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40.5 Introduction to Subversion
Subversion is a free open source versioning control system and is widely regarded as
the successor to CVS, meaning that features already introduced for CVS are normally
also in Subversion. It is especially recommended when the advantages of CVS are
sought without having to put up with its disadvantages. Many of these features have
already been briefly introduced in
Section 40.1.3, "Subversion"
(page 731).
40.5.1 Installing a Subversion Server
The installation of a repository database on a server is a relatively simple procedure.
Subversion provides a dedicated administration tool for this purpose. The command to
enter for creating a new repository is:
svnadmin create /path/to/repository
Other options can be listed with svnadmin help. As opposed to CVS, Subversion
is not based on RCS, but rather on different types of repository. The Berkeley Database
or FSFS (a repository that uses the file system directly) is commonly used. Do not install
a repository on remote file systems, like NFS, AFS, or Windows SMB. The database
requires POSIX locking mechanisms, which these file systems do not support.
The command svnlook provides information about an existing repository.
svnlook info /path/to/repository
A server must be configured to allow different users to access the repository. Either
use the Apache Web server with WebDAV to do this or use svnserve, the server pack-
aged with Subversion. Once svnserve is up and running, the repository can be accessed
with a URL with svn:// or svn+ssh://. Users that should authenticate themselves
when calling svn can be set in /etc/svnserve.conf.
A decision for Apache or for svnserve depends on many factors. It is recommended to
browse the Subversion book. More information about it can be found in
Section 40.5.3,
"For More Information"
(page 744).
File Synchronization
741
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Troubleshooting
