Introduction to Azure Repos
Azure Repos is your team’s code collaboration hub — a cloud-based version control system where developers can safely write, review, and manage their code. Whether you're working alone or part of a large team, Azure Repos ensures your code is tracked, secure, and organized.
What is Azure Repos?
Azure Repos is a service within Azure DevOps that provides **version control** — a way to track changes in your code over time. It allows developers to work together without the fear of overwriting each other's work.
With Azure Repos, you can:
- Store code securely in the cloud
- Track changes and maintain history
- Collaborate with others through pull requests and reviews
- Enforce coding standards with policies
It supports both **Git** (distributed version control) and **TFVC** (centralized version control), giving teams the flexibility to choose what fits best.
1. Git and TFVC Support
Azure Repos supports two powerful systems:
- Git: The most widely used version control system today. Each developer works on their own local copy and can push/pull changes from the shared repository.
- TFVC (Team Foundation Version Control): A centralized system used mostly in traditional enterprise environments, where all changes are committed directly to a central server.
Most modern teams prefer Git due to its flexibility, offline capabilities, and branching features. TFVC still exists for teams with legacy applications or stricter centralized workflows.
2. Branching and Merging
One of the key strengths of Git in Azure Repos is its powerful **branching and merging** features. These allow you to work on new features, bug fixes, or experiments without affecting the main codebase.
Common strategies include:
- Feature Branching: Each new feature is developed in its own branch and merged back when completed and reviewed.
- GitFlow: A more structured approach with development, feature, release, and hotfix branches.
- Trunk-Based Development: Developers commit directly (or via short-lived branches) to the main branch, with frequent integrations and automated tests.
These workflows help teams stay organized, reduce conflicts, and deliver software faster.
3. Pull Requests and Code Reviews
Azure Repos uses **pull requests (PRs)** to facilitate code collaboration and maintain code quality. A pull request is a way to propose code changes and get feedback before merging them into a shared branch (usually `main` or `develop`).
Benefits of pull requests include:
- Team collaboration: Developers can comment, suggest improvements, and discuss changes before they go live.
- Automated checks: Build pipelines can run tests automatically when a PR is created or updated.
- Knowledge sharing: Code reviews help junior developers learn and improve from feedback.
Pull requests create a healthy feedback loop and reduce the risk of introducing bugs into the main codebase.
4. Branch Policies
Branch policies are rules that protect important branches like `main` or `release`. These policies ensure that only reviewed, tested, and approved code makes it into the core of your application.
Common branch policies in Azure Repos include:
- Minimum number of reviewers: Prevent merging unless a set number of approvals are given.
- Linked work items: Require changes to be associated with a task or bug for tracking purposes.
- Build validation: Run automated builds/tests before allowing a merge.
- Permissions: Limit who can push changes to protected branches.
These guardrails help enforce team standards and improve the reliability of your codebase.
Why Use Azure Repos?
Azure Repos is deeply integrated with the rest of the Azure DevOps platform. This means you can:
- Link code directly to tasks in Azure Boards
- Trigger builds automatically in Azure Pipelines
- Set policies and track contributions across the team
- View commit history, diff changes, and revert easily
It’s designed to support both small projects and enterprise-scale systems, making it a great choice regardless of your team’s size or structure.
Conclusion
Azure Repos gives you everything you need to manage your source code effectively — from tracking changes and collaborating through pull requests, to enforcing quality with policies and reviews.
In the next section, we’ll dive deeper into comparing Git vs TFVC to help you choose the right version control strategy for your project.