cvs, "file should be removed and is still there (or back again)"

Question

I am trying to commit a project in which a file has been "cvs remove"d, but actually needs to be there. The contents has been completely rewritten, but it needs to retain the same name. I am unable to either commit the project or re-add the file without getting this annoying error message. How do I "unremove" a file in CVS?

Accepted Answer

This worked for me:

Rename the file

```
mv mistakenly_removed_file wtf
```

Ask cvs to add the old version:

```
cvs add mistakenly_removed_file
```

cvs then reports it has resurrected the removed file.

```
mv wtf mistakenly_removed_file
```

`cvs status` reveals that the file is now "locally modified"

cvs, "file should be removed and is still there (or back again)"

Solution

Problem