Removing unneeded versions from a VOB

When more space is needed in the VOB storage directory, consider removing unneeded versions from one or more elements in the VOB

Scrubbing removes only those artifacts that can be regenerated. Scrubbing never removes elements or versions. Because elements and versions are historical data, you should approach their removal with extreme caution. Removing entire elements with cleartool rmelem is particularly dangerous:

Even if an element is no longer needed for ongoing work, you might need it to reproduce and maintain earlier work.
rmelem removes the element’s name from all directory versions in which it was ever cataloged. This erasing of history means that the element is not displayed in listings or comparisons of previous directory versions. Removing an element’s name from a VOB directory, by using the rmname command, preserves its history but removes its name from subsequent versions of the directory.
A mistake can be costly; the procedure for recovering a single element from backup is cumbersome and cannot be used in a UCM component. (See Restoring an individual element from backup.)

If you need to reclaim disk space in source pools, it is more prudent to remove individual versions of elements, rather than entire elements. The rmver command makes it easy to remove versions that you believe you will probably never need again.

By default, rmver removes only versions that meet the following criteria:

Versions that are unrelated to branching (not located at a branch point and not the first or last version on a branch)
Versions that have no metadata annotations, such as version labels, attributes, hyperlinks, or tasks

With various rmver options, you can force removal of versions that do not meet these criteria. See the rmver reference page for more information.

You can also use the cleartool relocate command to move entire VOB directories and all the element versions they contain from one VOB to another. For more information, see Relocating elements to another VOB.