A.14 import—Import sources into CVS, using vendor branches

• Synopsis: import [-options] repository vendortag releasetag…
• Requires: Repository, source distribution directory.
• Changes: repository.

Use import to incorporate an entire source distribution from an outside source (e.g., a source vendor) into your source repository directory. You can use this command both for initial creation of a repository, and for wholesale updates to the module from the outside source. See Tracking sources for a discussion on this subject.

The repository argument gives a directory name (or a path to a directory) under the CVS root directory for repositories; if the directory did not exist, import creates it.

When you use import for updates to source that has been modified in your source repository (since a prior import), it will notify you of any files that conflict in the two branches of development; use ‘checkout -j’ to reconcile the differences, as import instructs you to do.

If CVS decides a file should be ignored (see cvsignore), it does not import it and prints ‘I ’ followed by the filename (see import output for a complete description of the output).

If the file $CVSROOT/CVSROOT/cvswrappers exists, any file whose names match the specifications in that file will be treated as packages and the appropriate filtering will be performed on the file/directory before being imported. See Wrappers.

The outside source is saved in a first-level branch, by default 1.1.1. Updates are leaves of this branch; for example, files from the first imported collection of source will be revision 1.1.1.1, then files from the first imported update will be revision 1.1.1.2, and so on.

At least three arguments are required. repository is needed to identify the collection of source. vendortag is a tag for the entire branch (e.g., for 1.1.1). You must also specify at least one releasetag to uniquely identify the files at the leaves created each time you execute import. The releasetag should be new, not previously existing in the repository file, and uniquely identify the imported release,

Note that import does not change the directory in which you invoke it. In particular, it does not set up that directory as a CVS working directory; if you want to work with the sources import them first and then check them out into a different directory (see Getting the source).