How to: Manage File Storage

Source code control, such as that provided by Visual SourceSafe, manages versions of files by saving them to a database. When you add a file, it is backed up on the database, made available to other people, and changes that have been made to the file are saved so you can recover an old version at any time. Members of your team can see the latest version of any file, check it out of the database to make changes, and save a new version in the database by checking the file back in. For information on how to open, close, or save project and solution files, see Managing Solutions, Projects, and Files.

When you open a file that is under source code control and not checked out, you are asked if you want to check it out. If the file is under source code control and someone else has it checked out, the file title appears with [Read only] in the window's caption, unless you are using an automatically branching (file sharing) source control system. If you try to save the file, the Save As dialog appears to allow you to save it under a different name or location. If you have a file checked out and you undo the checkout, your changes are lost, although you are prompted first whether or not to save the changes.

Inserting a File into a File

You can insert the contents of a file, such as text or code, for use in your application.

To insert the contents of a file

  1. Open the file and position the cursor at the place where you want the contents of the file inserted.

  2. On the Edit menu, choose Insert File as Text.

  3. In the Insert File dialog box, select a file type, such as Text File. Locate the desired file, and then choose Open.

For more information on source code control, use the Help Index.

See Also

Concepts

International Projects in Visual Studio

Reference

Encoding Dialog Box

Other Resources

Editing Text, Code, and Markup

Globalizing and Localizing Applications