Home


BranchView installation and configuration

Whole application is only one jar file, which can be put down in any directory. If a P4 Client directory is in the system path, you have nothing more to do, otherwise you must give BranchView one extra starting parameter: where it is to look for Perforce. Since it does not have side effects and is fastest, it recommends to copy the program simply into the P4 Client directory.

For the correct function of the integrated Diff - tool you must have the freely available program ExamDiff™ from PrestoSoft™(http://www.prestosoft.com/examdiff/) in the system path. If ExamDiff does not present in the system path or another Diff - tool is used, you must extra configure BranchView for this (to it later)..

Setup of Perforce - Client.

In order to be able to start application from the Perforce Client, you must add in the P4 Client under Tools/Customize... a new Tool.

Then click "Add", then any name for the menu entry, then "Ok".

In the field "Command:" the following must be registered (brackets to mean that contents are optional):

<Path to javaw.exe>javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar,

(for those of us with non-Windows OS: replace 'javaw' always through 'java')

If javaw.exe is in the system path, you does not need to enter the path to javaw.exe, following is enough:

javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar

In the field "Arguments:" insert the starting parameters of the program, that is in the usual case (explanation later):

%D -all -stat

The field "Initial directory:" should contain path to the directory, where tp4branchview.jar is, e.g.

d:\programme\perforce

Then click on "Ok" and under to the menu Tools appears now a new entry.

 

Otherwise, you can simply import tools.txt from BranchView distribution package ;) .


Starting parameter and configuration file.


BranchView expects the following parameters (sequence and large/lower case are important!):

Number of the parameters in the command line BranchView parameter Description P4 Client Parameter
1 <Value> P4 user name $u
2 <Value> P4 Clientname like 'user-hostname ' $c
3 <Value> P4 Server port like 'server_name.domain_name:port' $p
4 <Value> P4 file path to the desired file as '//a/b/c.txt' %D
5, optional: <Value> P4 program path like 'c:\progra~2\perforce'  
6, optional: <Value> User password  

Note: If you will use one of parameter 1 - 3 above, all other parameters from 1 to 3 must be set too, but you can use 'P4 file path to the desired file' alone or freely with any parameter below.
Examples:
javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar $u $c $p %D
javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar $u $c $p %D c:\progra~2\perforce
javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar $u $c $p %D c:\progra~2\perforce xxxxxx
javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar %D

Optional: '-props'

in order to use the configuration file instead of parameters. If the parameters are to be set by the property file, P4 file path is expected as first parameter, all other parameters need not more to be indicated, since they are loaded from the configuration file.
Example: javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar %D -props

 
Optional: '-stat' Flag, in order the write all received P4 data into the file tp4branchview.log in user directory
Example: javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar %D -stat
 
Optional: '-offline'

Flag, in order to load the source of the data for the view from file tp4branchview.log in user directory
Example: javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar -stat

 
Optional: '-all' Flag, in order to get all 'branches', found in the P4 data at one time
Example: javaw.exe -jar tp4branchview.jar %D -all
 
Note: current parameter handling is not usual, and i will change this at next time
(if i have time at next ;) ).

These and other parameters can be handed with configuration file ' tp4branchview.ini ', which must be placed into user home directory, bei Windows NT: %SystemRoot%\profiles\%UserName%, bei Windows 2000: %SystemDrive%\My documents\%UserName%.

Example of such a file:

# comment: that is a comment line
p4.user=Andy_the_Great
p4.client=andy
p4.port=1666
p4.executable=p4.exe
p4.password=xxxxxx
p4.save_log=true
p4.read_log_offline=false
p4.fetch_all_branches=true
p4.diff_exe_path=examdiff.exe

The sequence of the parameters corresponds here to the sequence of the parameters in the table, can be however selected arbitrarily. The names of the parameters must 1:1 match indicated here.


Home