Terminology

Access rights

A security feature. The rights granted (or denied, in exceptional cases) to users or groups that allow team members to see, modify, create, and delete items.

Adding files

Process of placing files under version control by adding them to a project view.

Administrator

A functional role in the operation of the application. Administrators install, configure/set up, create and/or import projects, manage server configurations, users and groups, and so on.

Alternate working folder

Allows you to store project files on your workstation at a specific location you have selected. Using an alternate working folder for the root of a view or a branch in an application folder hierarchy can also alter the path of the working folders used for child folders.

Application file

A file under version control; therefore, a file that is in an application project.

Application folder

A folder in the application folder hierarchy. Application folders help organize the project view into discrete understandable parts. Each folder has a working folder that corresponds to it and exists on your hard drive.

Application folder hierarchy

The hierarchy of folders as it appears in the Server Explorer. When you map a view and use the folder hierarchy, the folder structure on the virtual disk matches the folder structure you see in the application. This may or may not match the working folder structure on your workstation.

Archive

File or group of files that makes it possible to recreate past revisions of a file under version control. An archive can also be, as in the application, the folder that stores such files.

Audit entry

Record of an action performed on an application project that appears in the audit log.

Audit log

Chronological record kept by the application that shows all actions performed on folders and items, such as files and change requests.

Author

User that created a revision.

Blank branching view

An empty branching view. It has no correlation to the parent view. Also called non-derived view.

Branch

An independent item derived from a corresponding item in a parent view. In the case of a text file, the branched item can later be merged with the file from which it originated. This term also refers to a branch of a tree, such as the folder hierarchy or a topic tree.

Branch revision

A number is assigned by the application to a revision of an item. It indicates how many consecutive revisions have been made in a view; it branches when the item is branched into a new view.

Branching view

A view that may or may not be derived from a parent view. When not derived from a parent view, it is a blank branching view. Branching views always permit branching. If they float and have the Branch on change option set, they are updated by the parent view on a file-by-file basis until the file changes in the branching view. If they float and do not have the Branch on change option set, updates are sent to the parent view until the Branch on change option is set. If they are based on a label, a promotion state, or a moment in time, they are read-only, unless the Branch on change option is set.

Build

The process of compiling, assembling, and linking all project files in proper sequence to produce a software product. Also an event in the life cycle of a product chosen to represent a quantifiable step in progress for a project.

Build label

Label for a particular product build; in the application, a view label may serve as a build label.

Change request

Item that reports a fault or error in a product or suggests an enhancement.

Check in

Operation that stores a new file revision in the repository. The person who checks the file in can keep it locked or release the file to others by unlocking it.

Check out

Operation that retrieves a revision of a file from the application Server and places it in a working folder for the user. A user can check out a file with or without the intention of altering that file. Locking the file marks the beginning of a revision.

Compression

Data transferred between your workstation and the server can be compressed to reduce the amount of traffic on the network. However, the time to compress and decompress the data is added to the transfer time.

Configuration

A relative arrangement of parts or elements. An application configuration isolates a view, folder, or item to a particular revision. For example, you can configure a view to be current or based on a view label, a promotion state, or a selected date and time.

Container

Term indicating the ability to contain other types of items. For example a project is a container for views, folders, and items. Views and folders are also containers.

Current

File status. Content of the file in the working folder is the same as the content of the tip revision of the file.

Delta storage

Method of computing differences between progressive revisions of a file.

Exclusive lock

An exclusive lock indicates to others that you intend to make changes on an item. For a file, the icon others see is yellow padlock, while you see an icon with a small yellow key and the head and shoulders of a person. Other people cannot check in an item that you have exclusively locked.

File compression

Technique for reducing the size of a file by removing redundant information. Most disk files contain repetitions of common sequences of characters. Compression algorithms remove the additional occurrences of these sequences and save the information that permits their restoration. Selecting file compression may reduce vault space requirements, as well as improve performance.

Filter

Criteria used to select a few items from among many. The Filter list box allows you to display only the items that are of interest. Applying a filter may also control what columns are displayed, what columns are sorted, and how the values are grouped in the sorted columns.

Fixed change request

Designation indicating that a change request has been resolved.

Float

For views, a floating view is one that stays current with its parent view. In other words, updates to the parent view are sent to the child view. If the child is not read-only, updates to the child view also go to the parent.

Folder hierarchy

Hierarchical display of an application view and its associated folders. The folder hierarchy is always displayed in the Server Explorer.

Frozen

An item is said to be frozen (and, therefore, read-only) if it is based on the state of the corresponding item in the parent view at a specific moment in time and cannot be branched. An item is also frozen if you reconfigure it to a specific label, promotion state, or time in its past.

History list

List of revisions for the file selected from the Server Explorer or from one of the Eclipse Explorers. The application displays the History list when you open the History view.

Item

The application object or element. Items include files, change requests, requirements, tasks, topics, responses, and audit entries. A folder is also treated as an item, even though it is a container for items.

Keyword

Reserved words beginning and ending with a dollar sign ($). When used in a text file, the application replaces these words with the data that they represent. For example $Author$ is replaced by the name of the user who checked in the file.

Keyword expansion

A technique used to insert information in a text file. Keywords are replaced by the data they represent.

Label

In version control, the act of attaching a view or revision label (name) to one or more folders and/or items.

Labeled configuration

The basis for a new or reconfigured view. The view contains only the items with the label you specify.

Link

Method of connecting any two folders, items, or a folder and an item. If you select an item, the client provides a Link view that shows all other items to which it is linked.

Lock

File locking is a technique used to inform others that you are revising a file (exclusive lock) or considering its revision (non-exclusive lock). Checking files out or in does not imply automatic locking or unlocking in the application, as these operations can be performed manually. Locks can also be overridden and broken.

MAPI

Acronym for Mail Application Programming Interface, a programming interface that permits an application to send and receive electronic mail via the Microsoft Mail messaging system. The application uses SMTP and not MAPI.

Merge

File status that indicates that the working file is not based on the tip revision of the file. When you check this file in or out, the application asks if you want to merge it with the tip revision; or

Process of combining a working file with the tip revision of that file or combining a branched file with the original file from which it was branched. This operation involves a three-way comparison, in which both files are compared with the file revision that is their most recent common ancestor. The combined file can be inspected or revised by the user before it is checked in.

Milestone

An event in the life cycle of a product that represents a significant step in its progress, for example, its final release. In the application, when you reach a milestone, you can apply a view label (usually a build label) to indicate that the milestone has been reached.

In Microsoft Project, a milestone is a type of task that represents a significant landmark, development, or turning point in the life of a scheduled project. You usually define a milestone by entering a task name and assigning it a duration of zero. Milestones typically signal that the work has started or is completed and do not represent the act of doing of the work.

Missing

ile status indicating that the file is not in your working folder. You may want to check the file out.

Modified

File status indicating that the working file has been altered and is based on the tip revision of this file. You may want to check this file in.

Non-exclusive lock

A lock that notifies others that you are considering changing the file. When you have a file locked non-exclusively, others can check the file in.

Not In View

File status that indicates the file is in the working folder, but not in the application view. You may want to add this file to the view.

Notification of events

If this feature is enabled, the application notifies that you have become responsible for a change request, that a requirement or task for which you are responsible has changed, or that a topic for which you are a recipient has changed. The notification appears as an appropriate icon on the status bar.

Object

Generic term used in object-oriented programming and elsewhere to indicate something upon which operations can be performed.

Out Of Date

File status indicating that your working file is a copy of an old revision of the file. If you need the current revision, check it out.

Preferences

User-selectable choices for the behavior of the application on a specific workstation.

Pooled connections

Concurrent connections controlled internally by the server that the server opens to the database engine. The range is usually database-specific and may also depend upon the number of database licenses.

Project

A project is a set of related folders and their contents that usually represents a single product under application version control. Large, complex projects have many folders and files that are worked on by many team members. A project is the collection and organization of all these files and folders. A project might contain the files that comprise a software program, a technical publication, a legal case, a financial forecast, a building, an aircraft, or anything involving numerous files, each of which may undergo many revisions as the job progresses.

Promotion state

A state through which a product passes. For example, a software application that goes through a development, test, and release cycle could use the promotion states Development, Test, and Release. In the application, each promotion state has a view label assigned to it.

Promotion state configuration

Basis for a new or reconfigured view. The view contain only items with the promotion state you specify.

Properties

Attributes stored for each item and each revision of an item under version control.

Protocol

Set of rules governing how something is done.

Query

Criteria used to select a few items from among many. You can apply a query to items in the view to display only the items of interest.

Read-only reference view

A reference view is a view that either cannot be changed at all or changes only when its parent view changes. If it floats, it is updated as its parent changes. If it is based on a label and the items with the specified label change in the parent view, the read-only reference view reflects that fact. If it is based on a specific date and time, it is frozen, to show what the parent view looked like at that point in time and cannot be rolled back.

Reconfiguring

A view, folder, or item can be reconfigured to a point in the past, as defined by a label, promotion state, or a point in time.

Reference count

List of the items that reference another item. For example, a file may be shared by two projects on the same server and, therefore, have two references to it.

Reference view

A view derived from a parent view. It generally uses a different folder as a root folder and the same working folders as those of its parent. If it floats, it receives updates as the parent view changes. If it floats and is not read-only, it sends updates to the parent view as it changes. If the reference view is based a specific label or date and time within the parent view, it is frozen at that moment in time and is read-only.

Repository

The database and hive associated with a particular server configuration. Each hive contains an Archives and a Cache folder for file storage.

Repository customization

The application feature that allows you to modify values of existing enumerated fields and create customized fields for items to represent information specific to your working environment. Your license determines whether you have this feature.

Requirement component

The application component that allows users to create, track, and complete requirements related to the project.

Response

Replies to a topic that, along with the topic, form a hierarchical structure called a topic tree.

Revision

Set of changes to an item. As an item is revised, each set of changes is saved as a revision.

Revision label

Method of identifying a revision of an item or a set of revisions by name; used primarily for files. For example, when you check in a group of files that may need to be checked out together, you can give them a revision label.

Revision number

The revision number is an identification number assigned by the application to a revision of an item. It indicates how many consecutive revisions have been made since the item was originally created.

Root folder

The top folder in an application folder hierarchy. It has the same name as the view.

Secondary sort

Sorting items by group in a list that is already sorted (primary sort). For example a File list might be sorted by extension, then sorted by name within groups of the same extension.

Server

A computer or system that provides services to clients and is running the StarTeam Server software. The clients may be other computers. The server controls the repository, which is a storage place for file revision archives, and a database that contains information about files, such as their descriptions, the number of revisions, and so on.

Server configuration

Contains the repository and option settings selected when you set up the application server. For example, the administrator may want projects to use encryption and compression, so the server configuration specifies these features. The application items, such as folders and files, can be shared provided their projects use the same server configuration. You can start a server with any one of several server configurations, but that configuration controls what projects, views, and so on that you can access during that session.

Shortcut

A file that starts another application, often with a specific document or set of data. The shortcut is usually stored as an icon on your desktop.

SMTP

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, commonly used for Internet and UNIX mail systems. It usually uses port 25. Sending items via email in the application requires SMTP.

Sort

To place items in ascending or descending order in the view, based on the value in one column. Depending on the values in the column, values are sorted numerically, alphanumerically, or by an internal order or key. Click the column header to change the sort order from ascending to descending or vice versa.

Status

File status is the relationship between the working file and the tip revision in the repository. The file statuses are: In View, Not in View, Missing, Current, Merge, Modified, Out of Date, and Unknown.

Storage method

Revisions stored in the archive (or vault) for a specific file can be changed from one type of storage and compression to another. There are two types of storage: forward delta storage, which is recommended for text files, and full revision storage, which is recommended for binary files and text files that change massively from revision to revision.

Task component

Users can create, track, and resolve tasks related to their projects with this component if your company has licensed Enterprise Advantage or Enterprise. The component also interoperates with Microsoft Project.

TCP/IP

A protocol for communication between computers used by the Internet; acronym for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol.

Test command

Command that you enter so that the application can perform an automated procedure to test a defect.

Text file or ASCII file

File that contains only printable text characters, spaces, carriage returns, and sometimes tabs and an end-of-file marker, without formatting codes. The application identifies as text files any files that contain no null characters. All other files are binary.

Time stamp

Information maintained by the application about files and revisions. For file revisions, the time stamp is the date and time that the file was checked into the application. For files, it is the date and time for the working file.

Tip revision

Most recent revision to an item. The tip revision is based on your view configuration. For example, if your view is configured to a particular label, the tip revision is the revision with that label. If your view is configured to a particular date and time, the tip revision is the one that was checked in just prior to that point in time.

Title bar

Bar that shows the name of the application and, if it is maximized, of the selected child window. For a view, the child window name includes both the project name and the view name, followed by the current working folder for the root folder.

Toolbar

Bar that contains buttons or icons, each of which performs a variety of functions. Usually located at the top of the screen, but can be dragged to any edge of the window or float in a separate window that can move anywhere on the screen.

Topic

First message on a particular subject attached to a folder in the application folder hierarchy. After this message has been submitted by a team member, others may respond to it, creating a topic tree.

Topic tree

Topic tree represents a threaded conversation of the topic with its responses and the responses to those responses.

Unknown

File status indicating that a file in the working folder has the same name as a file in the view, but that the file has not been checked out from the repository. You may have copied the file from another location.

Use the Update Status command to determine the correct status.

Unlock

The process of releasing a locked file, indicating to others that you no longer wish to change the file.

User

An individual given access to an application server configuration and the projects it manages.

Vault

Folder in which revisions of the files that are under version control are stored.

Vault file

File in the vault that stores file revisions.

Version control

Version control is the process of storing and tracking changes (revisions) to one or more files. The main advantage of using an automated version control system is fast, easy recall of previous revisions. The application also tracks revisions of other items, such as change requests.

Version control system

Application software that permits you to manage multiple revisions of the same file. It maintains the revision history that is generated as files evolve into their final forms.

View

A view, also called a project view, is a way of looking at a project. It enables you to see the parts of the project you need to see, without the confusion of seeing the entire project. A view consists of an application folder hierarchy and the items associated with each folder in that hierarchy. The name of a project and its root view are often identical. A view may or may not permit branching, be read only, or have a connection to its parent view.

View label

Serves as a time stamp for the entire contents of a view. Having a view label allows you to roll back a view to that label and see everything that existed at that point in time. Unless the view label is frozen, you can adjust it by attaching or detaching it from items. You can also move a view label from one revision to another.

Work around

Steps users must take to avoid a problem in the product. Workarounds are frequently offered until the resolution of a defect becomes available.

Working file

Any file in a working folder can be considered a working file. Often, these files have been checked out for modification. When checked in, a working file becomes a revision.

Working folder

Workstation folder to which copies of application files are checked out and from which files are added and checked in to the application folder.