If you are a programmer and you are not yet familiar with a concept which is version control system or VCS, know that you are unaware of one of the most important concepts in the world of programming. No matter how good a programmer you are and what applications you have developed, if you have never used version control systems, you can never be a professional programmer! Because professional programmers and first-rate programming companies all use such tools in their work process. So if you want to know with one of the basic tools of professional programmers, do not miss the rest of this article.
What is VCS
The Version Control System, abbreviated VCS, is a system that allows programmers and developers to make mistakes without worrying! Because they are comfortable with the fact that using VCS, you can track their mistakes, check and correct. Of course, this is only one of the unique applications of version control systems.
These systems allow developers and programmers to save or even submit their projects in different versions. VCS also simplifies the process of developing projects in groups by providing many features such as the ability to track changes in the actions of each programmer, build different branches of the project, prevent programmer code interference, and so on.
So VCS is a system that is for controlling and tracking changes in software projects. The basis of these systems is on recording and maintaining the history of code that is for during the development of an application. That is, version control systems are of the same nature as databases, except that the information within them includes different versions of the project and data related to each of them. This database allows programmers to save or call the desired version of their project whenever they want.
tip : The use of VCS is not l to programmers and developers. Because this tool can is for other tasks such as writing, design, etc.
Familiarity with different types of VCS
Version control systems are into two categories: Distributed and Centralized. The main difference between the two is in the way. In the following, we will examine each of these systems:
Centralized version control systems: In this type of VCSs, all data is stored on a central server and the method of accessing information is client / server. This means that if developers want to make changes to the project, they must be connected to a central server, otherwise they will not be able to access the project information. Distributed control systems: In this type of system, project information is made available to any programmer and they can make the desired changes in it whenever they want and then integrate them with the server at any time. . The advantage of these VCSs is that if the main server is not available, developers can still apply the changes to their system. Then, when the connection to the server is established, the information and its changes are synchronized with the main server. One of the most important distributed version control systems is GIT.
Why should we use It in our projects?
Teamwork has become one of the most important principles of programming. Because most programming projects are so widespread that one can never do it alone. On the other hand, most of these projects require different specializations. But in the past, programmers faced many difficulties and challenges in carrying out such projects. Challenges such as lack of platform for synchronizing code in programmers ‘systems, interference of written code, lack of ability to track programmers’ code, etc. For this purpose, source management systems or VCSs were developed. Some of the most important features that version management systems provide us with are:
- Ability to retrieve codes to the desired version
- Save software development process in different versions
- Ability to compare, review and track code in different versions
- Determining the amount of coding and participation of each programmer in the software development process
- Determining the changes made by each programmer
- Possibility of simultaneous development and coding
- Ease of teamwork, especially telecommuting in the field of programming
- Track project progress
- Ability to branch from project source
- Backups
Conclusion
It does not matter if you are a programmer, writer or even a graphic designer. You will definitely need to maintain different versions of your project when developing a project. For example, imagine that you are developing software and after a long time you realize that the code you wrote was wrong. In this case, if you do not have previous versions of your project, you may never be able to find the source of your errors and therefore may have to start your project over. So if you have never used this powerful and useful tool in your software development process, we recommend that you start learning these tools today. Have you ever experienced the challenges of not using VCS?