What are version control systems (VCS) – Git, SVN?
The importance and benefits of using VCS
Using a version control system is an absolutely fundamental practice in modern software development. Without VCS, team work on code would be extremely difficult, chaotic and prone to data loss or conflicts. The main benefits of using VCS are:
- Tracking change history: Each change (commit) is recorded along with information on who made it, when and why. This enables a complete audit of the project’s history.
- Teamwork: Allows multiple developers to work on the same code simultaneously without overwriting each other’s changes. VCS provides mechanisms for merging changes.
- Branching (Branching): The ability to create separate development branches (branching) for new features, experiments or bug fixes, without affecting the main (stable) version of the code. Once completed, changes from the branch can be merged back together (merge).
- Merging Changes (Merging): Mechanisms to intelligently merge changes made in different branches or by different developers. VCS helps resolve conflicts when the same pieces of code have been modified independently.
- Rollback to previous versions: The ability to easily restore any earlier version of the code, such as when an error is introduced.
- Backup: A VCS repository (especially a central or distributed one) is a form of source code backup.
- CI/CD support: VCS is the foundation for continuous integration and continuous delivery processes – changes to the repository initiate CI/CD pipelines.
Types of version control systems
Historically, two main types of VCS were distinguished:
- Centralized VCS (CVCS): There is one central code repository that all developers connect to in order to download code (checkout) and save changes (commit). Examples include Subversion (SVN) and the older CVS. The main disadvantage is the dependence on the availability of a central server.
- Distributed VCS (DVCS): Each developer has a full copy of the repository, along with the entire history of changes, on their local computer. Changes are first approved locally and then synchronized (push/pull) with other repositories (e.g., a central repository on the server). Examples: Git, Mercurial. DVCS offer greater flexibility, speed (most operations are local) and independence from the central server.
Git – the dominant standard
Currently, the absolutely dominant standard among version control systems is Git, created by Linus Torvalds. It is a distributed system, extremely fast, flexible and powerful, offering advanced branching and merging capabilities. Most modern open-source and commercial projects use Git. Popular hosting platforms for Git repositories include GitHub, GitLab and Bitbucket.
Subversion (SVN)
Subversion (SVN) is a centralized version control system that for many years was a popular alternative to CVS. Although still used in some legacy projects or companies, it is gradually losing popularity to Git, mainly due to the limitations of the centralized model and less flexibility in terms of branching and merging.
Summary
Version control systems are an essential tool for any software development team. They enable effective teamwork, track change history, manage different versions of code, and provide the basis for modern development practices such as CI/CD. Git, as a distributed VCS, has become the de facto standard in the industry.

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