This help topic provides a brief overview of P4EXP, the Helix Plugin for Windows Explorer, including its menu options and troubleshooting. P4EXP enables you to perform Helix Server tasks on files in the context of your file browser (for example, Windows Explorer). For more detailed information about Helix Server, see the full documentation set on the Documentation page of the Perforce Website.
To perform Helix Server version control actions on files in
Windows Explorer, you must be connected to a Helix Versioning Engine, also referred to as Helix Server, with a
valid user and workspace. You can set these connection variables in
the Windows environment, per directory with a P4CONFIG file, or a
combination of both. (Note that P4CONFIG files will override Windows
environment settings for the current working directory.)
To set Helix Server variables in the Windows environment:
Set the individual Helix Server variables with the following commands:
p4 set P4PORT=<server:port>
p4 set P4USER=<user_name>
p4 set P4CLIENT=<workspace_name>
To set Helix Server variables with P4CONFIG files:
Set the Helix Server variable for P4CONFIG with the following command:
p4 set P4CONFIG=<config_file_name>
For each workspace root location on the local disk, create a
file named <config_file_name>
; inside the file add:
# # Perforce configuration file # P4PORT=<server:port> P4USER=<user_name> P4CLIENT=<workspace_name>
Environment variables should be an adequate way to set connection settings if you are working with a single server, user, and workspace. If you have more than one workspace that you use on a regular basis, you may benefit from the flexibility of using P4CONFIG files.
For additional information, see:
When you right-click a file in your file browser and select Perforce,
P4EXP displays some or all of the following menu options, depending
on the state of the file.
Log In... |
Enables you to enter your password and log in if you are not logged in to Helix Server and you have a password. Note
If the server you are connecting to is configured with multi-factor authentication (MFA), you are prompted for another layer of verification. Depending on the setup, you may need to select a method of verification before you can enter your credentials. For more information, see |
Get Latest Revision |
Retrieves the most recent version of a file in the depot. |
Submit... |
Checks in the default changelist. A changelist contains details about the change you made to files in the depot. |
Check Out |
Opens the files for edit in your default changelist. A changelist logs the changes you make to files in the depot. After you have made your changes, you submit the changelist. |
Add to Source Control |
Adds the selected files to the default changelist. When you submit the changelist, the files are added to the depot. Only files that reside in directories in your workspace view can be added to a depot. |
Revert |
Discards all changes you have made to the file. Helix Server restores the head revision of the file from the depot to your workspace, overwriting any changes you have made. The file is no longer checked out. |
Revert Unchanged Files |
Closes unchanged files in a changelist. The files are no longer checked out. |
Diff Against Have Revision |
Launches your diff utility to compare (diff) files in your workspace with files at the head revision in the depot to display any changes you have made. |
File History |
Displays the History dialog, which enables you to view any of the selected file's revisions, get a desired revision into your workspace, or compare two revisions of the same file. |
Properties |
Displays Helix Server information about a file. |
Show in P4V |
Opens P4V with the selected file highlighted. |
Remove from Workspace |
Removes files from your workspace. The files remain in the depot. To restore a file to your workspace, select the file in P4V and choose Get Latest Revision. |
Refresh File State |
Refreshes the state of the files under Helix Server control. |
More |
Connection Information: Displays information about your Helix Server connection. |
Preferences: Enables you to configure P4EXP as follows:
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Log Off: Logs you out if you have a password set in Helix Server. |
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Help: Displays this help page. |
If you experience issues viewing P4EXP icons, this might be related to file overlay icon limitations on Windows. For more information and a workaround, see the following article in the Perforce Knowledge Base: http://answers.perforce.com/articles/KB/2771