PVCS
Encyclopedia
PVCS Version Manager is a software package by Serena Software Inc.
for revision control
of files, in particular source code
files.
PVCS follows the "locking" approach to concurrency control; it has no merge
operator built-in (but does, nonetheless, have a separate merge command). However PVCS can also be configured to support several users simultaneously attempting to edit the file; in this case the second committer (chronologically speaking) will have a branch created for him/her so that both modifications, instead of conflicting, will appear as parallel histories for the same file. This is unlike CVS
and Subversion where the second committer needs to first merge the changes via the update command and then resolve conflicts (when they exist) before actually committing.
Originally developed by Don Kinzer and published by Polytron
in 1985, through a history of acquisitions and mergers, the product was at times owned by Sage Software of Rockville, Maryland (not related to Sage Software of the UK), Intersolv, and Merant Software. The latter was acquired by Serena Software
in 2004, which was itself acquired by Silver Lake Partners
in 2006.
Synergex ported both the PVCS Version Manager and the PVCS Configuration Builder (an extended make utility) to various Unix
platforms and OpenVMS
.
In 2009, Serena Software
clarified that it will continue to invest in PVCS and provide support to PVCS customers for the foreseeable future.
Serena Software
Serena Software Inc is US-based software company.Serena develops and markets products focused on managing change across information technology environments...
for revision control
Revision control
Revision control, also known as version control and source control , is the management of changes to documents, programs, and other information stored as computer files. It is most commonly used in software development, where a team of people may change the same files...
of files, in particular source code
Source code
In computer science, source code is text written using the format and syntax of the programming language that it is being written in. Such a language is specially designed to facilitate the work of computer programmers, who specify the actions to be performed by a computer mostly by writing source...
files.
PVCS follows the "locking" approach to concurrency control; it has no merge
Merge (revision control)
Merging in revision control, is a fundamental operation that reconciles multiple changes made to a revision-controlled collection of files. Most often, it is necessary when a file is modified by two people on two different computers at the same time...
operator built-in (but does, nonetheless, have a separate merge command). However PVCS can also be configured to support several users simultaneously attempting to edit the file; in this case the second committer (chronologically speaking) will have a branch created for him/her so that both modifications, instead of conflicting, will appear as parallel histories for the same file. This is unlike CVS
Concurrent Versions System
The Concurrent Versions System , also known as the Concurrent Versioning System, is a client-server free software revision control system in the field of software development. Version control system software keeps track of all work and all changes in a set of files, and allows several developers ...
and Subversion where the second committer needs to first merge the changes via the update command and then resolve conflicts (when they exist) before actually committing.
Originally developed by Don Kinzer and published by Polytron
Polytron (software)
Polytron Corp. was founded in 1982 by Richard Kinnaird, Don Kinzer, Charlie Perkins, and Doug Root. With the exception of Root, all of them had worked at Tektronix in various hardware and/or software engineering positions.-History:...
in 1985, through a history of acquisitions and mergers, the product was at times owned by Sage Software of Rockville, Maryland (not related to Sage Software of the UK), Intersolv, and Merant Software. The latter was acquired by Serena Software
Serena Software
Serena Software Inc is US-based software company.Serena develops and markets products focused on managing change across information technology environments...
in 2004, which was itself acquired by Silver Lake Partners
Silver Lake Partners
Silver Lake is a US-based private equity firm focused on leveraged buyout and growth capital investments in technology, technology-enabled and related industries...
in 2006.
Synergex ported both the PVCS Version Manager and the PVCS Configuration Builder (an extended make utility) to various Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
platforms and OpenVMS
OpenVMS
OpenVMS , previously known as VAX-11/VMS, VAX/VMS or VMS, is a computer server operating system that runs on VAX, Alpha and Itanium-based families of computers. Contrary to what its name suggests, OpenVMS is not open source software; however, the source listings are available for purchase...
.
In 2009, Serena Software
Serena Software
Serena Software Inc is US-based software company.Serena develops and markets products focused on managing change across information technology environments...
clarified that it will continue to invest in PVCS and provide support to PVCS customers for the foreseeable future.
External links
- Serena software
- www.cmcrossroads.com - a support forum for PVCS and other Source control systems.