SVN error "appears to be part of a Subversion 1.7 or greater working copy" with svn version 2.0.3

Question

Here is it full error that I get in Eclipse Juno when I try to commit my project through SVN

appears to be part of a Subversion 1.7 or greater working copy.  Please upgrade your Subversion client to use this working copy.

I don't understand why I get this since my SVN client version is the latest one. (2.0.3)!

Solution

From Subversion 1.1 to Subversion 1.6, the layout of the Subversion client working directory did not change. In revision 1.7, it changed, and in 1.8, it changed again. This has caused a lot of consternation in people who share a working directory with more than one Subversion client.

Both Subversive and Subclipse, the two main Subversion clients for Eclipse actually pass off the work of creating the Subversion working directory to either SVNKit or to JavaHL -- what are called the _SVN Connectors. It's these two SVN Connectors that must match the version of your working directory. Don't check Subversive or Subclipse's version. Check out the SVN Connector version.

If you go to your preferences, into Team->SVN, you will see a tab for the SVN Connector. Check the version of your SVN Connector (whether JavaHL or SVNKit), and make sure you're using the right version. In your case, it should be 1.7.

The most common reason to see this error is because you're using two different Subversion clients on the same working directory (which is officially not supported, but everyone does it anyway).

For example, are you using TortoiseSVN or the Subversion command line client, and also the Eclipse client on the same working directory, you naughty spawn?

Confession time: I do it all the time. I find there are times when it's just damn easier to use the command line client to do certain jobs rather than struggle with the Eclipse client. For example, I can do svn log and do a grep filter to quickly find the revision I want rather than going through Eclipse. If you do this type of stuff, make sure your Subversion clients are all on the same general version (1.6 vs. 1.7 vs. 1.8).

Okay, you're a good boy and don't use different Subversion clients on the same working copy. Now what happened? In that case, I suspect you accidentally changed the SVN Connector version without realizing it -- either through an update, or in the settings. You can have multiple SVN Connector versions at the same time, and I believe each project can have different ones too.

Again, check your SVN Connector version, and make sure it's correct.