In large software development projects, it is usually necessary for more than one software developer to be modifying (usually different) modules of the code at the same time. Some of these code modifications are done in an experimental sense, at least until the code functions correctly, and some testing of the entire program is usually necessary. Then, the modifications are returned to a master source repository so that others in the project can enjoy the new bug-fix or functionality. In order to manage such a project, some sort of revision control system is necessary.
Specifically, UNIX[note 1] kernel development is an excellent example of the problems that an adequate revision control system must address. The SunOS[note 2] kernel is composed of over a thousand files spread across a hierarchy of dozens of directories.[note 3] Pieces of the kernel must be edited by many software developers within an organization. While undesirable in theory, it is not uncommon to have two or more people making modifications to the same file within the kernel sources in order to facilitate a desired change. Existing revision control systems like RCS [Tichy] or SCCS [Bell] serialize file modifications by allowing only one developer to have a writable copy of a particular file at any one point in time. That developer is said to have ``locked'' the file for his exclusive use, and no other developer is allowed to check out a writable copy of the file until the locking developer has finished impeding others' productivity. Development pressures of productivity and deadlines often force organizations to require that multiple developers be able to simultaneously edit copies of the same revision controlled file.
The necessity for multiple developers to modify the same file concurrently questions the value of serialization-based policies in traditional revision control. This paper discusses the approach that Prisma took in adapting a standard revision control system, RCS, along with an existing public-domain collection of shell scripts that sits atop RCS and provides the basic conflict-resolution algorithms. The resulting program, cvs, addresses not only the issue of conflict-resolution in a multi-developer open-editing environment, but also the issues of software release control and vendor source support and integration.