Contributing to ARC-Core

April 22, 2026 · View on GitHub

Thank you for contributing. ARC-Core is the authority layer for the seven-repo ARC ecosystem. Contributions that preserve role boundaries land fast. Contributions that try to cross them (pushing execution, model doctrine, lexical truth, or archive-bundle logic into ARC-Core) rarely land at all.

Before you start

Read ECOSYSTEM.md to see which repo really owns the change you want to make.
Read docs/ARCHITECTURE.md and docs/STACK.md for ARC-Core's internal design.
Browse open issues and Discussions.

Setup

git clone https://github.com/GareBear99/ARC-Core.git
cd ARC-Core/ARC_Console

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt

pytest -q            # should say: 13 passed
python run_arc.py    # starts FastAPI on 127.0.0.1:8000

Role-boundary rules

ARC-Core owns authority, events, and receipts. Any PR that pushes other responsibilities into ARC-Core should instead go to the correct sibling:

Execution logic → arc-lucifer-cleanroom-runtime
Model doctrine / promotion gates → arc-cognition-core
Governed build loop / Gate v2 → ARC-Neuron-LLMBuilder
Lexical / multilingual truth → arc-language-module
Binary mirror / runtime ledger → omnibinary-runtime
Archive / rollback bundles → Arc-RAR

PR checklist

pytest -q passes in ARC_Console/.
Role boundaries preserved (see ECOSYSTEM.md).
If the receipt format changes: migration note added, siblings flagged.
New public event types or API endpoints have tests.
README / ECOSYSTEM / docs updated as needed.
CHANGELOG entry added.

Commit style

Imperative mood: "Add X", "Fix Y", "Harden Z".
Wrap body at ~72 columns.
When changing receipt formats or authority contracts, include evidence in the body: sample receipt, migration path, sibling impact.

License

By contributing, you agree your contributions are MIT-licensed. See LICENSE.