checkout [options] modules...

Requires: repository.

Changes: working directory

Synonyms: co, get

Make a working directory containing copies of the source files specified by modules. You must execute 'cvs checkout' before using most of the other cvs commands, since most of them operate on your working directory.

Modules are either symbolic names (themselves defined as the module 'modules' in the source repository; see cvs(5)) for some collection of source directories and files, or paths to directories or files in the repository.

Depending on the modules you specify, checkout may recursively create directories and populate them with the appropriate source files. You can then edit these source files at any time (regardless of whether other software developers are editing their own copies of the sources); update them to include new changes applied by others to the source repository; or commit your work as a permanent change to the RCS repository.

Note that checkout is used to create directories. The toplevel directory created is always added to the directory where checkout is invoked, and usually has the same name as the specified module. In the case of a module alias, the created subdirectory may have a different name, but you can be sure that it will be a subdirectory, and that checkout will show the relative path leading to each file as it is extracted into your private work area (unless you specify the -Q option).

Running 'cvs checkout' on a directory that was already built by a prior checkout is also permitted, and has the same effect as specifying the -d option to the update command described below.

The options permitted with 'cvs checkout' include the standard command optionsĘ P, -Q, -f, -k kflag , -l, -n, p, -q, -r tag, andĘ D date.

In addition to those, you can use these special command options with checkout:

Use the -A option to reset any sticky tags, dates, or k options. (If you get a working file using one ofthe -r, -D, or -k options, cvs remembers thecorresponding tag, date, or kflag and continues using it on future updates; use the -A option to make cvs forget these specifications, and retrieve the "head" version of the file).

The -j branch option merges the changes made between the resulting revision and the revision that it is based on (e.g., if the tag refers to a branch, cvs will merge all changes made in that branch into your working file).

With two -j options, cvs will merge in the changes between the two respective revisions. This can be used to "remove" a certain delta from your working file.

In addition, each -j option can contain on optional date specification which, when used with branches, can limit the chosen revision to one within a specific date. An optional date is specified by adding a colon (:) to the tag. An example might be what 'cvs import' tells you to do when you have just imported sources that have conflicts with local changes:

cvs checkout -jTAG:yesterday -jTAG module

Use the -N option with ' d dir' to avoid shortening module paths in your working directory. (Normally, cvs shortens paths as much as possible when you specify an explicit target directory.)

Use the -c option to copy the module file, sorted, to the standard output, instead of creating or modifying any files or directories in your working directory.

Use the -d dir option to create a directory called dir for the working files, instead of using the module name. Unless you also use -N, the paths created under dir will be as short as possible.

Use the -s option to display per module status information stored with the -s option within the modules file.