p4 client

Synopsis

Syntax

Description

Although there is always a one-to-one mapping between a client workspace file and a depot file, these files need not be stored at the same relative locations, nor must they have the same names. The client view, which is specified in the p4 client form's View: field, specifies how files in the client workspace are mapped to the depot, and vice-versa.

When called without a clientname argument, p4 client will operate on the client workspace specified by the P4CLIENT environment variable or one of its equivalents. If called with a clientname argument on a locked client, the client specification is displayed read-only.

When p4 client completes, the new or altered client workspace specification is stored within the Perforce database; the files in the client workspace are not touched. The new client view doesn't take effect until the next p4 sync.

Form Fields

Field Name	Type	Description
Client:	Read-only	The client workspace name, as specified in the P4CLIENT environment variable or its equivalents.
Owner:	Writable	The Perforce user name of the user who owns the client workspace. The default is the user who created the client workspace.
Update:	Read-only	The date the client workspace specification was last modified.
Access:	Read-only	The date and time that any part of the client workspace specification was last accessed by any Perforce command.
Host:	Writable, optional	The name of the host machine on which this client workspace resides. If included, operations on this client workspace can be run only from this host. The hostname must be provided exactly as it appears in the output of p4 info when run from that host. This field is meant to prevent accidental misuse of client workspaces on the wrong machine. It doesn't provide security, since the actual value of the host name can be overridden with the -H flag to any p4 command, or with the P4HOST environment variable. For a similar mechanism that does provide security, use the IP address restriction feature of p4 protect.
Description:	Writable, optional	A textual description of the client workspace. The default text is Created by owner.
Root:	Writable, mandatory	The directory (on the local host) relative to which all the files in the View: are specified. The default is the current working directory.
Options:	Writable, mandatory	A set of seven switches that control particular client options. See the Usage Notes, below, for a listing of these options.
View:	Writable, multi-line	Specifies the mappings between files in the depot and files in the client workspace. See Using Views for more information.

Options

-t clientname	Copy client workspace clientname's view into the View: field of this client workspace. (i.e. use clientname's View: as a template)
-f	Allows the last modification date, which is normally read-only, to be set. Can also be used by Perforce superusers to delete or modify clients that they don't own.
-d [-f] clientname	Delete the specified client workspace, if the client is owned by the invoking user and it is unlocked. The -f flag allows Perforce superusers to delete client workspaces that they don't own.
-i	Read the client description from standard input.
-o	Write the client specification to standard output.
g_opts	See the Global Options section.

Usage Notes

Can File Arguments Use Revision Specifier?	Can File Arguments Use Revision Range?	Minimal Access Level Required
N/A	N/A	list

• The Options: field contains six values, separated by spaces. Each of the six options have two possible settings; the following table provides the option values and their meanings:

  Option	Choice	Default
  [no]allwrite	If set, unopened files on the client will be left writable.	noallwrite
  [no]clobber	If set, a p4 sync will overwrite (clobber) writable-but-unopened files in the client that have the same name as the newly-synced files	noclobber
  [no]compress	If set, the data stream between the client and the server will be compressed. (Both client and server must be version 99.1 or higher, or this setting will be ignored.)	nocompress
  [no]crlf	On NT, if crlf is set, CR/LF translation will be performed automatically when copying files between the depot and the client workspace (On UNIX, this setting is ignored).	crlf
  [un]locked	Grant or deny other users permission to edit the client specification (To make a locked client specification truly effective, you should also set a the client's owner's password with p4 passwd.) If locked, only the owner will be able to use, edit, or delete the client spec. Perforce superusers can override the lock by using the -f (force) flag with p4 client.	unlocked
  [no]modtime	For files without the +m (modtime) file type modifier: For Perforce clients at the 99.2 level or earlier, if modtime is set, the modification date (on the local filesystem) of a newly-synced file will be the date and time at the server when the file was submitted to the depot. For Perforce clients at the 2000.1 level or higher, if modtime is set, the modification date (on the local filesystem) of a newly-synced file will be the datestamp on the file when the file was submitted to the depot. If nomodtime is set, the modification date will be the date and time of sync, regardless of Perforce client version. For files with the +m (modtime) file type modifier: For Perforce clients at the 99.2 level or earlier, the +m modifier is ignored, and the behavior of modtime and nomodtime is as documented above. For Perforce clients at the 2000.1 level or higher, the modification date (on the local filesystem) of a newly-synced file will be the datestamp on the file when the file was submitted to the depot, regardless of the setting of modtime or nomodtime on the client.	nomodtime (i.e. date and time of sync) for most files. Ignored for files with the +m file type modifier.
  [no]rmdir	If set, p4 sync will delete empty directories in a client if all files in the directory have been removed.	normdir

• By default, any user can edit any client workspace specification with p4 client -c clientname. To prevent this from happening, set the locked option and use p4 passwd to create a password for the client workspace owner.

• If you create a client workspace name with a space in it, the space will be translated to an underscore (e.g., p4 client "my client" will create client workspace my_client).

• The compress option will speed up client/server communications over slow links by reducing the amount of data that has to be transmitted. Over fast links, the compression process itself may consume more time than is saved in transmission. In general, compress should be set for line speeds under T1, and should be left unset otherwise. Your mileage may vary.

• CR/LF translation is useful when Mac or Windows clients will be sharing files with UNIX clients. The crlf option will translate the end-of-line character on Windows clients to be <CR><LF>, and on Mac clients to <CR>, while leaving the end-of-line character on UNIX clients as <LF>.

• By default, if a directory in the client workspace is empty, (e.g., because all files in the depot that would be mapped to that directory have been deleted since the last sync), a p4 sync operation will still leave the directory intact. If you use the rmdir option, however, p4 sync will delete empty directories in the client workspace.

If the rmdir option is active, a p4 sync operation can sometimes remove your current working directory. If this happens, just change to an existing directory before continuing on with your work.

• Files with the modtime (+m) type are primarily intended for use by developers who need to preserve original timestamps on files. The use of +m in a file type overrides the client's modtime or nomodtime setting. For a more complete discussion of the +m modifier, see the File Types section.

Examples

p4 client	Edit or create the client workspace specification named by the value of P4CLIENT or its equivalents.
p4 client -t sue joe	Create or edit client workspace joe, opening the form with the field values in client workspace sue as defaults.
p4 client -d release1	Delete the client workspace release1.

Related Commands

To list client workspaces known to the system	p4 clients
To read files from the depot into the client workspace	p4 sync
To open new files in the client workspace for addition to the depot	p4 add
To open files in the client workspace for edit	p4 edit
To open files in the client workspace for deletion	p4 delete
To write changes in client workspace files to the depot	p4 submit