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I'm looking for guidance in setting up a corporate source server, but when I google this topic the best I can come up with is articles and walkthrough concerned with configuring VS to use microsoft's public symbol servers for use with debugging .NET assemblies.

Provided for background info, the environment I'm concerned with using is Vs2010/Tfs2010. Basically, the workflow I'm looking to facilitate is this:

  • 1) customer reports problem with application
  • 2) application of the appropriate version is installed on a virtual machine
  • 3) developer repros bug attaching to process on virtual machine and leveraging source server (symbol server?) on corporate domain. This is the step I'm concerned with.
  • 4) developer pinpoints problem fixes bug in workspace.
  • 5) developer performs a dll swap on VM to test changes? (side topic, not sure on this)
  • 6) normal development/source control workflows.

Any advice is welcome!

Edit: since writing this, I have stumbled on this article, which is a nice writeup on the configuration of source server for TFS 2008. Has anyone adapted this for Tfs 2010?

bwerks
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4 Answers4

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Here is an article about setting up a Symbol Server, for your own company. It also details how to add your own symbols and binaries to it and how to use them for debugging.

The article is from 2006, but the advice should still apply.

You should be able to follow your workflow with this setup.

Here is another article explaining the use of symbol servers.

Oded
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    Actually, he said the *only* article he could find was about the configuring of the public symbol servers. :) – Robaticus Dec 27 '10 at 20:10
  • @Robaticus - Your point? The article explains how to add your own symbols and binaries to the symbol server. I believe that's exactly what he is looking for, nothing to do with _source control_. – Oded Dec 27 '10 at 21:47
  • My point? My point is that I apparently misread his question. :) <-- note the smiley. – Robaticus Dec 28 '10 at 04:53
  • @Robaticus - Fair enough. I agree that `source server` is ambiguous at best... `symbol server` is much clearer, as is `source control server` :) – Oded Dec 28 '10 at 10:45
  • Agreed. Worst product names ever. – bwerks Dec 30 '10 at 17:47
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1) customer reports problem with application

Several ways this can be done. If your customer is external to your organization, you'll probably want a custom web front-end that ties into creating workitems via the API. Otherwise, you can use Work Item Web Access, which is included with your TFS installation.

2) application of the appropriate version is installed on a virtual machine

For this, you're probably looking at Visual Studio 2010 Ultimate and the Test and Lab management piece. Getting set up to use this is probably outside the scope of a SO response.

3) developer repros bug attaching to process on virtual machine and leveraging source server (symbol server?) on corporate domain.

Again, Test / Lab management.

4) developer pinpoints problem fixes bug in workspace.

TFS

5) developer performs a dll swap on VM to test changes? (side topic, not sure on this)

Development branch build with automated deployment. May be able to do this with Test/Lab management, or may have to do some scripting within your build. Scripting installs is relatively straightforward with TFS custom actions.

6) normal development/source control workflows.

TFS source control and work items.

Installation and initial configuration of TFS is relatively straightforward with TFS 2010. Best practices will probably require a lot of reading and a mentor / consultant or two to get you through it.

Robaticus
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  • I think you've confused "source server" with "source control server" here. A source server allows developers tracing through an attached application to access the specific file version used to build that application, which leverages source control to get that version of the file. – bwerks Dec 27 '10 at 21:36
  • I guess you confused me by tagging the question as TFS. My aged eyes and brain read that, along with the majority of your points, as being about source control, so that's what I answered. – Robaticus Dec 28 '10 at 04:51
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Items 2 through 5 are normally handled manually by the developer. How they go about reproducing and debugging the error is not something any source control system can help with.

For everything else there is TFS.

With TFS you can pin builds and pull those from the build server as necessary for redeployment. You can also branch releases, make bug fixes in those branches, and roll those fixes back into trunk.

NotMe
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I think I have something to help you out... Here's a bunch of information about Symbol Server and Source Server support for TFS 2010 specifically wrapped up together: http://bit.ly/SymbolServerTFS

Let me know if there are any additional questions and I'll get them updated in the blog post!

Ed Blankenship
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