How to create a back-up version of your helpsystem

[OSBRob]

My institution is going through a conversion of our core systems in September of this year and I need to develop a process for updating the 700 helpfiles I have within my helpsystem.  Is there a way to create a mirror image of my helpsystem so that I can work con-currently on both helpsystems?  This way when it comes time for conversion in September, I can simply publish the mirror image copy that has been updated with the correct procedures and the old version would no longer be live.

I am currently using RH7 but we are in the process of being updated to RH9 but I am not there yet.  Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks so much!

[RoboColum_n_]

Just take a copy of your source files in Windows Explorer. Then you'll be able to open both projects con-currently.

[OSBRob]

RoboColum(n),

Thank you for the help!  Can you explain to me how I would go about taking a copy of my source files in Windows Explorer?  I do not understand what you mean?

Thanks again!

[RoboColum_n_]

1. Locate the directory where your RoboHelp project files are.
2. Copy this directory to your PC clipboard.
3. Paste the directory where you want it to go.

[OSBRob]

Thanks again for the information!  Forgive me, but I don't understand how copying my project files to another location would allow me to have two seperate versions that I can work on within Robohelp?  I want to be able to work on both the mirror image copy and the current "old" version in Robohelp, so on September 1st, I can publish the mirrored "new" version I have prepped for the conversion and it will be live on the servers for the employees to use immediately.  Does this make sense?

[Captiv8r]

Hi there

I'm not sure what you want to do is possible. What you would need is a folder that is shared between projects. So that updating content in one project would automatically reflect in the other. Right?

Assuming you could make that work, you would still need to compile or generate each project separately.

Cheers... Rick

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[OSBRob]

Rick,

Actually what I want is to have two seperate projects that have the exact same helpsystem information in it.  The project I am referring to in this string is called "ccc help files".  So what I want is to have another project called "ccc help files mirror".  Then I can work on the ccc help files mirror project over the next few months and it will not interfere with the ccc help files project.  Then come September 1st, I would delete the ccc help files project and publish in its place the ccc help files mirror project.

Does that make sense?  So they don't have to share anything, they need to be two free standing projects independent of each other but they have the same information in them.  Is this possible?

[Peter Grainge]

I think we are all struggling here because what you say you want in the above post in this thread (post number 6) is what was covered in the first reply.

If you create a copy of your existing project in Windows Explorer, you will have Project 1 (the existing project) and Project 2 (the copy of Project 1 as it stands now. Call them ccc help original and ccc help mirror if it helps.

At the time you copy the project, it will be an exact copy. You will then work on the mirror copy and what you do there will have no impact on the original and you can trash the original on September 1.

---

See www.grainge.org for RoboHelp and Authoring tips

@petergrainge

[OSBRob]

Peter,

Thank you for the valuable feedback!  Last question, so once I copy the existing project and paste it in a new folder, how do I pull the ccc help mirror project into Robohelp so that I can work on it?

Thanks to everyone for the help!

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

I hope you guys aren't talking at cross-purposes - when Colum & Peter talk about "project" they mean the RH project; a collection of files and folders that you use to create your help from. You sound like the "project" is the actual help output itself. With the former interpretation, you would just start RH up, and browse to the new copied project's location and grab the project_name.xpj file. You'd then manipulate the content inside RH, and generate new help output at the end of the process. With the latter, this idea of copying the help and then manipulating it would be all manual using some HTML editor like Dreamweaver to edit the pages.

[OSBRob]

Jeff,

Thanks for the response!  I think what I failed to mention since I have never been on this forum before is that, I pull my helpfiles from a database using Robosource Control.  So even if I copy my project to a new location and click on the xpj file from that new location, when I update a file in the project it gets saved back to Robosource Control, so when I go back to the current project the changes I made in the copied project will still show in both projects.

So what I need to figure out is how to mirror the ccc helpfile project in Robosource Control so that I can pull the mirror project into Robohelp and make my changes and then publish it when the conversion takes place.  Any ideas on how to do that?

Thanks for everyone's help, I truly appreciate it!

[Jeff_Coatsworth]

Well, Source Control! That's a completely different kettle of fish. No experience with that, sorry. I thought there was a source control forum in here - yes, here it is http://forums.adobe.com/community/robohelp/robosource_control

[Captiv8r]

So, if I'm understanding correctly, you need to make a copy of your project and make sure that copy doesn't "talk" to source control. Right?

That way you may edit with impunity and publish it when you are ready to go live. At that point, I'm assuming you want the "new" project to be added back into Source Control?

Cheers... Rick

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[Captiv8r]

Hello again

Miind you I developed these steps a few years back when RoboHelp was at a much younger version. But they may still have value in your case.

So begin with a backup copy using the copy and paste as others have suggested. Then see if the steps outlined in the article I'm linking you to help you break the chain to the source control dungeon.

Click here to view

Cheers... Rick

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[OSBRob]

Rick,

Thank you so much for the information!  I will try this out today!  Just a few questions:

• Once I delete the code per your instructions to break it from Source Control, would I then just click on the xpj file that I edited to load it into Robohelp so that I may work on the helpfiles?
• Once I am ready to re-enter it into Source Control, would I just add the code I deleted to the xpj file and then open it in Robohelp and publish?  Is it that simple?

Thanks again for your help!

[Captiv8r]

Hello again

Personally, I dislike just double-clicking the XPJ to open things up. It may work fine on your system and if it does, I'd say go for it. But I'm notorious for installing many different versions of RoboHelp and other apps on the same system. So I have avoided working that way to open projects because I want to easily control what version of RoboHelp opens when I open a project. My way of working involves first opening RoboHelp (the version I want to use for the session) then opening the project.

Can't help you there with adding the project back to source control. I'm aware of Source Control. I know how it's supposed to work in theory. But I've never used it with RoboHelp. At least not in the recent methods where it's all integrated and RoboHelp operates on your behalf by checking things in and out and all that rot. Personally, I've always avoided integrating because it adds a new level of complexity to the mix. This thread is an excellent example of just one of the many reasons.

Certainly I think I'd try by reversing the steps. And as with anything where you are modifying files, I cannot stress this enough. backups Backups BACKUPS!!!!!

Cheers and best of luck to you... Rick

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