Top Plastic SCM Alternatives for Modern Version Control
Plastic SCM is a commercial SCM system developed by Codice Software, known for its focus on handling large repositories, facilitating parallel development, and robust branching and merging capabilities. While powerful, many developers and teams seek alternative solutions due to various factors such as licensing costs, specific feature requirements, or a preference for open-source tools. This article explores the best Plastic SCM alternatives, offering a range of options to suit different project sizes, team structures, and budgetary considerations.
The Best Plastic SCM Alternatives
Finding the right version control system is crucial for efficient software development. Whether you prioritize distributed workflows, extensive platform support, or specific integration capabilities, there's a Plastic SCM alternative out there for you. Let's dive into some of the leading contenders.
Git
Git is a free & open-source, distributed version control system that stands out as a premier Plastic SCM alternative. It's designed to handle projects of all sizes with speed and efficiency. Git is highly versatile, supporting a wide array of platforms including Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, and iPhone, making it accessible to virtually any team. Its core features include robust version and source control, distributed architecture for offline work and faster operations, and high portability.
Apache Subversion
Apache Subversion (SVN) is a centralized version control system that serves as a strong Plastic SCM alternative, especially for those who prefer a more traditional, centralized approach. Similar to CVS but based on change-sets, SVN is free and open-source, available on Mac, Windows, Linux, BSD, and Haiku. Its primary feature is reliable version and source control, making it a solid choice for teams looking for a mature and stable system.
Mercurial SCM
Mercurial is a free, open-source, and distributed source control management tool that can be an excellent Plastic SCM alternative. It efficiently handles projects of any size and offers an easy and intuitive command line interface. Mercurial is available across Mac, Windows, Linux, BSD, and Haiku, providing robust distributed version and source control capabilities.
Fossil
Fossil is a simple, high-reliability, distributed software configuration management system, making it a compelling Plastic SCM alternative. Beyond version control, Fossil integrates a bug tracking system and a wiki software server, offering an all-in-one solution. It's free, open-source, and supports Mac, Windows, Linux, and self-hosted environments. Its key features include an included wiki and comprehensive version and source control.
Bazaar
Bazaar is a tool for helping people collaborate, serving as a viable Plastic SCM alternative for teams focused on distributed workflows. It tracks changes made to files, such as source code, providing a clear history of modifications. Bazaar is free, open-source, and available on Mac, Windows, Linux, and Haiku, offering strong distributed version and source control features.
darcs
Darcs is an advanced revision control system suitable for source code or other files, presenting itself as a distributed Plastic SCM alternative. It is fully distributed and supports lazy fetching of remote repositories, fetching only what's needed. Darcs is free and open-source, with support for Mac, Windows, and Linux, providing excellent distributed version and source control.
Perforce
Perforce Software Configuration Management System offers comprehensive SCM capabilities built around a scalable client/server architecture, making it a robust commercial Plastic SCM alternative. Users can access the system across Mac, Windows, Linux, and BSD. While Freemium, Perforce excels in large-scale enterprise environments, providing powerful version and source control features.
Pijul
Pijul is a free and open-source distributed version control system based on a sound theory of patches, making it an intriguing Plastic SCM alternative. It's designed to be easy to learn and use, and truly distributed. Pijul is available on Mac, Windows, and Linux, offering strong version and source control capabilities.
SnapshotCM
SnapshotCM is a visual, fast, and simple software configuration management solution, suitable as a Plastic SCM alternative for parallel team development and version control. It offers a free personal version and is primarily available on Windows, providing essential version and source control features for smaller teams or individual developers.
Microsoft Visual SourceSafe
Microsoft Visual SourceSafe (VSS) is a commercial source control software package oriented towards small software development projects. While an older system, it remains a historical Plastic SCM alternative for Windows-based environments, offering fundamental version and source control functionalities.
Ultimately, the best Plastic SCM alternative for you will depend on your specific team size, project requirements, existing infrastructure, and budget. We encourage you to explore these options further to find the version control system that perfectly aligns with your development workflow.