svnserve

svnserve is a lightweight, stand-alone server that provides access to Subversion repositories using the Subversion protocol. It is part of the Apache Subversion project and serves as an alternative to HTTP-based access via mod_dav_svn. The server listens for connections on the traditional svn protocol port (port 3690 by default) and supports common version-control operations such as checkout, update, commit, and log.

svnserve can be run as a background daemon or spawned by inetd/xinetd. When started, it is given a repository root and serves one or more repositories under that root. Each repository contains a conf directory with configuration files that control authentication and authorization. The key files are svnserve.conf, passwd, and authz. The passwd file defines user accounts, while the authz file provides path-based access control rules. Access decisions are made on a per-repository basis, and groups can be defined within the authz database to simplify management.

Security considerations include the fact that the svn protocol itself does not provide encryption. In environments requiring confidentiality, svnserve is typically used behind SSH (svn+ssh) or through a TLS-enabled proxy or tunnel. Authentication for svnserve is usually simple username/password, with authorization determining which paths a user or group can access.

While svnserve remains a straightforward option for small teams or simple deployments, many deployments favor Apache httpd with mod_dav_svn, which offers HTTP-based access, more advanced logging, and integration with existing web infrastructure. svnserve thus represents a lightweight, minimal-footprint method for providing centralized access to Subversion repositories.