Source Control

Locus works without source control. When Unreal has an active provider, Locus applies provider-aware rules according to each content type’s ownership.

Ownership determines provider behavior

Content	Provider behavior
Shared Notes	Checkout, mark-for-add, status, and safe delete
Private Notes	No provider query or operation
Shared Pins	Checkout, mark-for-add, status, and safe delete
Private Pins	No provider query or operation
Documents	Project-owned checkout, mark-for-add, status, and safe delete

Private means local to the project’s Saved storage boundary. Locus maintains strict zero-provider behavior for Private Notes and Pins.

Local Mode

If no provider is active, Locus enters Local Mode. Supported files remain locally editable without provider warnings or background provider calls. Local Mode does not make the files private: Shared Notes, Shared Pins, and Documents still live in project-owned roots and can later be added to a repository.

Checkout and read-only states

When an existing project-owned file requires checkout, Locus requests it before allowing unsafe edits. A file can remain read-only when it is checked out by another user, out of date, disconnected from a required provider, or in a state Locus cannot verify. Resolve the state in Unreal’s normal source-control workflow, then retry or refresh Locus.

Locus does not provide a Make Writable bypass for a read-only controlled file.

New files and Mark for Add

Locus creates a new Shared Note, Shared Pin, or Document locally before requesting Mark for Add. If the provider request fails, the valid local file remains; review the provider connection and retry the action. A local file is not shared with teammates until it is added and submitted through the project’s normal workflow.

Delete

Deletion requires confirmation. For controlled files, Locus checks the reported state and routes the delete through the provider before local cleanup. It blocks deletion when another user owns the checkout, the file is out of date, or safety cannot be established.

Locus does not submit

Locus does not submit files, create or administer changelists, sync the workspace, or modify repository configuration. Review and submit changes using Unreal’s or your team’s normal source-control tools.

Perforce guidance

Perforce is the provider with current project validation evidence. A common project typemap choice for collaborative Notes and Pins is:

text+l //....uenote
text+l //....locuspin

This treats the JSON-backed files as text with exclusive locking. Markdown Documents are normal text files; choose the .md policy that fits the repository. Locus never edits the Perforce typemap for you.

Other Unreal source-control providers have not been established as officially supported for this public baseline. Validate provider behavior in a test project before relying on it.

Recovery and external conflicts

Recovery snapshots protect unsaved local work and do not replace source control. An external conflict occurs when disk content changes while a local editor has pending changes; Locus blocks a silent overwrite and offers safe resolution actions. Source-control out-of-date status and editor conflicts are related but separate conditions.

See the recovery sections in Notes, Pins, and Documents, or use Troubleshooting.