Team Foundation Server
I’ve decided to take backups seriously at last. I must be getting old.
So enter one new server from Novatech (a good company to buy from – never had any trouble, the stuff is pretty cheap and they are fast). Then comes the tedious job of installing Windows 2003 server and all the other bits. I’ve decided to try the new Microsoft Team Foundation Server so that I can take advantage of the ‘changeset’ features in the new Visual SourceSafe. I’ve never thought very much of VSS, but the ability to get a set of software files out as a ‘transaction’ looks to get good, so I’ll try it out.
Installation hasn’t gone smoothly: I’m on my second complete re-format of the hard disk. Some of the problems were mine – (RTFM!!), but some seem to be due to the fact that TFS need everything to be just so, or it gives up with inscrutable error messages. The real problem is that it relies on IIS, SQL Server, .NET and SharePoint – all of which have to be configured absolutely correctly with the correct accounts and correct priviledges. Unless you follow the instructions exactly, this is likely to be zero.
Anyway, after a meticulously performed re-installation with all service packs, hot fixes, etc. everything worked and I’m ready to start. Just goes to show – never go near any software until the first service pack comes out. Also, the licensing restricts the number of users to 5 for the Workgroup edition. It gets expensive after that, but if you’ve got more than five developers then your spending serious money anyway
A further point: Visual Studio goes a lot better with 1GB of memory. I snaffled a ½ GB from the server to see if this would improve my workstation. It did and so I’m going to get a further 1GB for the server. It seems you can’t have too much memory.
On another note, I’ve finally got bracket highlighting & matching to work in Steel. The Ruby def…end type of things now also collapse correctly, though there seems to be a problem with the IDE ‘remembering’ outlines from a previous version. God knows where its getting them.
It took me a day or so hacking through Microsoft’s class library source to fix a couple of bugs that were preventing the outlining working ok. All seems reasonably fine now. Again one of the delights of using freshly released software – though Microsoft’s is quite a bit better than a lot of stuff (including mine).
So – the next job is adding Ruby debugging into the Visual Studio IDE. Should be fun!