TFS > Connecting to TFSVC on your Visual Studio Team Services account

The future is in the cloud. So as we try to get a grip on TFSVC let's learn how to get a grip on it in the Microsoft cloud dedicated to this: Visual Studio Team Services.

What we want to achieve:

• Set up a Collection (or at least a Team Project) in VSTS
• Create a Team Project in this Collection
• Add an empty Solution to the Team Project
• Add existing code to the Solution
• Perform generic version control operations on the Team Project/Collection

Set up a Collection (or at least a Team Project) in VSTS:

For guides/instructions we use - amongst others - the page:

https://www.visualstudio.com/docs/overview

Firstly create a Visual Studio Team Services account as described in 

https://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/docs/setup-admin/team-services/sign-up-for-visual-studio-team-services

Then 

TFS Version Control > First Steps

At my new company TFVC is used for version control on the source code. For me to be able to function in the development team I need to get a grip on TFVC.

The hierarchy of TFVC (from big to small):

1. Collection
2. Team Project
3. Solution
4. Project

A realization:

• The Source Control Explorer 'explores' the Workspace.
• The Workspace is the LOCAL copy of the Team Project - within a Collection - stored in TFS Version Control
• The Workspace is generally identical to the files in the directory which was mapped to the Workspace BUT it is possible for there to be files in the file system which are not added to the workspace.
• Add those 'missing' files via Visual Studio (Source Control Explorer, rightclick->Add to Source Control, etc.)

Facepalm moment:

When creating a new project (File > New > Project) the popup has four fields to fill in:

1. Name
2. Location
3. Solution
4. Solution name

Solution has a dropdown menu with three menu items:

1. Create new solution
2. Add to solution
3. Create in new instance

START LEARNING MOMENT
When creating a new project WITHIN an existing solution then use the menu item 'Add to solution' as described above
END LEARNING MOMENT

New job, new priorities

So we changed jobs. Still Test Automation, but different colleagues (internal developers yay!) and different tooling. Out with the Tosca, in with the .NET technology.

So the new goal is: let's learn how to work with the Microsoft technology stack.

Very useful link:
https://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/docs/tfvc/overview

We start with creating a solution and then adding it to TFVC:
https://www.visualstudio.com/en-us/docs/tfvc/set-up-team-foundation-version-control-your-dev-machine

But then we run into the situation that apparently it's not possible to connect to MULTIPLE Team Foundation Servers from one Visual Studio client. This is rather annoying since I was planning to do some experimenting on my own in the VisualStudio cloud separate from work, but this is apparently not possible. My manager created a new 'Team Project'

Current technical roadblocks to resolve:
1. Connect to the work TFS via VPN.