Character set used for translation of unicode files.

If the server is set to Unicode-mode, the client sets P4CHARSET to auto and examines the client’s environment to determine the character set to use in converting files of type unicode. Thus, the only time you need to set P4CHARSET to a specific type is if the client’s choice of charset results in a faulty conversion or if you have other special needs. For example, the application that uses the checked out files expects a specific character set.

P4CHARSET only affects files of type unicode and utf16; non-unicode files are never translated.

For Perforce services operating in the default (non-Unicode mode), P4CHARSET must be left unset (or set to none) on user workstations. If P4CHARSET is set, but the service is not operating in internationalized mode, the service returns the following error message:

Unicode clients require a unicode enabled server.

For Perforce services operating in Unicode mode, P4CHARSET must either be set to auto or be set to some value (other than none) on user machines. If P4CHARSET is unset, but the service is operating in Unicode mode, Perforce applications return the following error message:

Unicode server permits only unicode enabled clients.

For more about Unicode mode, including settings of P4CHARSET for various UTF-8, UTF-16, and UTF-32 character sets, with and without byte-order marks, see the Internationalization Notes:

http://www.perforce.com/perforce/r16.1/user/i18nnotes.txt

In addition to affecting the client, Unicode settings also affect trigger scripts that communicate with the server. You should check your trigger’s use of file names, Perforce identifiers, and files containing unicode characters, and make sure that these are consistent with the character set used by the server. See the URL cited above for details about Unicode settings.

For a complete list of valid P4CHARSET values, issue the command p4 help charset.