TFS Basic for Non-Visual Studio Projects

Question

We are looking for a work item tracking tool (bugs, enhancements, etc.) for our company software projects. The company is a big MS shop and we're thinking about using TFS Basic with VS 2010 since it will provide us with a host of additional ALM features as well. Does anyone know if TFS Basic can be used in conjunction with non-Visual Studio projects or is VS 2010 the only client interface to create and interact with software projects when using TFS Basic?

Answer 1

You might also look at Atlassian's offerings. JIRA + Confluence + Fisheye + Bamboo is a killer combination. (No, I don't work for them -- just a huge fan of their products).

Answer 2

I'm not sure about 2010; earlier versions would permit installing a bare shell of Visual Studio that only offered TFS features. Combined with the Power Tools, this offers some features to deal with projects outside of VS. Install the Windows Explorer integration for best results.

TFS is very nice for VS projects due to the tight integration. While it will work with any file, outside of VS projects it's basically all manual. Check out a file when you want to edit it, check it in when you're done. If you add a new file to a folder, you have to remember to add it to TFS.

EDIT: The 2008 stand-alone client is Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Explorer. Also note that the Power Tools install does not install the Windows Explorer interface by default. You have to select custom install and manually add that component.

Answer 3

So its even better than that!

• You can use Team Explorer 2010
• You can use SVNtoTFS Bridge and use ANY SVN or Mercurial client
• You can use the Team Foundation Server MSSCCI Provider to connect with:
  -Visual Studio .NET 2003
  -Visual C++ 6 SP6
  -Visual Visual Basic 6 SP6
  -Visual FoxPro 9 SP2
  -Microsoft Access 2007
  -SQL Server Management Studio
  -Enterprise Architect 7.5
  -PowerBuilder 11.5
  -Microsoft eMbedded VC++ 4.0
• You can use Team Explorer Everywhere to connect with:
  -Eclipse 3.0 to 3.5 on Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, Solaris, AIX, or HP-UX.
  -IBM Rational Application Developer 6.0 to 7.5 on Windows.
  -IBM Rational Application Developer 7.0 to 7.5 on Linux.
  -Additional IDEs based on Eclipse 3.0 to 3.5 are supported including Adobe Flex Builder 3 and Aptana Studio 2.0.