rcsdiff

Compare RCS file revisions

TLDR

Compare working file with latest revision

$ rcsdiff [file]

Compare specific revisions

$ rcsdiff -r[1.1] -r[1.2] [file]

Unified diff format

$ rcsdiff -u [file]

Context diff format

$ rcsdiff -c [file]

Compare with specific revision

$ rcsdiff -r[1.5] [file]

Side by side

$ rcsdiff -y [file]

SYNOPSIS

rcsdiff [-r rev1] [-r rev2] [-u] [-c] file

rcsdiff compares revisions of files managed by the Revision Control System (RCS). Without a -r flag, it compares the current working file against the latest checked-in revision, showing local modifications. With one -r flag it compares the working file against a specific revision, and with two -r flags it compares two historical revisions directly.The tool supports all standard diff output formats including unified (-u), context (-c), side-by-side (-y), and normal diff. It passes through options to the underlying diff command, making it a convenient wrapper for comparing version-controlled file histories.

PARAMETERS

-r REV

Revision to compare.

-u

Unified diff output.

-c

Context diff output.

-y

Side by side.

-q

Quiet mode.

-n

RCS format output.

INSTALL

sudo apt install rcs

sudo dnf install rcs

sudo pacman -S rcs

sudo apk add rcs

sudo zypper install rcs

brew install rcs

nix profile install nixpkgs#rcs

CAVEATS

RCS is legacy system. Consider Git instead. File-level versioning only.

HISTORY

rcsdiff is part of RCS (Revision Control System), created by Walter Tichy in 1982 at Purdue University.