Use of SVN for custom mixed projects

[fsala]

Hello guys,
I'm trying to find the best practices for the development of custom websites based on Joomla... but I'm lost!
I'll be very happy if I could discuss with you some of the issues.

We have some SVN repositories that we use for our inhouse developments (let's say: 1 repository = 1 website), with everything inside (project docs, gfx, sql scripts... and obviously the source code).

We develop also custom Joomla apps (modules, components, plugins and templates), usually for just one web site, sometimes for some of them. So, we have a global repository for the apps and sometimes branches for customizations.

But... (and here we have the issues...)

1. we want to keep some of them in sync with mainstream Joomla SVN (or with some tagged versions)
2. sometimes, it happens that we also need to PATCH the Joomla code
3. we need to keep track of the user-added changes (=content changes like the dir images/* and so on)

We tried to use svn:externals properties for some dirs (like "administrator") pointing to the original Joomla SVN, but was a black hole, because if we need to make changes (point 2) to the Joomla core we are unable to do it

We tried to create a "branch" with the original Joomla code inside our website repository, that resides in "trunk"... but we lose the connection with Joomla SVN, so we are unable to follow the J! development and we are forced to copy it to each repository we have (if I don't miss something...)

We did other stupid tricks but each one have more bad news than good ones...

Maybe I'm just missing the point... and trying to to the things the opposite way ... do you have any suggestion in the field?

Thanks in advance

[oboy]

I have the same problem and unfortunately no answers yet. Did you get any further?

[AmyStephen]

Are you patching the Joomla! code because you are finding and resolving errors?

Or, are you hacking the code to get it to do something beyond what it is intended?

[ianmac]

Hello guys,
I'm trying to find the best practices for the development of custom websites based on Joomla... but I'm lost!
I'll be very happy if I could discuss with you some of the issues.

We have some SVN repositories that we use for our inhouse developments (let's say: 1 repository = 1 website), with everything inside (project docs, gfx, sql scripts... and obviously the source code).

We develop also custom Joomla apps (modules, components, plugins and templates), usually for just one web site, sometimes for some of them. So, we have a global repository for the apps and sometimes branches for customizations.

But... (and here we have the issues...)

1. we want to keep some of them in sync with mainstream Joomla SVN (or with some tagged versions)
2. sometimes, it happens that we also need to PATCH the Joomla code
3. we need to keep track of the user-added changes (=content changes like the dir images/* and so on)

We tried to use svn:externals properties for some dirs (like "administrator") pointing to the original Joomla SVN, but was a black hole, because if we need to make changes (point 2) to the Joomla core we are unable to do it

We tried to create a "branch" with the original Joomla code inside our website repository, that resides in "trunk"... but we lose the connection with Joomla SVN, so we are unable to follow the J! development and we are forced to copy it to each repository we have (if I don't miss something...)

We did other stupid tricks but each one have more bad news than good ones...

Maybe I'm just missing the point... and trying to to the things the opposite way ... do you have any suggestion in the field?

Thanks in advance

In my experience, mixing SVN trees is trouble. I think that is what you are facing. One trick that I learned, which I use while developing extensions, is to setup my development repository for my extension similar to the Joomla! directory structure. That means, that in my SVN, I will have something like:
components/com_mycom
administrator/components/com_mycom
and all the files underneath.

so, when I have that established, I do a checkout into a directory in my web server.

Then, I do a SVN export over top of that from the Joomla! code.
i.e. if I have a checkout of the J! trunk or release SVN in /var/www/1.5 and I am developing in /var/www/mycom, I do:
svn export /var/www/1.5 /var/www/mycom --force

This will copy the Joomla! files over into the mycom directory. I can then do an install and add my extension into the database.

This is one approach, I'm sure there are others.
Ian