how to switch folder to symlink in svn

Question

I had a folder that was part of one project in svn, that has been moved to a different folder / repository to be shared between projects. i want to replace this directory in svn w/ a symlink, but when I try to do so, I get this message:

svn: Entry '/project/wwwdocs/js' has unexpectedly changed special status

how can I replace this directory with a symlink?

Mrk · Answer 1 · 2011-09-01T16:50:58.803

18

The following sets the special property on every symlink and deletes it on normal files/directories. There are various ways to the determine the files to operate on.

svn_special_files=`svn propget --recursive svn:special | cut -d' ' -f1`
for i in `find . | grep -v "\.svn" | cut -d'/' -f2-`; do
  is_special=false
  for j in $svn_special_files; do 
    if [ "$j" = "$i" ]; then 
      is_special=true; 
      break; 
    fi
  done
  if [ -h $i ] ; then
    ! $is_special && svn propset svn:special '*' $i
  else
    $is_special && svn propdel svn:special $i
  fi
done

edited Sep 01 '11 at 16:50

answered Sep 01 '11 at 15:06

Mrk

181
1
3

Very useful routine, and I never knew you use use ! like that. (+1) – Orwellophile Oct 23 '13 at 02:42
Explanation of the script: By setting the svn:special property correctly, you can commit the change from file to symlink or from symlink to file in one go. The script automatically sets the correct svn:special property for all files in your repository. – phobic Aug 29 '16 at 12:39
Not sure if this answer is only relevant to an older version of svn, but when I try to propset on the symlink I get this error: "svn: Expected '/path/to/symlink' to be a directory but found a file". And if I try to commit it I get "svn: Entry for '/path/to/symlink' has no URL". Any tips? (svn --version indicates 1.6.17) – dlo Apr 03 '18 at 21:12

score 16 · Accepted Answer · edited May 23 '17 at 10:31

16

In order for subversion to pick up the changes and detect the symlink, you need to first remove the original file, commit the deletion, and then update your repository. After that you should be able to add a symlink without any issues.

EDIT: This question seems to have been asked before and received some decent feedback. Check it out: Commit symlink into subversion

edited May 23 '17 at 10:31

Community

1
1

answered Mar 15 '11 at 15:32

Damien Wilson

4,540
3
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What happens to the deleted file in previous versions in this case? It is removed there also? – wander95 Sep 25 '17 at 20:12
It's been a long time since I've used SVN, so I honestly have no idea. – Damien Wilson Oct 04 '17 at 22:51

score 3 · Answer 3 · answered Jun 29 '15 at 21:50

3

You can even try a simple answer of removing culprit file -

svn remove --force <file>

This is especially helpful for Windows users using SVN cli.

answered Jun 29 '15 at 21:50

Soman Dubey

3,798
4
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32

score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Oct 18 '17 at 02:41

1

You could execute command blow to fix this problem.

svn propset svn:special on /project/wwwdocs/js

answered Oct 18 '17 at 02:41

Yates Zhou

51
4

how to switch folder to symlink in svn

4 Answers4

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