The Cederqvist manual at http://cvshome.org/docs/manual/cvs_2.html#SEC30 describes how to setup CVS for external access.
In order to use CVS for a group, one has to set up a permissions system to allow people to access the system from other machines. There are three ways to do this (:server:, :pserver:, and :ext:). The pserver mechanism and use of rsh are both insecure. Only the :ext: (with ssh) offers sufficient security protection.
If you set CVS_RSH to SSH or some other rsh replacement, the instructions may be similar to `.rhosts' but consult the documentation for your rsh replacement.
To get ssh visit http://rpmfind.net and in the search box enter "ssh". Or visit http://www.redhat.com/apps/download and in the search box enter "ssh". Download and install the ssh RPM and then configure CVS to use it. See also http://www.ssh.org.
Note: If you plan to configure CVS for use with rsh then you MUST do this critical step:
bash# chmod 600 .rhosts
See also JA-SIG UPortal CVS repository http://www.mis3.udel.edu/~jlaker/development.