About hijacked files

In a snapshot, web, or automatic view, you can hijack a file to modify it without checking it out. Hijacking a file is not applicable for a dynamic view.

When you load a file version into a view other than a dynamic view, the HCL VersionVault Explorer applies the local file system's read-only attribute to the file. When you check out the file, the read-only attribute is removed so that you can make modifications. When you check in the file, the read-only attribute is reapplied.

If you need to modify a loaded file without checking it out (for example, if you cannot connect to the VersionVault WAN server), you can use the hijack operation to make the file modifiable even though it cannot be checked out. Use the highjacking capability cautiously: a resource that you have hijacked can be checked out, modified, and checked in by another user while you are working on it. If you want to check in your changes, you can check out and then check in the file (which can be done during a view update operation). If another user checked in a newer version on the same branch, you must merge your changes before VersionVault allows the checkin.

If you prefer to be able to modify loaded files without checking them out or using the hijack operation explicitly, you can create snapshot or web views in automatic-hijack mode. This mode causes VersionVault to load files without applying the local file system's read-only attribute. You can then freely modify loaded files. Again, use this capability cautiously as it might lead to frequent situations requiring you to merge files before checking them in on shared branches/streams.