In its diff mode, P4Merge enables you to compare two text files to locate
differences. The purple icon ()
is associated with the first file you selected, and purple bands highlight text
that is in the first file but not the second file. The green icon (
)
is associated with the second file you selected, and green bands highlight text
that is in the second file but not the first file.
To display diffs in a single pane, choose View>Single Pane Diff
Layout. In single-pane mode, delete text is shown using strikethrough
text. By default, P4Merge displays diffs in a side-by-side layout.
To toggle the display of line numbers, click .
To move forward and back through individual differences, or to locate specific text or lines, click the toolbar buttons listed below.
Go to next/previous diff | ![]() |
Find text | ![]() |
Go to line number | ![]() |
To configure P4Merge settings to display or suppress differences in white
space and line endings, click
or choose File>Comparison Method. To configure other settings, choose
Edit>Preferences (on Macintosh, choose P4Merge>Preferences).
Note: if you are comparing Unicode files, selection of the correct character set is essential. If you select the wrong character set, P4Merge cannot correctly diff files.