4. The StreamBrowser : Working in the StreamBrowser

Working in the StreamBrowser
The following sections describe working in the StreamBrowser. Note that many of these operations can be performed only in the graphical display, not in the tabular display.
Controlling the Display
Initially, the StreamBrowser displays all of the depot's currently active dynamic streams, along with workspaces for the current user. It does not display any snapshots, nor any item that you have deactivated with the Remove command.
Note: If you have applied a Stream Favorite, only a subset of the streams in the depot appear.
Applying a Stream Favorite
A Stream Favorite is a way to limit the stream hierarchy shown in the StreamBrowser to the stream path of a specific stream and all its children. See Using Stream Favorites on page 143 for more information.
Filtering Users/Groups
The Filter Users/Groups button on the main AccuRev toolbar allows you to restrict the set of users and groups displayed in the StreamBrowser and other locations in the AccuRev GUI. See Filter Users/Groups (Tools > Filter > Users/Groups Command) on page 36 for more information.
Tip: You can also create Stream Favorites to limit the stream hierarchy shown in the StreamBrowser and any list of streams available in the AccuRev GUI. See Using Stream Favorites on page 143 for more information.
Filtering Streams, Snapshots, and Workspaces
You can adjust the numbers and types of streams shown by using the controls at the bottom of the StreamBrowser tab:
Include hidden streams
This checkbox is a toggle switch: it reveals/hides the data structures that have been Remove'd. (The Remove command doesn't actually delete anything from the depot; the data structure just becomes invisible and inactive.)
Snapshots
This drop-down list controls how many snapshots are visible in the StreamBrowser. It contains the choices No Snapshots (the default), All Snapshots, Past week, Past 2 weeks, and Past 4 weeks. (Check the Include hidden streams checkbox if you want to see snapshots that have been Remove'd.) No matter what the setting, a snapshot remains visible if there are any workspaces or streams below it.
Workspaces
This drop-down list controls which of the depot's workspaces are visible in the StreamBrowser. It contains the choices All Workspaces, No Workspaces, Current User (the default), Unassigned, and the name of each registered AccuRev user and group. (Check the Include hidden streams checkbox if you want to see workspaces that have been Remove'd.) To control which users and groups appear in this list, use the Filter Users/Groups (Tools > Filter > Users/Groups Command) on page 36 command.
Only stream paths to workspaces
This checkbox is a toggle switch. Select it to filter the streams so that only the stream paths to workspaces -- the streams directly connecting the root stream to the workspace -- are visible in the StreamBrowser. Unselect it to remove the filter. Use the Workspaces list to control which workspaces are shown.
Expanding and Collapsing Subtrees
In the graphical display mode, each stream that has "children" (workspaces and/or snapshots) is displayed with an expand/collapse control. Collapsing causes the entire hierarchy below the stream to disappear from the screen. This affects the StreamBrowser display only. It does not affect the operation of the stream in any way.
Changing the StreamBrowser View
If your depot has a large or complex stream hierarchy, not all of its streams and workspaces will be visible on your display. To change your view of the stream hierarchy, you can:
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Use your mouse to drag the stream hierarchy -- place the pointer on the StreamBrowser background, press and hold mouse button one, and then move the mouse to change the view.
Historical View of the Stream Hierarchy
If the Enable StreamBrowser History preference is checked (AccuRev Preferences (Tools > Preferences Command) on page 38), a set of history controls are added to the toolbar. This enables you to view the stream hierarchy as it existed at any point in the past.
Viewing a Stream's Current Development Activity
The StreamBrowser can show the development activity currently taking place in each stream or workspace.
A control below the stream or workspace opens or closes a subwindow that displays the details of the development activity. The activity details can appear in several ways -- by element, by transaction, or by issue record.
Use the development-activity mode controls at the right side of the StreamBrowser toolbar to determine how the activity details will be displayed. (The icons on the controls below the streams and workspace change accordingly.) You can change modes either before or after opening an activity subwindow.
Viewing Activity By Element
When displaying activity by element, the subwindow displays:
dynamic stream: the results of a Default Group search
workspace: the intersection of the results of a Default Group search and the results of a Pending search
See Active Versions vs. Pending Changes in a Workspace on page 128 for more information on the relationship (and differences) between these two searches.
You can select one or more of the element versions and invoke commands on them, using the subwindow's toolbar. The commands available are the same as in the File Browser: see Details Pane Command Reference on page 76.
You can also perform these drag-and-drop operations:
Dragging the subwindow control (but not elements within the subwindow) to the parent stream or another dynamic stream performs a Promote or Send to Change Palette operation on all the element versions in the subwindow.
Viewing Activity By Transaction
When displaying a stream's activity by element, the subwindow displays the transactions that created the versions that are currently active in the stream. This display is the same as that in the Summary pane of an Active Transaction tab; see The Active Transactions Tab (Show Active Transactions command) on page 167. You can select one or more transactions and perform commands on them, just as in the Active Transactions tab.
Viewing Activity By Issue Record
When displaying a stream's activity by issue record, the subwindow displays the issue records that are in a particular stream. This display is the same as that in the Issues pane of a Stream Issues tab (see The Stream Issues and Stream Diff (Issues) Tabs on page 156). You can select one or more issue records and perform commands on them, just as in the Stream Issues tab.
You can also perform this drag-and-drop operation:
Dragging the subwindow control (but not elements within the subwindow) to the parent stream or another dynamic stream performs a Promote or Send to Change Palette operation on all the versions in the change packages of the subwindow's issue records.
Reparenting Streams and Workspaces
AccuRev lets you change the backing stream (parent stream) of any dynamic stream or workspace. The StreamBrowser makes it simple: you just drag-and-drop a stream or workspace from its current location in the hierarchy to its new parent.
The entire subhierarchy moves to the new location. Changing a data structure's location in the stream hierarchy is called reparenting. If the StreamBrowser display contains many streams or the stream structure is very complex, an alternative method of reparenting a stream is to select Reparent from the context menu of the stream or workspace, then navigate to and click the new parent stream. You are asked to confirm the operation.
Important: After you change the location of a workspace, be sure to Update it. This ensures that the workspace contains the correct set of versions, many of which it will inherit from its new parent. Likewise, after changing the location of a stream, all workspaces in the subhierarchy below that stream should be Update'd.
Notes:
Snapshots
You cannot reparent a snapshot; both the contents and the parentage of snapshot are fixed permanently.
Exclusive file locking workspaces
You cannot reparent (or change any of the other specifications) of a workspace created with the exclusive file locking feature.
Time-based streams
If you reparent a time-based stream, AccuRev asks whether you wish to retain the basis time or remove it.
Reconfiguring a Stream
The drag-and-drop operation changes one property of a stream: its parent. You can also change a stream's properties using the Change Stream command on its context menu.
Although you can give a new name to an existing stream, you cannot proceed to create a new stream with the old name. The old name remains associated with its stream. The only way to reuse a stream name is to completely remove the stream's depot from the AccuRev repository, using the AccuRev administration utility, maintain.
Setting or Changing a Stream's Basis Time
By default, a stream inherits all versions from its parent, no matter when those versions were created. If you assign a basis time to a stream, it inherits only those versions created before the specified point in time. (The File Browser's include/exclude facility provides another way to restrict which versions get inherited from the parent stream.)
Creating New Streams, Snapshots, and Workspaces
The context menu of any data structure in the StreamBrowser includes commands for creating new structures at that point in the hierarchy. New Stream and New Snapshot display dialogs similar to that of Change Stream. The New Workspace command invokes a wizard that steps you through the process of defining a new workspace: you specify a name and a location on disk; you can also make some optional settings, such as controlling how line endings in text files are to be handled.
Commands Available in a StreamBrowser Tab
Open
Using a File Browser tab, display the entire contents of the selected stream, snapshot, or workspace.
New Stream
Create a new dynamic stream or pass-through stream, based on (that is, as a child of) the selected stream or snapshot. A Stream Configuration dialog appears.
New Workspace
Create a new workspace, based on (that is, as a child of) the selected stream or snapshot. A New Workspace wizard helps you to configure the workspace.
New Snapshot
Create a new snapshot, based on (that is, as a child of) the selected stream  A New Snapshot dialog appears.
Change Stream
Modify the configuration of the selected dynamic stream or pass-through stream. A Stream Configuration dialog appears.
Reparent
Change the backing stream (parent stream) of the selected dynamic stream or workspace.
Remove
After confirmation, hide the selected stream, snapshot, or workspace. This removes the object from the StreamBrowser display.
Removal affects how the object can be used:
Note: Removing a workspace that belongs to another user -- You cannot do this using the AccuRev GUI. The rmws -s command in the AccuRev CLI provides this capability.
Reactivate
Undo a Remove command for the selected stream, snapshot, or workspace.
Locks ... (Lock/Unlock Stream)
(Dynamic stream only) Lock a stream, to disable various operations that modify the stream. If a stream is already locked, a lock icon appears in the StreamBrowser graphical display, and in the Locks column of the tabular display. A Lock dialog appears: see The Locks Command on page 49.
WIP (Work in Progress)
Open a WIP tab, displaying the active elements in workspaces and/or streams related to the selected stream.
Search for Stream
Find the stream(s) whose name includes a specified character string. A Search for Stream dialog appears.
Show All Overlaps
(Workspace only) Using an Overlaps tab: for active file elements (those in the workspace's default group), display all overlaps involving versions in the workspace's entire backing chain (higher-level streams) -- not just overlaps between the workspace and its immediate parent stream.
Show Active ...
There are three commands to display the stream's development activity, using the appropriate tool for the current development-activity mode:
Element mode: open a File Browser tab on the selected stream, and execute a search for active elements.
Transaction mode: open an Active Transactions tab, showing the transactions that created the versions currently in the selected stream's default group.
Issue Record mode: open a Stream Issues tab, showing the change packages that have been (partially or completely) incorporated into the selected stream.
The way the three commands appear on a stream's context menu varies with the development-activity mode: the command for the current mode appears at the top-level of the context menu; the commands for the other two modes are in a submenu. For example, the following illustration shows how the menu choices appear if the StreamBrowser is currently displaying activity by issue record. 
Show History
Using a History Browser, display the transactions that created versions in the selected stream.
Show Diff By Files
Using a Diff Streams window, show the element-by-element differences between the selected stream and another stream (which AccuRev prompts you to specify).
Show Diff By Issues
Using a Stream Issues window, show the differences between the selected stream and another stream (which AccuRev prompts you to specify). The differences are shown in terms of change packages instead of individual elements.
Send to Change Palette
Send the active elements for the selected stream to the Change Palette.
Show Patch List
Using a Patch List tab, list all the individual versions whose changes are in the selected stream, but are not in another stream (which AccuRev prompts you to specify).
Graphical Display
Display the depot's stream hierarchy as a tree.
Tabular Display
Display the depot's stream hierarchy as a table.
Graphical/Tabular Display
Display the depot's stream hierarchy as a tree in one pane, and as a table in another pane.

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