Mastership is a mechanism that prevents users at different replicas from making conflicting changes. Mastership restricts the ability to modify an object to users at a single replica. Most ClearCase objects have a master replica.
Branch mastership supports independent development at multiple sites. Each replica masters one or more branch types; developers do their work on branches of the types mastered by their replicas. Developers can see the work done on branches whose types are mastered by other replicas, but cannot check out files on those branches.
To support serial development, mastership of a branch can be transferred to another replica. For example, if developers at multiple sites need to work on an element whose versions cannot be merged, all development can be done on one branch, and mastership of that branch can be moved among replicas as necessary.
By default, you can create an instance of a type object only at the replica that masters the type object. For label types, attribute types, and hyperlink types, you can specify shared mastership. Instances of the type object can then be created at any replica in the VOB family, with the restriction that the replica must master the object to which you attach the instance.
An object is mastered by the replica in which it is created; its mastership can be transferred to another replica. For example, if responsibility for merging changes to an integration branch is assigned to a user at another site, a MultiSite administrator can transfer mastership of the integration branch type to the replica at that site.
MultiSite administrators can enable requests for mastership in the replicas in a VOB family. This mechanism allows a developer who needs to work on a certain branch to request mastership of the branch, instead of contacting the administrator of the master replica and asking for mastership to be transferred.
Requests for mastership are not supported for branches associated with UCM streams.