Helix Core Reviews

We use Helix Core in our software development processes as a configuration management solution. Our typical use cases include system-level configuration management, versioning software, and managing files related to software such as traces and large binary files.

I find the configuration management features of Helix Core particularly valuable. The tool provides comprehensive functionality for versioning and managing large files, which makes it highly usable. 

We also utilize its strong baselining features and the ability to efficiently cherry-pick data to build new configurations. Although we have deactivated some features like branching and merging, its overall feature set helps streamline our workflow significantly, requiring us to manage large binary assets effectively.

• We moved all our collaborative storage into Perforce servers. It fits our types of assets (big size, mostly binaries).
• Perforce is very fast, even for very huge assets.

• The branching strategy of helix is still too technical to handle for a non-technical user, like a graphic artist.
• The concept of workspace is hard to acquire at first. Users naturally would like it to be more transparent to configure.
• Desynchronization was one of our most frequent issues.

• Fine grained access control.
• Ability to handle very large file counts, very large version counts, and very large file sizes
• Speed
• The server is very efficient
• Perforce is one of very few software vendors who target documented, standard, stable APIs, instead of some particular server O/S.
• We can run it on our standard server image instead of preparing and maintaining a special host just for them. This is the case even as our standard server image evolves.

The tool is central to our workflow. It does the following:

• Drives continuous delivery and integration
• Delivers large file sets to remote sites faster than anything else
• Recalls history reliably

The code comparison functionality and the command line options for automation are valuable features.

It gives a nice pictorial view of different file versions. It is easy to manage/merge issues.

The command line gives options for those who are willing to integrate it with the automation tools.

The offline versioning needs to be improved. The auto-sensing features of local branch changes to remote, once it comes online.

• Branching
• Change list
• Revision graph: Has been instrumental in figuring out confusing merging issues and determining where the issue occurred
• The ability to add additional custom tools into the product to extend its capability.

Perforce has given us the capability to manage our deployments on different environments. We lacked a build and deployment tool to do this for us.

Thanks to the revision graph feature, we are able to track a release from one environment branch to the next.

Before using this solution, this was very manual, i.e., direct deployments to environments from developer workstations.

The excellent traceability of all changes made to the product and the support for collaborative work.

It has provided a common platform for team collaboration.