Re: "cvs add" using the WinCVS 2.0.2.4 console

On Wed, 29 Nov 2006 04:30:36 -0000, "Chris"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>If I attempt to "add", say, a new directory, I get the infamous "No 
>CVSROOT specified! Pelase use the '-d' option".  However, I have 
>clearly setup the CVSROOT parameters outlined in the "Remote >>> 
>Checkout settings ..." section of the WinCVS interface.  

The cvs add command is exclusively used *inside* a checked out
"sandbox" of files from the server. The CVSROOT referred to in the
message is read from the CVS/Root file in this checked out sandbox.
But since you have not yet checked out anything you cannot use cvs
add...

>If I attempt to perform a checkout (although, there's nothing to 
>checkout) I can clearly see this CVSROOT parameter appear in the 
>commandline.  I don't get that "No CVSROOT specified" error.  So why 
>is it ignored during the "cvs add"?

The data you enter in the Remote/Checkout dialog is *only* used for
the command it is intended for, namely the checkout. So it does not
apply for the other commands.

>
>Furhtermore, I've read countless entries about how the CVSROOT 
>environment variable must be set from the unix command prompt.  But 
>is this necessary if it's always included in every command?

Forget about the environment variable when you work in WinCvs, it is
not used.
However, if you go to a command prompt on your XP machine you can do
this:

c:\>mkdir c:\projects
c:\>cd c:\projects
c:\projects>set CVSROOT=:sspi:cvsserver:/repo
c:\projects>cvs co .

This will check out *everything* from the server into c:\projects,
which is now converted to a "sandbox". Of course you will have to
enter the correct CVSROOT string depending on your server settings...

After this you will have the following directories there:
c:\projects
  |--CVS
  |--CVSROOT (with the cvs server administrative files)
      |--CVS

Both CVS subdirs will contain at least the files:
Root
Entries
Repository

This is where cvs keeps the data used for "normal" cvs commands like
cvs add.

Now you can do the following:
c:\projects>mkdir newdir
c:\projects>cvs add newdir

This adds the newdir dir to CVS and it is now possible to put files
into this dir and (from within WinCvs) issue the cvs add command
followed by cvs commit.


HTH

/Bo
(Bo Berglund, developer in Sweden)