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What is it? It is a software version control tool from IBM under the Rational brand providing a configuration management solutions scaling from small development projects to a geographically distributed development projects. What is the current version? Version 7 is the current version. It was the first major release since IBM bought Rational. Previous versions released by Rational were known as 200X.XX i.e 2002.05, 2003.06. What does it run on? It runs on Linux, z/OS, UNIX and Windows. Can it work in a mixed Windows and *NIX environment? Yes, it provides functionality so Windows and UNIX servers and clients can communicate with each other. What can it version control? ClearCase can version control any file and directory. However, it only has functionality to merge text files such as java or C, C++, .NET source code or perl, shell scripts, Microsoft Word files, and XML files. It can not merge binary files such as Acrobat PDF or Microsoft Excel Files. What software architecture does it use? Is a client server based model where Rational clients communicate over a network to the ClearCase server. Who created it? A company called Atria created it as a UNIX tool in 1992. This company then merged with Rational in 1997. IBM then bought Rational out in 2003 and now is one of IBM’s software brand offerings like Websphere, Tivoli and Lotus. Who uses it? It is typically implemented in medium to large business enterprises that can meet its high expenses for licensing, ongoing vendor support and setup costs. What size software development projects does it suit? It scales from small projects of a few developers to large projects with thousands of developers working on the same source code across the globe. What version control model does it use? Elements under version control are modified directly using a check out, modify, and checkin model. This is unlike file based like subversion or PVCS where files are copied to working copy, modified, then copied back in. How many different offerings does it come in?
Steve Robinson has been working in IT for over 20 years and has provided solutions for many large-enterprise corporate companies across the world. Steve specialises in Java and Middleware.
In January 2013, I was awarded the prestigous 'IBM Champion' accolade.
IBM WebSphere Application Server 8.0 Administration Guide
WebSphere Application Server 7.0 Administration Guide