 -Integrate_Begin(1)

NAME
-Integrate_Begin - begin integrating a change

SYNOPSIS
-Integrate_Begin change-number [ option... ]
-Integrate_Begin -List [ option... ]
-Integrate_Begin -Help

DESCRIPTION
The -Integrate_Begin command is used to begin the integration of a change into the baseline of a project.

The change will advance from the awaiting integration state to the being integrated state.

A (logical) copy of the baseline is created in an integration directory and the the files of the change are added to the integration directory. The time stamps of files copied from the baseline are preserved, time stamps on the files copied from the development directory are all set to the time of the beginning of the integration. The ' -Change_Directory' command may be used to locate the integration directory. The change will be assigned to the current user.

Please note that only regular files and symbolic links are copied (linked) from the baseline to the integration directory. This has some implications:

•   Special files (devices, named pipes, etc) will not be reproduced in the integration directory; you will need to create these as part of the build.

•   If the case of the -minimum option (see below), only primary source files are copied (linked) across. Derived files (including symbolic links) are expected to be created as part of the build.

•   If the case of the -minimum option, directories are only created when required to hold a file which satisfies the above criteria. If you need special empty directories, or directories which contain only special files, or only contain derived files, you need to create them as part of the build.

The link_integration_directory field of the project configuration file (see aepconf(5) for more information) controls whether the copy of the baseline is done by copying the files or by creating hard links to the files. The hard links are just one of the constraints on the location of the integration directory. The integrate begin will abort with an error if this copy operation fails, e.g. by running out of disk space. If this should happen, the change will remain in the awaiting integration state, and the integration directory will be removed.

The change will be assigned a delta number. Delta numbers are incremented once for each -Integrate_Begin command for the project. If an integration is subsequently aborted with either the -Integrate_Begin_Undo or -Integrate_FAIL command, the delta number will not be re-used.

It is not possible to choose the integration directory, as there are many constraints upon it, including the fact that it must be on the same device as the baseline directory, and that many UNIX implementations don't allow renaming directories up and down the trees. The integration directory will be in the project directory, and named for the delta number.

  Notification
On successful completion of this command, the integration_begin_command field of the project config file is run, if set. See aepconf(5) for more information.

Minimum Integrations
provides a minimum integration capability which may be used for various reasons. The term minimum may be a bit counter intuitive. One might think it means to the minimum amount of work, however it actually means use a minimum of files from the baseline in populating the delta directory. This normally leads to actually building everything in the project from sources and, as such, might be considered the most robust of builds.

Note that any change which removes a file, whether by aerm, aemv or aemt, results in an implicit minimum integration. This is intended to ensure nothing in the project references the removed file.

A project may adopt a policy that a product release should be based on a minimum integration. Such a policy may be a reflection of local confidence, or lack thereof, in the project's DMT (Dependency Maintenance Tool) or build system. Or it may be based on a validation process wishing to make a simple statement on how the released package was produced.

Another, more transient, reason a to require a minimum integration might be when upgrading a third party library, compiler or maybe even OS level. Any of these events would signal the need for a minimum integration to ensure everything is rebuilt using the new resources.

The cost of a minimum integration varies according to type and size of the project. For very large projects, especially those building large numbers of binaries, the cost can be large. However large projects also require significant time to fully populate the delta directory. A minimum integration only copies those files under control, skipping all “produced” files. In the case where a file upon which everything depends is changed, everything will be built anyway so the copy of the already built files is a waste of time. This means that sometimes a minimum can be as cheap as a normal integration.

  Change Set Attributes
The follwoing user-defined change set attributes are understood:

integrate-begin-hint
    If this is set to "minimum" or "maximum", it is as if these options appeared on the command line. Only consulted if neither -minimum nor -maximum appear on the command line.

All other user defined change set attributes are ignored.

OPTIONS
The following options are understood:

RECOMMENDED ALIAS
The recommended alias for this command is
csh%	alias aeib ' -ib \!* -v'
sh$	aeib(){ -ib "$@" -v}

ERRORS
It is an error if the change is not in the awaiting integration state.
It is an error if the current user is not an integrator of the project.
It is an error if there is an integration in progress for the project.
It is an error if the current user developed the change and the project is configured to disallow developers to integrate their own changes (default).
It is an error if the current user reviewed the change and the project is configured to disallow reviewers to integrate their such changes (default).

SEE ALSO

aeb(1)
    build a change

aecd(1)
    change directory

aeibu(1)
    reverse the aeib command

aeifail(1)
    fail integration of a change

aeintegratq(1)
    Automate the integration queue.

aeipass(1)
    pass integration of a change

aeni(1)
    add new integrators to a project

aerpass(1)
    pass review of a change

aet(1)
    run tests

aeuconf(5)
    user configuration file format