svnadmin

Subversion repository administration tool

TLDR

Create a new repository

$ svnadmin create [/path/to/repo]

Dump repository to file

$ svnadmin dump [/path/to/repo] > [backup.dump]

Load dump into repository

$ svnadmin load [/path/to/repo] < [backup.dump]

Verify repository integrity

$ svnadmin verify [/path/to/repo]

List outstanding transactions

$ svnadmin lstxns [/path/to/repo]

Remove a dead transaction

$ svnadmin rmtxns [/path/to/repo] [txn-id]

Upgrade repository format

$ svnadmin upgrade [/path/to/repo]

Show repository info

$ svnadmin info [/path/to/repo]

SYNOPSIS

svnadmin subcommand repos-path [options] [args]

svnadmin is the administrative tool for Subversion repositories. It provides commands for creating, maintaining, and backing up repositories stored on the local filesystem.The tool can create repositories with either FSFS (default) or Berkeley DB backends. It supports full and incremental dumps for backup and migration, with optional delta compression for smaller dump files.Repository maintenance includes integrity verification, crash recovery, format upgrades, and transaction cleanup. The hotcopy command creates consistent backups without stopping repository access.Unlike the svn client, svnadmin operates only on local repository paths and cannot access repositories over the network.

PARAMETERS

--revision rev, -r rev

Specify revision or revision range.

--incremental

Dump only changes since previous revision.

--deltas

Use deltas in dump output for smaller files.

--fs-type type

Filesystem type for new repos: fsfs or bdb.

--force-uuid

Set repository UUID from dump stream.

--ignore-uuid

Ignore UUID in dump stream.

--quiet, -q

Suppress normal output.

--wait

Wait for repository lock instead of failing.

--config-dir dir

Use alternate config directory.

--pre-1.4-compatible

Create repository compatible with Subversion 1.4 or older.

--pre-1.6-compatible

Create repository compatible with Subversion 1.6 or older.

--compatible-version ver

Create repository compatible with specified Subversion version.

--bypass-hooks

Skip hook scripts during load.

--bypass-prop-validation

Skip property validation during load.

SUBCOMMANDS

create: Create new empty repository.dump: Output repository contents in portable format.load: Load dump file into repository.verify: Check repository for corruption.recover: Recover repository from crash.upgrade: Upgrade repository to latest format.hotcopy: Make backup copy of repository.lstxns: List outstanding transactions.rmtxns: Remove specified transactions.info: Display repository information.setlog: Set log message for a revision.setrevprop: Set revision property.pack: Optimize repository storage.freeze: Freeze repository for backup.

INSTALL

sudo apt install subversion

sudo dnf install subversion

sudo pacman -S subversion

sudo apk add subversion

sudo zypper install subversion

brew install subversion

nix profile install nixpkgs#subversion

CAVEATS

Operates only on local repositories, not URLs. Dump files can be very large for full exports. Berkeley DB backend is deprecated in favor of FSFS. Hook bypass options should be used carefully. Repository locks prevent concurrent administrative operations.

HISTORY

svnadmin has been part of Subversion since its initial release in 2000. Subversion was created by CollabNet as a replacement for CVS. The tool evolved alongside repository format changes, adding support for FSFS (Subversion 1.1), repository packing (1.6), and various performance improvements.