How to undo another user's checkout in TFS via the GUI?

Question

As the resident TFS admin, on occasion I am asked to undo a checkout (usually a lock) that a user has on a certain file. This can be done via the command line using the TF.exe utility's Undo command (see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/c72skhw4.aspx), but that's kind of a pain.

Is there a way to undo another user's checkout via the GUI?

Answer 1

Out of the box, no, but there are at least a couple of options via add-ons.

TFS Power Tools

• TFS Power Tools (Visual Studio 2010)
• TFS Power Tools (Visual Studio 2012)
• TFS Power Tools (Visual Studio 2013)
• TFS Power Tools (Visual Studio 2015)

Once installed:

1. Open Source Control Explorer
2. Right-click the item on which checkout is to be undone (or a parent folder of multiple files to be undone)
3. Select Find in Source Control and then Status
4. In the Find in Source Control dialog, leave the Status checkbox marked
5. Optionally, enter a value for the Wildcard textbox
6. Optionally, enter a username in the "Display files checked out to:" textbox and select that radio button
7. Click Find
8. This will result in a list of files
9. Select the items to undo
10. Right-click and select Undo
11. Click Yes when prompted with "Undo all selected changes?"

Team Foundation Sidekicks

Another option is to use the Team Foundation Sidekicks application, which can be obtained here: http://www.attrice.info/cm/tfs/

It has a Status sidekick that allows you to query for checked out work items. Once a work item is selected, there are "Undo pending change" and "Undo lock" buttons that can be used.

Rights

Keep in mind that you will need the appropriate rights. The permissions are called "Undo other users' changes" and "Unlock other users' changes". These permissions can be viewed by:

1. Right-clicking the desired project, folder, or file in Source Control Explorer
2. Select Properties
3. Select the Security tab
4. Select the appropriate user or group in the Users and Groups section at the top
5. View the "Permissions for [user/group]:" section at the bottom

Answer 2

I just had this problem myself and found an easier way to clean up old workspaces.

1) In visual studio, open source control explorer.

2) From the 'Workspace' dropdown select 'Workspaces...'

3) A dialog will appear showing the workspaces on your current PC. Select 'Show remote workspaces'

4) You will now also see workspaces from your previous PC (as long as they are from the same user account). Select the old workspace(s) and click 'Remove'. This should delete the old workspace from from TFS along with any persisting checkouts.

I'm sure Arne has found a solution but I hope this helps others who google the issue.