With a versioned repository in a team-based development environment, check out an object each time you change it, and save to commit the changes to the repository. You must check in the object to allow other users to make changes to it. Checking in an object adds a new version to the object history.
An object is in read-only mode until you or another user checks it out. When you view an object that is in read-only mode, it is available for other users to check in or check out. If another user checks out or checks in an object that you are viewing in read-only mode, a message appears in the Notifications tab of the Output window. If another user has an object checked out, you can open the object as read-only. To update the view of an object with the latest version of the object, select the object in the Navigator, and then click View > Refresh.
You can check out and check in objects in the Designer, Repository Manager, and Workflow Manager.