The node.js project welcomes new contributors. This document will guide you through the process.
Fork the project on GitHub and check out your copy.
$ git clone [email protected]:username/node.git
$ cd node
$ git remote add upstream git://github.com/node-forward/node.gitNow decide if you want your feature or bug fix to go into the master branch or the stable branch. As a rule of thumb, bug fixes go into the stable branch while new features go into the master branch.
The stable branch is effectively frozen; patches that change the node.js API/ABI or affect the run-time behavior of applications get rejected.
The rules for the master branch are less strict; consult the stability index page for details.
In a nutshell, modules are at varying levels of API stability. Bug fixes are always welcome but API or behavioral changes to modules at stability level 3 and up are off-limits.
Node.js has several bundled dependencies in the deps/ and the tools/ directories that are not part of the project proper. Any changes to files in those directories or its subdirectories should be sent to their respective projects. Do not send your patch to us, we cannot accept it.
In case of doubt, open an issue in the issue tracker, post your question to the node.js mailing list or contact one of the [project maintainers][] on IRC.
Especially do so if you plan to work on something big. Nothing is more frustrating than seeing your hard work go to waste because your vision does not align with that of a project maintainer.
Okay, so you have decided on the proper branch. Create a feature branch and start hacking:
$ git checkout -b my-feature-branch -t origin/v0.10(Where v0.10 is the latest stable branch as of this writing.)
Make sure git knows your name and email address:
$ git config --global user.name "J. Random User"
$ git config --global user.email "[email protected]"Writing good commit logs is important. A commit log should describe what changed and why. Follow these guidelines when writing one:
- The first line should be 50 characters or less and contain a short description of the change prefixed with the name of the changed subsystem (e.g. "net: add localAddress and localPort to Socket").
- Keep the second line blank.
- Wrap all other lines at 72 columns.
A good commit log looks like this:
subsystem: explaining the commit in one line
Body of commit message is a few lines of text, explaining things
in more detail, possibly giving some background about the issue
being fixed, etc etc.
The body of the commit message can be several paragraphs, and
please do proper word-wrap and keep columns shorter than about
72 characters or so. That way `git log` will show things
nicely even when it is indented.
The header line should be meaningful; it is what other people see when they
run git shortlog or git log --oneline.
Check the output of git log --oneline files_that_you_changed to find out
what subsystem (or subsystems) your changes touch.
Use git rebase (not git merge) to sync your work from time to time.
$ git fetch upstream
$ git rebase upstream/v0.10 # or upstream/masterBug fixes and features should come with tests. Add your tests in the test/simple/ directory. Look at other tests to see how they should be structured (license boilerplate, common includes, etc.).
$ make jslint testMake sure the linter is happy and that all tests pass. Please, do not submit patches that fail either check.
If you are updating tests and just want to run a single test to check it, you can use this syntax to run it exactly as the test harness would:
python tools/test.py -v --mode=release simple/test-stream2-transform
You can run tests directly with node:
node ./test/simple/test-streams2-transform.js
$ git push origin my-feature-branchGo to https://github.com/username/node and select your feature branch. Click the 'Pull Request' button and fill out the form.
Pull requests are usually reviewed within a few days. If there are comments to address, apply your changes in a separate commit and push that to your feature branch. Post a comment in the pull request afterwards; GitHub does not send out notifications when you add commits.
Committers who are merging their work and the work of others have a few other rules to follow.
- Always include the
Reviewed-by: You Name <your-email>in the commit message. - In commit messages also include
Fixes:that either includes the full url (e.g.https://github.com/node-forward/node/issues/...), and/or the hash and commit message if the commit fixes a bug in a previous commit. - PR's should include their full
PR-URL:so it's easy to trace a commit back to the conversation that lead up to that change. - Double check PR's to make sure the persons full name and email address are correct before merging.
- Except when updating dependencies, all commits should be self contained. Meaning, every commit should pass all tests. Makes it much easier when bisecting to find a breaking change.
This repository (node-forward/node) is jointly governed by a technical committee, commonly referred to as the "TC."
Initial membership invitations to the TC were given to individuals who had been active contributors to Node. Current membership is:
Fedor Indutny (@indutny)
Trevor Norris (@trevnorris)
Ben Noordhuis (@bnoordhuis)
Isaac Z. Schlueter (@isaacs)
Nathan Rajlich (@TooTallNate)
Bert Belder (@piscisaureus)
Invitations were also given to TJ Fontaine (@tjfontaine) and
Alexis Campailla (@orangemocha) who have not accepted but are
still invited to participate without accepting a role or
officially endorsing this effort.
Additionally the TC may invite persons or representatives from certain projects to participate in a non-voting capacity. These invitees currently are:
- A representative from build chosen by that project.
The TC has final authority over this project including:
- Project governance and process
- Contribution policy
- GitHub repository hosting
The TC can change its governance model if they deem it necessary. The current governance rules are:
- Consensus Seeking
- Motions with voting when consensus cannot be reached.
- Quorum of 2/3 (66%), simple definite majority wins.
- No more than 1/3 (34%) of the TC membership can be affiliated with the same employer.
The TC meets weekly on a Google hangout. The meeting is run by a designated
moderator, currently Mikeal Rogers (@mikeal). Each meeting should be
published to Youtube.
Individuals making significant and valuable contributions are given commit-access to the project. These individuals are identified by the TC and discussed during the weekly TC meeting.
If you make a significant contribution and are not considered for commit-access log an issue and it will be brought up in the next TC meeting.
Internal pull-requests to solicit feedback are required for any other non-trivial contribution but left to the discretion of the contributor.
For significant changes wait a full 48 hours (72 hours if it spans a weekend) before merging so that active contributors who are distributed throughout the world have a chance to weigh in.
Controversial changes and very significant changes should not be merged until they have been discussed by the TC which will make any final decisions.
TC members nominate contributors to be added to the TC which the TC will vote on. They can nominate any individual during any meeting.
By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
- (a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I have the right to submit it under the open source license indicated in the file; or
- (b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source license and I have the right under that license to submit that work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part by me, under the same open source license (unless I am permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated in the file; or
- (c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified it.
This Code of Conduct is adapted from Rust's wonderful CoC.
- We are committed to providing a friendly, safe and welcoming environment for all, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, religion, or similar personal characteristic.
- Please avoid using overtly sexual nicknames or other nicknames that might detract from a friendly, safe and welcoming environment for all.
- Please be kind and courteous. There's no need to be mean or rude.
- Respect that people have differences of opinion and that every design or implementation choice carries a trade-off and numerous costs. There is seldom a right answer.
- Please keep unstructured critique to a minimum. If you have solid ideas you want to experiment with, make a fork and see how it works.
- We will exclude you from interaction if you insult, demean or harass anyone. That is not welcome behaviour. We interpret the term "harassment" as including the definition in the Citizen Code of Conduct; if you have any lack of clarity about what might be included in that concept, please read their definition. In particular, we don't tolerate behavior that excludes people in socially marginalized groups.
- Private harassment is also unacceptable. No matter who you are, if you feel you have been or are being harassed or made uncomfortable by a community member, please contact one of the channel ops or any of the TC members immediately with a capture (log, photo, email) of the harassment if possible. Whether you're a regular contributor or a newcomer, we care about making this community a safe place for you and we've got your back.
- Likewise any spamming, trolling, flaming, baiting or other attention-stealing behaviour is not welcome.
- Avoid the use of personal pronouns in code comments or documentation. There is no need to address persons when explaining code (e.g. "When the developer")