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I was thinking of having a versioning system for our projects folder (visual effects facility). We work on shots, and each should lets say has one file I would like to version. Here's the thing. If I have one repository per shot (folder) is it bad? If I have one repository and move all those files in one folder and version that entire folder it would be really difficult to get just that version of ONE file. Any advices? Or git/mercurial is just not the way to go and best is to have copies in a version subfolder etc etc.

The directory structure would be something like this

-projects --project1 ---shot1 ----compositing -----shot1.comp ---shot2 ----compositing -----shot2.comp

I would need some form of versioning for each .comp file.

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  • Is the .comp file text based or binary? I'd be cautious about versioning it if it is binary. I'm not sure it's wrong or that Git or Mercurial won't handle it, but be careful. Commented Sep 5, 2011 at 20:41
  • .comp should be plain ascii. although i am considering versioning other files that are binary. Commented Sep 6, 2011 at 9:16

3 Answers 3

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If all you need is local versioning, you might want to look at RCS. It creates a file,v for each file (conventionally, but not necessarily, inside a folder called RCS) which contains the commit messages and diffs.

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just played with it and yes it might just be what i need. one thing though. I would need the file also to be available in the root. I was thinking of making the file, checking it in (ci file) then checking it out(co -l file) and leaving it there for people to use. after they use it the ci the file and it auto checks itself out. would that be the way to do it?
Don't really understand why you would check out the file, for your users to edit, you mean? A read-only file I would keep checked in.
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You can use Tag name on Git to retrieve the desired version you want on a particular in a single repository.

In your repo, type

git checkout <tag name or your version no.> -- <filename>

i.e.

git checkout version1 -- shot2.comp

the file shot2.comp will be checkout with version1.

you can do different checkout on your single repo to retrieve the desired file you want.

#

if you think this is too clumsy to always type git checkout to retrieve version of files.

you can make multiple repos on different folders.

folder1 with all the version 1 files

in folder 1

git checkout version1

in folder 2

git checkout version2

All the files will be at version1 and version2 on folder1 and 2 respectively.

Hope this helps.

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4 Comments

Great writeup. How would this model scsle for lets say 500 folders(nb in each folder there should be one file only to be versioned). This versioning system that im trying to build wont be used via command line anyway but via a gui that will let the user select the last version and if need be show him a potential list of previous versions.
@InnocentPixel: I don't think you need to open 500 folders. One repo can do all the things you want. Say, if you file <a.txt> has 500 versions, you can use gitk a.txt (a git gui application to let you see all the version at one go). A cmd tool with be git log -- a.txt google what is gitk.
my users won't be opening 500 files at the same time. Basically what you're suggesting (im referring to the first option) is the same as RCS am I right? One repo per folder. One file that is versioned and the advantage over RCS would be that once it's checked in it won't be deleted from the folder. Am I understanding this correctly?
@InnocentPixel: You can find different version on a file in a single repo. Well, I still not quite understand what is the purpose behind that one folder one version. Isn't that a troublesome idea for those developer want to find a specific version of the file?
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A (Git or Mercurial) repo is a coherent set of files managed as a all (i.e. branched or labelled as a all).

You don't usually make a repo for just one file (that model wouldn't scale easily should you need all of those repos at the same time), but in your case, that could be an option.

However, you could also use one repo with one branch per shot.
You would still clone everything, but checkout only one branch (and seeing only one file).

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