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| submitting-patches [2017/07/24 04:03] – Add some details to Squashing. bobmseagithub | submitting-patches [2024/04/08 11:10] – [13. The canonical patch format] fix third example subject kanjimonster | ||
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| ====== Submitting patches ====== | ====== Submitting patches ====== | ||
| + | See also: | ||
| + | * [[docs: | ||
| + | * If you are using GitHub, read also [[docs: | ||
| - | Patches can be submitted as a pull request on Github or via the mailing list.\\ | + | =====Deciding where to send the patch===== |
| - | Submissions should follow | + | * **Patches to core packages and patches that add support for new devices** (i.e. code that is in [[https:// |
| - | * use a different | + | * **Patches for LuCI web interface and related packages** can be submitted to mailing list or to the [[https:// |
| - | * write commit subject and message | + | * **Patches for community packages about routing** should go as a Github PR in the [[https:// |
| + | * **Patches for community packages about telephony and SIP/VOIP** should go as a Github PR in the [[https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | * **Patches for miscellaneous community packages** should go as a Github PR in the [[https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | <WRAP round info 60%> | ||
| + | **If you want to add a new package that is not specific for a device** nor crucial to compile or use OpenWrt on a device, (i.e. tools, compilers, runtimes libraries, VPNs, media servers, backup servers and more), **open a PR in the appropriate community packages repository mentioned above.** Note that if you add a package you usually must assign yourself as " | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | ===== Submission Guidelines ===== | ||
| + | |||
| + | Submissions should follow the following guidelines: | ||
| + | * use a different git branch for each pull request (GitHub does this automatically when using web interface) | ||
| + | * write commit subject and message in the imperative form: "add support for X", NOT "added support for X" | ||
| * **code formatting** | * **code formatting** | ||
| * use the same indentation you find in the file you are modifying, use only tabs or only spaces depending on what was done in the rest of the file | * use the same indentation you find in the file you are modifying, use only tabs or only spaces depending on what was done in the rest of the file | ||
| Line 17: | Line 34: | ||
| * **kernel:** for kernel and kmod (kernel module) packages | * **kernel:** for kernel and kmod (kernel module) packages | ||
| * **package name:** for packages | * **package name:** for packages | ||
| - | * **device architecture: | + | * **device architecture: |
| * **tool name:** for tools | * **tool name:** for tools | ||
| * **build:** for general buildsystem changes that are not targeted at something in / | * **build:** for general buildsystem changes that are not targeted at something in / | ||
| Line 28: | Line 45: | ||
| * must have less than 75 characters per line | * must have less than 75 characters per line | ||
| * it will be committed to the source changelog, so __it should explain to a competent reader why you made this commit__.\\ Include symptoms of the failure you are fixing (log messages, error messages, etc.), it will be useful for\\ people searching the commit logs looking for a fix for their issue.\\ If a patch fixes a compile failure, include only the most relevant part of the failure log | * it will be committed to the source changelog, so __it should explain to a competent reader why you made this commit__.\\ Include symptoms of the failure you are fixing (log messages, error messages, etc.), it will be useful for\\ people searching the commit logs looking for a fix for their issue.\\ If a patch fixes a compile failure, include only the most relevant part of the failure log | ||
| - | * If you add support for new hardware: Include in your commit message short description of the hardware and how to install | + | * If you add support for new hardware: Include in your commit message |
| + | * **all commits must contain '' | ||
| + | * GitHub web interface or GUI application for git: you must append the '' | ||
| + | * git command-line interface: | ||
| - | | + | <code bash> |
| - | * it can be done automatically by git commandline with: < | + | git commit --signoff |
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | | ||
| + | * GitHub web interface: | ||
| + | * git command-line interface: | ||
| - | * the Author field **must** match the " | + | < |
| - | * if you are editing files and committing through GitHub, you must write your real name in the " | + | |
| - | * if you are editing files and committing on your local PC, set your name and email with< | + | |
| git config --global user.name "my name" | git config --global user.name "my name" | ||
| - | git config --global user.email " | + | git config --global user.email " |
| + | </ | ||
| + | ===== Patch merging and tree life cycle ===== | ||
| + | We encourage frequent committers to host their own staging trees where they aggregate patches that they feel responsible for and/or ones that they created themselves. Once the tree has been reviewed and tested it can be proposed for inclusion in the master branch. | ||
| + | - Trees will be merged into master at any time | ||
| + | - Bug fixes can be merged into master directly | ||
| + | - PRs can be sent to the patches mailing list from any source and will always be considered for inclusion if the quality of the tree is good and format of submission is correct | ||
| + | - Staging trees can be hosted as part of the projects git infrastructure, | ||
| + | ===== Patch backports ===== | ||
| + | Backporting refers to applying changes to a stable (release) branch like for example **openwrt-23.05** from the **main** branch. Since new features are not added to stable branches, backported changes are generally bug fixes and security fixes only. The process is roughly following: | ||
| + | - Changes needs to be first applied into the **main** branch | ||
| + | - Afterwards those changes can be proposed to be applied into the stable (release) branch | ||
| + | When pulling the commits from the **main** branch, you need to use '' | ||
| + | <code bash> | ||
| + | $ git cherry-pick --signoff -x < | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | ===== Patch checklist ===== | ||
| + | - Single commit ( multiple commits must first be squashed, as described [[docs: | ||
| + | - Subject < 50 characters | ||
| + | - Blank line after subject | ||
| + | - Each line of description < 75 characters | ||
| + | - Description explains **what** was changed | ||
| + | - Description explains **why** it was changed | ||
| + | - Description makes sense | ||
| + | - Signoff line includes real name or known identity | ||
| + | - Signoff line includes real email address | ||
| + | - If it's a third-party patch, then preserve Signoff line from the original author | ||
| + | - Sender/ | ||
| - | ===== Working with Github | + | ===== DTS checklist |
| + | - Don't forget to add proper license, consider adding '' | ||
| + | - Remove all ocurrencies of '' | ||
| + | - If you're adding MTD flash layout, and you've '' | ||
| + | - If it's possible try to dedicate some of the LEDs for system status indication in [[https:// | ||
| + | - The name of a node should reflect the function of the device and not its model. Examples for generic node names can be found in Section [[https:// | ||
| + | - Remove all [[https:// | ||
| - | There are Github mirrors | + | An overview |
| - | Fork the project to a public repo using Github web interface, clone the repo to your computer, create a branch for your changes, push these back to Github and submit a pull request. | + | ===== In-depth process of preparing and submitting code to OpenWrt ===== |
| + | Based on [[https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/ | ||
| - | In case you don't know how to do that, keep reading.\\ | + | OpenWrt is constantly being improved. We'd like as many people |
| - | Create | + | For a person or company who wishes to submit a change to OpenWrt, the process can sometimes be daunting if you're not familiar with "the system." |
| + | |||
| + | It is important to do all these steps repeatedly: | ||
| + | * Listen to what other people think. | ||
| + | * Explain what problem you are addressing and your proposed solution. | ||
| + | * Write useful patches including documentation. | ||
| + | * Test, test, test. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Where to listen and talk: | ||
| + | * Google to find things related to your problem | ||
| + | * [[: | ||
| + | * [[: | ||
| + | * [[: | ||
| + | * [[https:// | ||
| + | * GitHub - https:// | ||
| + | * (archived) TRAC - https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===== Documentation ===== | ||
| + | It is often best to document what you are doing before you do it. The process of documentation often exposes possible improvements. Keep your documentation up to date. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===== Creating and sending your change ===== | ||
| + | Read [[: | ||
| + | |||
| + | For patches against external package sources, refer to the quilt howto at [[docs: | ||
| + | |||
| + | Please read [[https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 1. Creating a patch ===== | ||
| + | All changes to OpenWrt occur in the form of patches. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Patches should be based in the root trunk, not in any lower subdirectory. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Make sure your patch does not include any extra files which do not belong in a patch submission. | ||
| + | Be sure to review your patch **after** you have generated it, to ensure accuracy. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If your changes produce a lot of deltas, you may want to look into splitting them into individual patches which modify things in logical stages. | ||
| + | This will facilitate easier reviewing by other OpenWrt developers, which is very important if you want your patch to be accepted. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The tools you can use to create a patch, in order of preference, are: | ||
| + | * Git | ||
| + | * SVN | ||
| + | * diff | ||
| + | |||
| + | To ease integration of smaller patches into trunk, developers can also make pull-requests into the GitHub trunk tree - this is an addition over the earlier patchwork workflow. | ||
| + | Larger patches, or patches that require further discussion, should still be sent to the **openwrt-devel** list, where they' | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 2. Describe your changes ===== | ||
| + | Describe the technical detail of the change(s) your patch includes. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Be as specific as possible. The WORST descriptions possible include things like " | ||
| + | |||
| + | The maintainer | ||
| + | |||
| + | If your description starts to get long, that's a sign that you probably need to split up your patch. See par.3, next. | ||
| + | |||
| + | When you submit or resubmit a patch or patch series, include the complete patch description and justification for it. Don't just say that this is version N of the patch (series). Don't expect the patch merger to refer back to earlier patch versions or referenced URLs to find the patch description and put that into the patch. I.e., the patch (series) and its description should be self-contained. This benefits both the patch merger(s) and reviewers. Some reviewers probably didn't even receive earlier versions of the patch. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If the patch fixes a logged bug trac entry, refer to that bug entry by number. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 3. Separate your changes ===== | ||
| + | Separate __logical changes__ into a single patch file. | ||
| + | |||
| + | For example, if your changes include both bug fixes and enhancements for a single package, separate those changes into two or more patches. | ||
| + | |||
| + | On the other hand, if you make a single change to numerous files, group those changes into a single patch. Thus a single logical change is contained within a single patch. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If one patch depends on another patch in order for a change to be complete, that is OK. Simply note "this patch depends on patch X" in your patch description. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If you cannot condense your patch set into a smaller set of patches, then only post say 15 or so at a time and wait for review and integration. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 4. Style check your changes ===== | ||
| + | Check your patch for basic style violations. Failure to do so simply wastes the reviewer' | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 5. Select email destination ===== | ||
| + | Look in the Makefile if a MAINTAINER macro exists. If so, email that person. Unless you have a reason NOT to do so, always CC openwrt-devel <at> lists.openwrt.org. If no maintainer is listed, send your patch to the [[https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 6. No MIME, no links, no compression, | ||
| + | OpenWrt developers need to be able to read and comment on the changes you are submitting. It is important for an OpenWrt developer to be able to " | ||
| + | |||
| + | For this reason, | ||
| + | |||
| + | Do not attach the patch as a MIME attachment, compressed or not. Many popular email applications will not always transmit a MIME attachment as plain text, making it impossible to comment | ||
| + | |||
| + | Exception: If your mailer is mangling patches then someone may ask you to re-send them using MIME. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Mozilla Thunderbird requires that you change email defaults to send plain text email. | ||
| + | read [[http:// | ||
| + | :!: disable flowed text | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 7. Email size ===== | ||
| + | Large changes are not appropriate for mailing lists, and some maintainers. If your patch, uncompressed, | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 8. Remain objective, re-submit ===== | ||
| + | |||
| + | It's nothing personal. Code should work well for its intended purpose and results should adhere to many standards and requirements, | ||
| + | |||
| + | After you have submitted your change, be patient and wait. If developers like your change and apply it, it will appear as new revision in the source code management system. | ||
| + | |||
| + | However, if your change doesn' | ||
| + | |||
| + | Sometimes, developers may " | ||
| + | * Your patch did not apply cleanly to the latest OpenWrt revision. | ||
| + | * Your patch was not sufficiently discussed on openwrt-devel. | ||
| + | * A style issue. | ||
| + | * An email formatting issue (re-read this section). | ||
| + | * A technical problem with your change. | ||
| + | * They get tons of email, and yours got lost in the shuffle. | ||
| + | * You are being annoying. | ||
| + | |||
| + | When in doubt, solicit comments on openwrt-devel mailing list. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 9. Include PATCH in the subject ===== | ||
| + | Due to high email traffic to openwrt-devel, | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 10. Sign your work ===== | ||
| + | To provide tracking of who did what, we use a " | ||
| + | |||
| + | The sign-off is a simple line at the end of the explanation for the patch, which certifies that you wrote it or otherwise have the right to pass it on as an open-source patch. The rules are pretty simple: if you can certify the below: | ||
| - | Install git in your PC, and make sure that your local git settings have the right name and email\\ | ||
| < | < | ||
| - | git config --global user.name "my name" | + | Developer' |
| - | git config --global user.email "my@email.address" | + | |
| + | 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 | ||
| + | | ||
| + | work with modifications, | ||
| + | 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. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution | ||
| + | are public and that a record of the contribution (including all | ||
| + | personal information I submit with it, including | ||
| + | maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with | ||
| + | this project or the open source license(s) involved. | ||
| </ | </ | ||
| - | You might also want to set the default text editor to your favourite editor. | + | then you just add a line saying |
| - | If you have a Linux system with a GUI, some choices are **geany**, **kwrite**, **pluma** and **gedit**.\\ | + | |
| - | If you are using command | + | |
| - | Then follow Github' | + | <code bash> |
| + | Signed-off-by: Random J Developer < | ||
| + | </code> | ||
| - | After you have set it up as described, write < | + | using a known identity |
| - | All commits you do after this command will be grouped in this branch. This allows to have multiple branches, one for each PR.\\ | + | |
| - | To switch between branches you already created, use < | + | |
| - | After you made your changes, write <code>git add -i</ | + | If you are a package or target maintainer, sometimes you need to slightly modify patches you receive in order to merge them, because the code is not exactly the same in your tree and the submitters' |
| - | Then write < | + | < |
| - | The first line is the commit subject, \\ | + | Signed-off-by: Random J Developer < |
| - | then leave an empty line \\ | + | [lucky@maintainer.example.org: struct foo moved from foo.c to foo.h] |
| - | then you write the commit description. \\ | + | Signed-off-by: |
| - | This command will automatically add the Signed-off-by | + | </code> |
| - | For example, a complete commit message might look like this:\\ | + | |
| - | The best code update. | + | |
| - | + | ||
| - | This is the best piece of code I have ever submitted. | + | |
| - | Signed-off-by: | + | |
| - | To send your local changes over to your Github repo, write < | + | This practice is particularly helpful if you maintain a stable branch and want at the same time to credit the author, track changes, merge the fix, and protect the submitter from complaints. Note that under no circumstances can you change the author' |
| - | You will be asked your github user and password | + | |
| - | After the code has been uploaded | + | Special note to back-porters: It seems to be a common and useful practise to insert an indication of the origin of a patch at the top of the commit message (just after the subject line) to facilitate tracking. For instance: |
| + | <code bash> | ||
| + | Date: Wed Jul 25 15:14:50 2012 +0300 | ||
| + | [generic] add missing symbols | ||
| + | [backport r12345] | ||
| + | </ | ||
| - | ===== Sending patches by Email ===== | + | Whatever the format, this information provides valuable help to people tracking your trees, and to people trying to trouble-shoot bugs in your tree. |
| - | Send an email to the [[https:// | + | For the more convenient developers, |
| - | Using **git send-email** is warmly recommended, | + | |
| - | ===== Squashing commits ===== | + | <code bash> |
| - | Commits in a PR or sent by email should be about full changes you want to merge, not about fixing all issues the reviewers found in your original PR.\\ | + | git commit -s |
| + | </ | ||
| - | So, there will come a time when you will need to either rewrite or squash your commits; so you end with a normal amount of true and sane commits. | + | ==== 11. When to use " |
| + | The Signed-off-by: | ||
| - | Work with git commandline.\\ | + | If a person was not directly involved in the preparation or handling of a patch but wishes to signify and record their approval of it then they can arrange to have an Acked-by: line added to the patch' |
| - | Change to your development folder.\\ | + | |
| - | Look at the branches you have with: < | + | |
| - | get something like:< | + | |
| - | best_code_update | + | |
| - | * master</ | + | |
| - | Switch to the your development branch for this PR with:<code>git checkout best_code_update</ | + | Acked-by: is often used by the maintainer of the affected |
| - | Look at the git log, so you can count the number of commits you want to squash ( the "X" | + | Acked-by: is not as formal as Signed-off-by: |
| - | Delete commits with:< | + | Acked-by: does not necessarily indicate acknowledgement |
| - | (where X is the number | + | |
| - | Add the files to git tracking again with:< | + | |
| - | and commit again with:< | + | |
| - | Send the updated branch over to github with: <code>git push -f</ | + | |
| - | and the commits in the PR will be updated automatically. | + | |
| - | ==== Alternative squashing advice: ==== | + | If a person has had the opportunity to comment on a patch, but has not provided such comments, you may optionally add a "Cc:" tag to the patch. This is the only tag which might be added without an explicit action by the person it names. This tag documents that potentially interested parties have been included in the discussion. |
| - | You can use **interactive rebase** to combine, reorder and edit your commits and their commit messages, with:< | + | ==== 12. Using " |
| + | If this patch fixes a problem reported by somebody else, consider adding a Reported-by: | ||
| - | ===== Patch Merging And Tree Life Cycle ===== | + | A Tested-by: tag indicates that the patch has been successfully tested (in some environment) by the person named. This tag informs maintainers that some testing has been performed, provides a means to locate testers for future patches, and ensures credit for the testers. |
| - | We encourage frequent committers to host their own staging trees where they aggregate patches | + | Reviewed-by:, |
| + | < | ||
| + | Reviewer' | ||
| - | | + | By offering my Reviewed-by: tag, I state that: |
| - | - Bug fixes can be merged | + | |
| - | - PRs can be sent to the patches | + | (a) I have carried out a technical review of this patch to |
| - | - Staging trees can be hosted as part of the projects git infrastructure, private servers, GitHub | + | evaluate its appropriateness and readiness for inclusion |
| + | OpenWrt. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (b) Any problems, concerns, or questions relating to the patch | ||
| + | have been communicated back to the submitter. I am satisfied | ||
| + | with the submitter' | ||
| + | |||
| + | (c) While there may be things that could be improved with this | ||
| + | submission, I believe that it is, at this time, (1) a | ||
| + | | ||
| + | issues which would argue against its inclusion. | ||
| + | |||
| + | (d) While I have reviewed the patch and believe it to be sound, I | ||
| + | do not (unless explicitly stated elsewhere) make any | ||
| + | warranties or guarantees that it will achieve its stated | ||
| + | purpose or function properly in any given situation. | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | A Reviewed-by tag is a statement of opinion that the patch is an appropriate modification of OpenWrt without any remaining serious technical issues. Any interested reviewer (who has done the work) can offer a Reviewed-by tag for a patch. This tag serves to give credit to reviewers and to inform maintainers of the degree of review which has been done on the patch. Reviewed-by: | ||
| + | |||
| + | ==== 13. The canonical patch format ===== | ||
| + | The canonical patch subject line is: | ||
| + | |||
| + | <code bash> | ||
| + | Subject: [PATCH 001/123] [section] summary phrase | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | The canonical patch message body contains the following: | ||
| + | * A " | ||
| + | * An empty line. | ||
| + | * The body of the explanation, | ||
| + | * The " | ||
| + | * A marker line containing simply '' | ||
| + | * Any additional comments not suitable for the changelog. | ||
| + | * The actual patch (diff output). | ||
| + | |||
| + | The Subject line format makes it very easy to sort the emails alphabetically by subject line - pretty much any email reader will support that - since because the sequence number is zero-padded, | ||
| + | |||
| + | The " | ||
| + | * [a specific target name] | ||
| + | * [a specific package name] | ||
| + | |||
| + | The " | ||
| + | |||
| + | Bear in mind that the " | ||
| + | |||
| + | For these reasons, the " | ||
| + | |||
| + | The " | ||
| + | |||
| + | Some example Subjects: | ||
| + | |||
| + | <code bash> | ||
| + | Subject: [PATCH] e2fsprogs: Bump to 1.41.3 | ||
| + | |||
| + | Subject: [PATCH] x86 generic: switch to 3.3 | ||
| + | |||
| + | Subject: [PATCH v2 001/207] ar71xx: enable sysupgrade on the WRT160Nl | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | The "from" line must be the very first line in the message body, and has the form: | ||
| + | |||
| + | <code bash> | ||
| + | From: Original Author < | ||
| + | </ | ||
| + | |||
| + | The " | ||
| + | |||
| + | The explanation body will be committed to the permanent source changelog, so should make sense to a competent reader who has long since forgotten the immediate details of the discussion that might have led to this patch. Including symptoms of the failure which the patch addresses (kernel log messages, oops messages, etc.) is especially useful | ||
| + | |||
| + | The '' | ||
| + | |||
| + | One good use for the additional comments after the '' | ||
| + | |||
| + | See more details on the proper patch format in the following References. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===== Monitoring patches ===== | ||
| + | Patches sent to the Development mailing list can be followed on Patchwork at [[https:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===== References ====== | ||
| + | * Andrew Morton, "The perfect patch" (tpp). | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * Jeff Garzik, "Linux kernel patch submission format" | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * Greg Kroah-Hartman, | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * NO!!!! No more huge patch bombs to linux-kernel@… people! | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * Linus Torvalds' | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | * Andi Kleen, "On submitting kernel patches" | ||
| + | * Some strategies to get difficult or controversial changes in. | ||
| + | * http:// | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===== Additional information ===== | ||
| + | * Be aware of line length limit (80). | ||
| + | * Use '' | ||
| - | ===== Patch Checklist ===== | ||
| - | - Single commit ( multiple commits must first be squashed, as described above ) | ||
| - | - Subject < 50 characters | ||
| - | - Blank line after subject | ||
| - | - Each line of description < 75 characters | ||
| - | - Description explains **what** was changed | ||
| - | - Description explains **why** it was changed | ||
| - | - Description makes sense | ||
| - | - Signoff line includes real name | ||
| - | - Signoff line includes real email address | ||