Restriction in Visual Basic Integration
----------------------------------------------

When you are working in Visual Basic with projects under source code control,
Visual Basic launches a new version of itself under the following conditions:
you open a project under source code control, use the Show History command on a
file associated with Visual Basic, and then click View in the History dialog
box. This is normal behavior also found when working with a Visual Basic form
from the File Manager in Windows NT and the Explorer in Windows 95.

Need to Specify a Makefile Extension for Visual Basic Integration
-----------------------------------------------------------------

In Windows 95, a Visual Basic project can have a make file with no extension, or
with an extension other than .vbp or .mak. However, the source code control
(SCC) Add-in has to have some way to recognize make files from other files, and
the extension is often the only way. In other words, for you to use SCC
successfully with a project, the make file name must end in .vbp or .mak. The
most likely situation where a make file has no extension is when the Windows 95
Explorer is set to hide file extensions. Then, when you save a make file, Visual
Basic doesn't automatically add the .vbp extension. The solution to this
situation is to set the Windows 95 Explorer view option to show file extensions,
and ensure that that all Visual Basic make files have a .vbp or .mak file
extension.

Installing Two or More Visual SourceSafe Databases on One Computer
------------------------------------------------------------------

The Visual SourceSafe installation was designed for one installation per
computer. There might be occasions when you want to have two or more copies of
Visual SourceSafe installed on your computer, such as in the following cases:

Case 1. You are an administrator who wants both a server and a client
installation on your computer. To accomplish this, you run Setup from your
Visual SourceSafe compact disc, and then use the Netsetup program from the
directory in which you installed the Visual SourceSafe server option.

Case 2. You need to have separate databases for testing, application development,
and maintaining product specifications. You want to have different locations on
your computer that point to different network locations you can access. To
accomplish this, use the Regedit program in Windows NT or Windows 95. Go to the
HK_LOCAL_MACHINE key, then to SOFTWARE, then to MS SETUP (ACME), then to TABLE
FILES. You see two entries for Visual SourceSafe: Ssadmin.exe file, for the
server installation from the compact disc, and Ssexp.exe for the network client
setup. Delete one of these two entries, and then run Setup again. Note that you
can have only one Visual SourceSafe installation at a time integrated with
Visual Basic on a local hard disk.

When you work with two separate network installations, only one can be integrated
with an IDE at a time. For example, say you want to switch from database1, which
is currently active, to database2. To switch between Visual SourceSafe databases
and maintain IDE integration, go to the \Win or \Win32 directory under the
directory in which you installed Visual SourceSafe on your local hard disk, and
run the Ssint program. The Ssint program's dialog box contains the check box,
Update Vb.ini, that allows you switch to the version of Visual SourceSafe you
want to use by choosing to update Vb.ini or not.

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbSSafe400 kbVBp400 
Technology        : kbSSafeSearch kbAudDeveloper kbSSafe400
Version           : :4.0
Issue type        : kbinfo

=============================================================================

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