Is it possible to do the code review if we select TFVC version control while creating the project in Azure DevOps Services?

Question

Is it possible to do the code review if we select TFVC version control while creating the project ? I want the code review should be mandatory if my project is using TFVC.

For Git I know its possible. But unable to find it for the TFVC ? Does azure provide this option. or we have to use any third party tool ?

Answer 1

Short answer: No.

Longer answer: TFVC's code review capabilities are very limited and generally have never worked particularly well. Although the feature has a lot of room for improvement, Git has become the de facto version control system throughout the industry, and TFVC is no longer an area of focus for Microsoft (and hasn't been for at least 4 or 5 years).

If you want full-featured, well-supported code review workflows, your best bet is to migrate from TFVC to Git.

I'd be hard pressed to think of a good reason to start a new project using TFVC in 2021.

Official confirmation from Microsoft regarding the state of TFVC:

TFVC is considered feature complete. Azure DevOps will maintain compatibility with TFVC, but Git will receive all future investment.

Ref: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/repos/tfvc/comparison-git-tfvc?view=azure-devops#:~:text=TFVC%20is%20considered%20feature%20complete,you%20need%20centralized%20version%20control.

Answer 2

Of course, you can. The workflow is different from what GIT gives you but it's definitely possible. Check out this MS page for top-level overview of Code Reviewing with TFVC but there are many other sources on the Internet.

You can request a review directly on your Pending Changes. However, you can Suspend your work until it's being reviewed and work on something else in the meantime; then Resume your work, including your environment settings. This is one way to request a code review.

Another approach would be to create a Shelvset and request a code review on it. You can create a shelvset by shelving your Pending Changes directly or by suspending your work from the My Work section in Team Explorer. Then you can request a Code Review on the shelvset, amongst other things.

As for making it mandatory - you're looking for check-in policy. With it you can make the code review mandatory and more. See this link for details.

NOTE

TFVC is by no means obsolete or abandoned. It is being fully supported and it is constantly being updated. IMHO, it is the best CENTRALIZED source control system out there. So if you want to stay centralized - i.e. corporate development and not open source - TFVC is your best bet. Working offline justification for GIT over TFVC is just not valid since more than 10 years ago - everything is online, including GIT.