How to Remove Workspace in TFS 2010-2018

A definitive guide to cleaning up old Team Foundation Server mappings

Have you ever encountered a "Workspace already exists" error or needed to clean up a developer channel mapping on a new machine? Dealing with stale Team Foundation Server (TFS) workspaces can be a headache.

This solution works for TFS 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2017, and 2018.

The Solution: Visual Studio Command Prompt

The most reliable way to delete a stubborn workspace is through the command line tool provided with Visual Studio.

Step 1: Open the Command Prompt

Search your Start Menu for "Developer Command Prompt for VS 20XX" (where XX is your version) and run it as Administrator.

Step 2: Run the Delete Command

Use the following command syntax to delete the specific workspace:

tf workspace /delete /server:http://tfs.site.com:8080/tfs WORKSPACENAME

⚠️ Warning: This action is irreversible. Make sure you have checked in all your pending changes before deleting the workspace!

Example Scenario

If your user is sanjeebPC and your TFS server is located at http://tfs.site.com:8080/tfs, the command would look like this:

tf workspace /delete /server:http://tfs.site.com:8080/tfs sanjeebPC

After hitting enter, you may be prompted to confirm. Type Y and press Enter.

Conclusion

Using the tf command line utility is a powerful skill for any .NET developer using legacy TFS. It grants you control that the GUI often hides.