The Defunct command removes elements from active use in your workspace. That is, for each element you specify, it:
·
makes the element active in the workspace, by adding it to the workspace's
default group
Defunct does not remove an element from the depot altogether (no operation removes an element altogether -- that would violate AccuRev's TimeSafe property). And it does not make an element disappear for all users.
Defunct just removes an element from a particular workspace. The element remains visible in other streams and workspaces -- at least until you Promote it.
The Defunct dialog appears, prompting you to confirm your intention to remove the element(s).

If any of the elements you specify is a directory, Defunct works recursively: it removes the directory itself and elements under that directory. Only the specified directory itself becomes
(defunct); the objects below it are simply removed from the workspace tree, but do not become
(defunct) in the workspace stream.
·
If no element below the defuncted directory is active, the entire directory tree is removed from your workspace tree.
·
If one or more elements below the defuncted directory is active, those elements become stranded. A stranded element is
not removed from your workspace tree, but its status becomes
(external), since the workspace stream no longer has a valid pathname to the object.
After Defunct'ing an element, you use
Promote to propagate its removal to your workspace's
backing stream. The element won't appear in a File Browser that is open on your workspace, but it will appear, with
(defunct) status, in a File Browser that is open on the backing stream.
You can usually recover the backed version of the (defunct) element by invoking the
Revert to Backed command on it. However, if either of the following conditions apply, the correct way to recover the version is to invoke the
accurev undefunct command from the CLI.
·
If you have kept changes in your workspace before defuncting. Remember that if you Revert to Backed an element which has not been
Promote'd, you eliminate the version of that element in your workspace.
·
If you have Promote'd the
(defunct) element, so that it no longer appears in the File Browser.
When a user in a sibling workspaces performs an
Update, the element will disappear from that workspace.
With each successive promotion up the stream hierarchy, a defunct element disappears from the source ("promote from") stream, and becomes
active, with
(defunct) status, in the destination ("promote to") stream.
AccuRev's TimeSafe property means that you cannot change the past. This means that a defunct element remains in old snapshots of streams. You can always get information about the element (if you know which stream it still exists in) using the
History Browser.