TortoiseCVS

{{Short description|Revision control system for Windows}}

{{Infobox software

| name = TortoiseCVS

| logo = TortoiseCVS Logo.png

| logo caption = Charlie, the TortoiseCVS mascot.

| screenshot =

| caption =

| author = Francis Irving

| developer = TortoiseCVS Contributors

| released = {{Start date and age|2000|08|04|df=yes}}[http://www.tortoisecvs.org/changelog.shtml TortoiseCVS changelog]

| latest release version = 1.12.5

| latest release date = {{Start date and age|2011|01|24|df=yes}}

| latest preview version = 1.12.6 RC1[http://www.tortoisecvs.org/download.shtml TortoiseCVS download page]

| latest preview date = {{Start date and age|2012|08|09|df=yes}}

| programming language = C++

| operating system = Microsoft Windows

| platform =

| size =

| language = Arabic, Brazilian Portuguese, Catalan, Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, French, Georgian, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovene, Spanish, Turkish

| language count = 23

| language footnote = [http://www.tortoisecvs.org/lang.shtml List of translations] on TortoiseCVS website

| genre = Revision control

| license = GPL

| website = {{URL|www.tortoisecvs.org}}

}}

TortoiseCVS is a CVS client for Microsoft Windows released under the GNU General Public License.{{cite book |last=Avery |first=J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ISfkblE9AUC&pg=PA561 |title=Windows Developer Power Tools |last2=Holmes |first2=J. |publisher=O'Reilly |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-596-52754-9 |series=Developer's Notebook Series |page=561 |language= |access-date=2025-03-01}}{{cite book |last=Elst |first=P. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WiedhiREmZkC&pg=PA57 |title=Object-Oriented ActionScript 3.0 |last2=Jacobs |first2=S. |publisher=Apress |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4302-0274-5 |page=57 |access-date=2025-03-01}} Unlike most CVS tools, it integrates into Windows' shell by adding entries in the contextual menu of the file explorer. Therefore, it does not run in its own window. Moreover, it adds icons to files and directories controlled by CVS, giving additional information to the user without having to run a full-scale stand-alone application.

The name is a pun on the words shell (computing, turtle). The tortoise in the logo is called Charlie Vernon Smythe (CVS).

The project was initiated by Francis Irving when Creature Labs employed him to develop a better interface to CVS for his colleagues. Some of the code was derived from WinCVS and CVSNT. The first release was on 4 August 2000.