CCRC in GDD context & Getting Started with CCRC

The CCRC plug-in is well suited for GDD environments, given its ability to work in a WAN environment, as shown in Figure 1. It allows you to work in disconnected mode, although some operations require connection to a CCRC server. It can be a LAN and WAN client, and it supports users who work in the same office and in other environments. The Producer-Consumer rule can be enforced at the server level. Note that most of the GDD architecture guidelines are derived at the ClearCase Server level, not the CCRC level. The server infrastructure dictates client configuration possibilities.

What is special about CCRC in GDD? It uses specially-designed protocols to communicate efficiently over networks that have high latency:

• Includes many of the features provided by the native ClearCase client, and can run on a broad range of Windows- and UNIX computers, regardless of whether ClearCase is installed on them
• Permits access to the ClearCase repository from any machine, irrespective of your operating system user ID

Figure 1. CCRC: Breaking down the GDD walls

Getting started with CCRC

For an architect or developer, getting started with CCRC is easy; you can be up and running within few minutes without much effort. All you need to have is this information

• URL to CCRC Server (for example,http://server/ccrc)
• Your user name and password on the server
• If you are using UCM, the name of the project and the integration stream

For Version 2003.06.14 or later, download the CCRC client from your ClearCase server and install it. The installation will not work unless the IBM® Rational® Web Platform component is an installation choice on ClearCase server. By default, each CCRC server has an install site at http://server-name/ccrc/update. Ask your ClearCase server administrator for the details.

Simple installation and update

CCRC installation follows standard Eclipse Plug-In installation. Updating the fixes also follows the same Eclipse process, which uses public sites that contain the supported releases and fixes. CCRC also detects new updates on ibm.com and alerts users to update. Customers can establish a site policy to control the internal location of plug-in updates. This policy can help enforce a corporate standard for client version. For details, see http://www-1.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21196280. Client updates are not closely tied to server releases, which allows users to make more frequent client-side changes irrespective of the server.

Ensuring remote client performance

Performance is important when working in a GDD environment, and many factors affect it. To maximize your performance, keep these points in mind:

• All ClearCase operations are executed on the ClearCase server, so the proximity of traditional servers in a ClearCase environment is key
• CCRC does not eliminate performance issues at the server level, because it requires a predictable network connection. A large number of network hops, or hops that time out, affect client-to-server communications.
• CCRC is only a client. Avoid moving high volumes of data over the wire.

Enabling CCRC in Rational Software Architect

Disable the SCM Adapter option within Rational Software Architect.

1. To enable CCRC, click Preferences > General > Capabilities > Advanced.
2. By default, the ClearCase (CCRC) menu is available only in the ClearCase perspective. To make it available in the Customize perspective, click the Commands tab and then select ClearCase Main Menu.

Depending on how your preferences are set up, if the ClearCase SCM Adapter is active at the same time, you might see two ClearCase menus in your Rational Software Architect toolbar. One belongs to the SCM Adapter, and the other one to CCRC. Do not use the ClearCase menu that belongs to the SCM Adapter. If you do, you will not get the CCRC functionality.

Client and server compatibility

This section lists the compatible client and server versions. A V6.14.x client can access only a CCRC server V2003.06.04 (SR4) or later. A V7.0.0 or later client can access only a CCRC Server Version 7.0 or later. A single Rational Software Architect instance can have both a V6.14.x client and V7.0 client installed. However, only one can be activated at a time. There are few reasons why you might install more than one CCRC version:

• It helps facilitate migrations to new versions, or working on remote projects on other server instances.
• It helps when accessing different ClearCase servers that are at different release levels.

However, having more than one CCRC version is not recommended for most use cases.

For the latest support statement about which versions of desktop tools work with which versions of CCRC, go to http://www-1.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21253589