N.7.10.1 General Options

Emacs normally does not save backup files for source files that are maintained with version control. If you want to make backup files even for files that use version control, set the variable vc-make-backup-files to a non-nil value.

Normally the work file exists all the time, whether it is locked or not. If you set vc-keep-workfiles to nil, then checking in a new version with C-x C-q deletes the work file; but any attempt to visit the file with Emacs creates it again. (With CVS, work files are always kept.)

Editing a version-controlled file through a symbolic link can be dangerous. It bypasses the version control system--you can edit the file without locking it, and fail to check your changes in. Also, your changes might overwrite those of another user. To protect against this, VC checks each symbolic link that you visit, to see if it points to a file under version control.

The variable vc-follow-symlinks controls what to do when a symbolic link points to a version-controlled file. If it is nil, VC only displays a warning message. If it is t, VC automatically follows the link, and visits the real file instead, telling you about this in the echo area. If the value is ask (the default), VC asks you each time whether to follow the link.

If vc-suppress-confirm is non-nil, then C-x C-q and C-x v i can save the current buffer without asking, and C-x v u also operates without asking for confirmation. (This variable does not affect C-x v c; that operation is so drastic that it should always ask for confirmation.)

VC mode does much of its work by running the shell commands for RCS, CVS and SCCS. If vc-command-messages is non-nil, VC displays messages to indicate which shell commands it runs, and additional messages when the commands finish.

You can specify additional directories to search for version control programs by setting the variable vc-path. These directories are searched before the usual search path. It is rarely necessary to set this variable, because VC normally finds the proper files automatically.

This document was generated by Roberto on abril, 2 2007 using texi2html 1.76.