Commit Messages

Lately I've noticed that a lot of people ask for a feature that's already implemented in TortoiseSVN. Usually the users either request that feature or report a bug on our mailing list. But actually, there are two features that are implemented in TortoiseSVN which help users for this problem.

The feature I'm talking about is that TortoiseSVN saves the commit messages you enter. In the commit dialog, there's a button named "Recent messages". If you click that button, a dialog pops up with the last 20 messages you've entered. Those messages are saved even if you cancel the commit dialog, not just if you execute the commit with the OK button.
Also, those messages are saved per repository (per repository uuid to be exact). Because it wouldn't make much sense to show you recent commit messages for a completely unrelated project than you're now trying to commit to.

Commit DialogCommit Dialog

The other feature is that TortoiseSVN can automatically reopen the commit dialog in case a commit fails, for example because your working copy is out of date. In that case, not just the commit message you've entered is preserved but also your selection of files to commit. But that feature isn't enabled by default, you have to enable it in the settings dialog as shown below in the screenshot.

Settings Dialog, Dialogs 2 pageSettings Dialog, Dialogs 2 page