LibreSource

infobox software
name = LibreSource
author = LibreSource Consortium
latest release version = 2.5
latest release date = 21 May 2008
operating system = cross-platform
platform = Java Platform
genre = software development / groupware
license = GPLv2
website = http://www.libresource.org/

LibreSource is a versatile collaborative platform. Open Source, modular and highly customizable, LibreSource is adapted to collaborative software development (forge), groupware, community leading, e-archiving and Web publishing.

On a single server, LibreSource can host several projects, several groups of users, and grant fine grain access to the resources. Based on Java/J2EE, LibreSource is a modular web server that users can customize online by combining resources and rights: wiki pages, forum, trackers, Synchronizers, Subversion repositories, files, download areas, drop boxes, forms, etc. LibreSource uses most of the advanced services provided by the ObjectWeb application server called JOnAS.

Variations between products

LibreSource Enterprise Edition is the professional version of the LibreSource Community, a collaborative platform developed by LORIA-INRIA Lorraine, University Paris 7 et [http://www.artenum.com/ Artenum] in the frame of a French initiative called RNTL (Réseau National des Technologies Logicielles). LibreSource was first released under the Q Public License since June 2005 and switched to GPLv2 in May 2008. The Enterprise Edition was developed by Artenum.

LibreSource Express is a hosting facility for collaborative development projects on LibreSource Enterprise Edition servers. LibreSource Express is a professional service offered by Artenum since August 2006.

LibreSource Synchronizer

The aim of the LibreSource Synchronizer is to answer to the version tracking and concurrent editing needs and to improve the collaborative aspects of the SCM tool in order to let the users know on which version another member of a team is working on.

The LibreSource Synchronizer is based on another approach compared to common versioning tools.
* Basically, there's only one merging algorithm for any kind of managed data. (binary file, ASCII files, XML files, directories)
* All changed are made or defined by a set of specific commands (i.e.: addFile, addLines, removeLines, rename...).
* The sequence of versions are managed by a unique global history. In order to build a specific version, you just need to replay a part of the history.
* Branch are not supported but synchronization network are available instead. It means that a workspace can be synchronized with more than one LibreSource Synchronizer. As a limitation, the network must have tree topology.

Some of the LibreSource Synchronizer features:

* Full Java implementation.
* LibreSource Synchronizer merges the file systems, text files and XML files.
* Allows networks of synchronization, also called Dataflows. A workspace can be synchronized with more than one synchronizer. This way, a change can be propagated from one synchronizer to another.
* Provides atomic commit and update operations.
* Provides the rename operation on files and directories.
* Each workspace keeps a copy of the history. Diffs, undo, revert can be made offline.
* Based on the change set model. Change sets are stored in XML files.
* Allows to know the history for each line of text file, each entry of a file system, each node of xml document.
* Allows to track uncommitted change. This can be done offline.
* Do not allow per-file commit message. LibreSource Synchronizer do not allow partial commit or update, so commit messages are for change sets.
* Automatic deployment through Java Web Start
* Use of the HTTP protocol to get through firewalls.
* Eclipse plugin available.
* Open source with a GPLv2 Licence.

References

* [http://www.theserverside.com/news/thread.tss?thread_id=43234 The Server Side 2.0 announcement]
* [http://www.theserverside.com/news/thread.tss?thread_id=44018 The Server Side 2.1 announcement]

See also

* Comparison of revision control software

External links

* [http://www.libresource.org/ LibreSource]
* [http://www.artenum.com/ Artenum homepage]