Using Version Control with RStudio
Overview
Version control is an indispensable tool for coordinating the work of teams and also has many benefits for individual work. The following StackOverflow discussions describe some of these benefits:
RStudio includes integrated support for two open source version control systems:
To use version control with RStudio, you should first ensure that you have installed Git and/or Subversion (details below). Next, you should become familiar with using RStudio Projects (which are required for version control features to be enabled).
Installation
Prior to using RStudio's version control features you will need to ensure that you have Git and/or Subversion installed on your system. The following describes how to do this for various platforms.
Git
Prior to using Git with RStudio you should install it using the appropriate method for your platform:
- Windows: http://code.google.com/p/msysgit/
- OSX: http://code.google.com/p/git-osx-installer/
- Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt-get install git-core
- Fedora/RedHat: sudo yum install git-core
An excellent resource for learning more about Git and how to use it is the Pro Git online book. Another good resource for learning about git is the Introduction to Git provided by GitHub.
Subversion
Prior to using Subversion with RStudio you should install it using the appropriate method for your platform:
- Windows: SilkSVN (or any of the other packages listed here)
- OSX: Not required — already included in OSX
- Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt-get install subversion
- Fedora/RedHat: sudo yum install subversion
An excellent resource for learning more about Subversion and how to use it is the Red Bean online book.