The first set of our binaries for CollabNet Subversion is now available.  Specifically, the RPM's for Red Hat Enterprise Linux.  You can get them here:

http://www.collab.net/downloads/subversion/redhat.html

These are certified to run on all 32-bit versions of RHEL 4 and 5.  In my experience, they run fine on any version of Linux that allows you to install an RPM.  I have even used them successfully on Ubuntu and Debian by using the alien package, which allows RPM to be installed on Debian systems.

Starting with this release of CollabNet Subversion, our Linux RPM's are now signed.  You can (and should) download and import the GPG key they were signed with.  This was something several of our customers had asked for.  See the readme for the Linux binaries for details and instructions.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, we plan to have the Windows binaries available next week.  Currently it looks like they should be available sometime on Monday.  The Solaris binaries will be posted around the end of the week.

We are pretty excited about this release of the binaries.  We put a lot of effort into improving them and what we include in the packaging.  Here are some highlights:

• Standardized set of dependencies across platforms.  Apache 2.2.8, APR 1.2.12, Neon 0.28.2.  Our Windows binaries initially went out with Apache 2.0 so we wanted to wait for Subversion 1.5.0 to make the switch.  There are upgrade considerations in moving from Apache 2.0 to 2.2 that Windows users will have to consider.
• ViewVC included!  This is the biggest feature.  Not only do we include ViewVC 1.0.5, but we configure it for you automatically (if you ask us to).  It has never been easier to integrate this excellent tool into your environment.
• Python bindings are included.  These are needed for ViewVC, but also allow you to use hook scripts that require the bindings, such as the commit email hook script.
• JavaHL bindings are included with the client.  This makes it easier than ever to use JavaHL on all supported platforms, which means it is also easy to use the CollabNet Desktop and our exciting new Merge Client.
• SASL support is included in the client and server.  This is a new feature in 1.5.  There is not a lot of information out there on how to build and include it.  We have figured it out though, and include it in our package.
• We package the svn-populate-node-origins-index program so that you have the tools you need to migrate existing repositories to Subversion 1.5.
• As always, we provide packages using the native packaging format for each operating system.

These are the main enhancements I can think of, but we have been working on these improvements throughout the Subversion 1.5 life-cycle.  Those of you that participated in our Beta program have likely already experienced some of these new features and seen the packages evolve over the life of the program.  Probably the biggest benefit of our packages is that we test and certify the entire stack that we provide to you.  We do this so that we can provide the level of support that our customers ask for and so that we can be confident that we can deliver on the SLA that we provide to our customers.

Anyway, look for those Windows and Solaris binaries next week.  Also, stay tuned for some additional major new enhancements we will make to the packaging over the course of the summer.  That is all I will say for now, but details will be coming out as we roll out these enhancements.

I am pleased to announce that Subversion 1.5.0 was released today.  It has been a long journey to get to this point, but I think the final result will be worth it.  Subversion 1.5.0 is the biggest release since 1.0 and begins a new chapter in the project's evolution.  An event this big probably calls for some profound comments and reflection.  Perhaps, I or others, will make some at some point in the future.  Unfortunately, for myself, and a lot of people at CollabNet, the release means a lot of work and activity.

We have put together a page with links to lots of resources and information about the release:

http://www.collab.net/products/subversion/subversion15.html

I'd particularly urge you to checkout the training materials that have been created for this release.  While Subversion 1.5 is compatible with older clients and servers, to take full advantage of all the features, particularly merge tracking, there are some steps you need to take.  The training courses we have created cover these issues and can help guide you through the upgrade process.

Probably the number one thing people are looking for is binaries.  I assure you they are coming.  CollabNet's binaries are certified and that process cannot begin until the official release is made.  So our team is hard at work building and certifying the binaries.  The tentative certification schedule is:

Linux: June 20
Windows: June 24
Solaris:     June 26

There is a pretty good chance that the Windows client will be available sooner.  I will add a new blog post once the Windows binaries are posted.  BTW, the OSX binaries are ready and just waiting for the web site to be updated.  Those binaries are not certified so can be released sooner.  A lot of us at CollabNet, myself included, use them for our daily work though.

Binaries of Subversion 1.5 - Release Candidate 9 are posted. As I wrote last week, this Release Candidate does not reset the soak period. An API issue was already discovered in RC9 and RC10 will likely come later this week. RC10 won't reset the soak period either, so we are still looking at a likely Subversion 1.5 release next week. As always: unless a showstopper is found.

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know the drill: please download the binaries and test the latest Subversion 1.5 Release Candidate. You can ask questions and report issues in our forum.

This morning we posted binaries of the Subversion 1.5 Release Candidate 8 (RC8). Compared to RC7 this release candidate contains a few translation updates and an API compatibility fix that does not affect the command line.

Another release candidate with minor changes might come. Yesterday RC9 was proposed (based on build r31577). RC9 fixes a potential issue in the working copy when you checkout with the new –-depth feature. RC9 is “out for signatures,” meaning that the Subversion developers are voting whether or not to release it. We’ll keep you updated.

Considering that the changes in RC8 and RC9 are minor and unlikely to destabilize, the Subversion developers decided not to restart the soak period (the time to test a Release Candidate before it is called the final release). So, unless users find showstopper bugs, Subversion will probably release next week or the week after.

You can download RC8 binaries from openCollabNet (Windows, Red Hat Linux, and Mac OS X). Please test RC8 and report any issues in the forum.

Btw: The release notes for Subversion 1.5 are nearing completion. You can view the Subversion 1.5 release notes on Tigris.org. A full list of SVN 1.5 changes is available as well. Neither of these documents is final of course.

As you read this, AnkhSVN is under active development for a 2.0 release scheduled shortly after Subversion 1.5. Things have changed a lot over the last few months in the AnkhSVN world and time has come to begin showing you how AnkhSVN 2.0 will be a better Subversion client for Visual Studio.NET. While we aren't ready for a beta yet (for example, merge support isn't completely finished yet), we are ready to give you access to AnkhSVN 2.0 previews via our daily builds.

The AnkhSVN 2.0 builds are very stable already and provide a great integration between Subversion and Visual Studio 2005/2008. To get an idea of what you can expect from AnkhSVN 2.0, view our roadmap. The roadmap shows the major new features in AnkhSVN 2.0 but other things are included as well: improved usability, general bug fixes, performance enhancements and more.

Please help us with testing our daily builds; we rely on the help of the user community to ensure quality. To report defects, or make suggestions for future enhancements, catch us online in #ankhsvn on irc.freenode.net or visit the community support forum on openCollabNet.

Subversion 1.5.0-rc7 was released today.  As with all the previous milestones, CollabNet  provides binaries for various operating systems for you to try the release.

This is expected to be the final release candidate and the official 1.5.0 release should happen in roughly 10 days if all goes well.  Bugs reported on this release candidate will likely be addressed in a 1.5.1 or other follow-up release.  Exceptions might be bugs that are considered serious regressions or API incompatibilities.

Fixes included since the last rc are fairly minor.  They were mostly documentation fixes in the code and some minor bug fixes.  Probably the most significant change was to the new API for including arbitrary revision properties in a commit.  During review of this API it was decided that there was a cleaner way to implement it, and so a change was made before the release became final.  Since it is a public API, once it is included in an official release we would have to support it until the 2.0 release, and this was deemed significant enough to get it in before the release is public.  This API change also led to a number of corresponding changes in the JavaHL API and the other language bindings.

As with the previous release candidates, we appreciate your testing and feedback.  A number of bug fixes have been made since the 1.5.x branch was created that came from users who tested these early releases.

A CollabNet customer submitted the following question to us recently:

We set up mirrors of several Subversion repositories which CollabNet hosts for us. I have a question regarding the frequency of synchronization. How often should it be done? Should we synchronize often with a smaller number of changes, or only once in a while with larger amount?

As it turns out, I'd been considering this very question myself recently. The dynamics of mirror management in Subversion are interesting, so fielding this question gave me an opportunity to render some of my recent musings on the matter as text. And as there is nothing particularly unique about this customer's Subversion deployment scenario, you the reader get to benefit from the generality and (now) publicity of the response that I offered to the inquirer.