MATLAB: Do I get the “Unable to initialize the source control provider” error message when I modify the MATLAB Preferences file in MATLAB 7.1 (R14SP3)

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I made changes to the MATLAB preferences file 'matlab.prf' that exists at the following location:

C:\WINNT\Profiles\<username>\Application Data\MathWorks\MATLAB\R14

In particular, I made changes to the 'SourceControlSystem' node in the 'matlab.prf' file. The changes to the Source Control System can also be made via the Preferences dialog window as described below:

On the MATLAB main window, please select 'Preferences' in the 'File' menu. In the 'Preferences' dialog window, click on 'General' to expand the tree, and click on 'Source Control'.

After I make changes to the Source Control by either of the above methods, on executing any MATLAB function, I obtain the following error message:

Unable to initialize the source control provider

Best Answer

This error is received when a source control application is specified in the MATLAB preference file (matlab.prf), but that source control application is actually not installed or at least not in the registry.

The workaround is to set the 'Source Control System' to 'None' in the Preferences Dialog window. This can be done as follows:

1. Select 'File -> Preferences' from the menu bar in the MATLAB main window.

2. In the Preferences dialog window, click on 'General' to expand the tree.

3. Select 'Source Control'.

4. From the dropdown for 'Source Control System', select 'None'.

Alternatively, regenerating the MATLAB Preferences directory could help resolve this issue. The MATLAB Preferences directory could be regenerated as follows:

1. Start MATLAB and type the following at the MATLAB command prompt:

prefdir

On the Windows Operating System, the output should look like:

C:\WINNT\Profiles\<username>\Application Data\MathWorks\MATLAB\R14

This is where your "matlab.prf" file is located. Please note that the above path may be different depending on how the system is setup.

2. Make sure that MATLAB is closed and rename the preferences directory of your current MATLAB version (and all older versions of MATLAB) to something else. For example, rename the above 'R14' directory to 'R14old'.

3. Restart MATLAB. A new preferences directory will be created for the MATLAB version that is launched.

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MATLAB: Am I not able to check out source files using the CVS Source Control functions on Linux/UNIX/Mac

The MATLAB Source Control interface implements the CVS Checkout command, not the CVS Update command expected by some users. When configured for CVS, the menu command becomes ineffective and the CHECKOUT command argument must be specified as the path relative to the Repository, not the absolute path name.

Some users expect the Source Control Checkout command to implement the CVS Update command, which has semantics more similar to the Checkout command in most other source control systems. To work around this issue, download the attached version of the MATLAB function. Please note that this was written for MATLAB 7.0.1 (R14SP1) and may not work in later versions of MATLAB.

Here are the steps:

1. Quit MATLAB

2. Rename the following file:

$MATLAB\toolbox\matlab\verctrl\cvs.m

(where $MATLAB is the MATLAB root directory on your machine, as returned by typing

matlabroot

at the MATLAB Command Prompt.)

Rename the file to filename.m.old

3. Download the attached file(s). Place the new file(s) in the same directory mentioned in step 2.

4. Restart MATLAB

5. After restarting MATLAB, issue the following command at the MATLAB Command Prompt:

rehash toolboxcache

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The error is an XML error, so there is a problem with one of the saved status settings. Regenerating the preferences solves this issue.

To regenerate your MATLAB preferences, do the following:

1. Start MATLAB and type the following at the MATLAB command prompt:

prefdir

In MATLAB 7.0 (R14), the output should look like

     C:\WINNT\Profiles\{username}\Application Data\MathWorks\MATLAB\R14 (on Windows)
     /home/{username}/.matlab/R14 (on UNIX)
     /Users/{username}/.matlab/R14 (on Mac)

This is where your "matlab.prf" file is located. Your path may be different depending on how your system is setup.

2. Make sure that MATLAB is closed and rename the preferences directory of your current MATLAB version and all older versions of MATLAB to something else. For example, in MATLAB 7.0 (R14), rename the directory R14 to R14old. If you also have MATLAB 6.5 (R13) installed on your computer, rename the R13 directory to R13old.

3. Restart MATLAB. A new preferences directory will be created for the MATLAB version that is launched. Please note that the new preferences would be equivalent to the default preferences, including fonts, desktop layouts etc of a new installation of MATLAB.

If this does not address the issue that you hoped it would, it is possible to restore your preferences by deleting the newly created directories (R14 and/or R13) and renaming the R14old and/or R13old directories to their original names (R14 and R13 respectively).

Best Answer

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