Contributing to ATR

March 4, 2026 ยท View on GitHub

Thank you for your interest in contributing to Apache Trusted Releases (ATR)! This guide will help you get started.

For detailed ASF policies, commit message guidelines, and security considerations, see the contribution policies guide.

Before you start

IMPORTANT: New contributors must introduce themselves on the development mailing list first, to deter spam. Please do not submit a PR until you have introduced yourself, otherwise it will likely be rejected.

Subscribe to the mailing list: Send an email with empty subject and body to dev-subscribe@tooling.apache.org and reply to the automated response.

Finding something to work on

Development setup

  1. Fork and clone the repository:

    git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/tooling-trusted-releases.git
cd tooling-trusted-releases
git remote add upstream https://github.com/apache/tooling-trusted-releases.git
git config pull.rebase true

    This configures origin to point to your fork and upstream to point to the Apache repository. Setting pull.rebase true keeps your commit history clean by rebasing rather than creating merge commits.

    Important: Never commit directly to your fork's main branch. Always create feature branches for your work. This keeps your main in sync with upstream and avoids conflicts.

    Before starting new work, sync your fork with upstream:

    git checkout main
git pull upstream main
git push origin main

    The git push origin main updates your fork on GitHub. Do this regularly to keep your fork current.

  2. Install dependencies (includes pre-commit, dev tools, and test dependencies):

    # Install uv if you don't have it
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

# Install all dependencies
uv sync --frozen --all-groups

  3. Set up pre-commit hooks:

    uv run pre-commit --frozen install

  4. Run the server: See DEVELOPMENT.md for detailed instructions.

Pull request workflow

  1. Create a branch with a descriptive name:

    git checkout -b fix-typo-in-docs

  2. Make your changes following our code conventions

  3. Run checks and tests before committing:

    make check              # Required: lints and type checks
sh tests/run-e2e.sh     # Required: end-to-end tests
sh tests/run-unit.sh    # Required: unit tests

    All checks and tests must pass locally before submitting. If pip-audit is reporting false positive CVEs, try running uv run --frozen pre-commit clean first.

  4. Commit with a clear message (see commit style below)

  5. Rebase on main before pushing:

    git fetch upstream
git rebase upstream/main

    If you have conflicts, resolve them in each file, then git add the resolved files and run git rebase --continue. If you get stuck, git rebase --abort returns to your previous state.

  6. Push your branch:

    git push origin your-branch-name

    If you've rebased a branch that was previously pushed, you'll need to force push:

    git push --force-with-lease origin your-branch-name

  7. Open a pull request to the main branch

    • Fill out the PR template completely, confirming all required acknowledgements
    • Reference any related issues (e.g., "Fixes #123")
    • Open as Draft until all checks pass and you have confirmed local testing
    • Enable "Allow maintainer edits" (strongly recommended)
    • Convert from Draft to ready for review only after all acknowledgements are confirmed

  8. Participate in review - we may request changes

PRs that fail to demonstrate proper local testing or do not complete the PR template may be closed.

Commit message style

Use clear, concise commit messages:

Format:

  • First line: imperative mood, sentence case, 50-72 characters
  • No period at the end
  • Use articles ("Fix a bug" not "Fix bug")

Good examples:

Add distribution platform validation to the compose phase
Fix a bug with sorting version numbers containing release candidates
Update dependencies

Poor examples:

fixed stuff
Updated the code.
refactoring vote resolution logic

For complex changes, add a body separated by a blank line explaining what and why (not how).

Code standards summary

  • Python: Follow PEP 8, use double quotes, no # noqa or # type: ignore
  • HTML: Use Bootstrap classes, avoid custom CSS
  • JavaScript: Minimize usage, follow best practices for dependencies
  • Shell: POSIX sh only, no bash-specific features

See the full code conventions for complete guidelines.

Running tests

# Full pre-commit checks (required before submitting PR)
make check

# End-to-end tests (required before submitting PR)
sh tests/run-e2e.sh

# Unit tests (required before submitting PR)
sh tests/run-unit.sh

# Browser tests (requires Docker)
sh tests/run-playwright.sh

# Quick pre-commit checks (for rapid iteration)
make check-light

Run uv run --frozen pre-commit clean if pip-audit reports false positive CVEs during checks.

Vulnerability exceptions

When temporarily ignoring a CVE in pip-audit:

  1. Add a TODO comment with expected resolution date.
  2. Document justification in the PR description.
  3. Create a tracking issue referencing the CVE.
  4. Review exceptions monthly.

ASF requirements

Contributor License Agreement

Before your first contribution, sign the Apache ICLA. This is a one-time requirement.

If your employer holds rights to your work, a CCLA may also be needed.

Licensing

All contributions are licensed under Apache License 2.0. Third-party dependencies must be compatible (Category A licenses).

Code of Conduct

Follow the ASF Code of Conduct.

Security considerations

ATR's primary goal is to prevent supply chain attacks. When contributing:

  • Follow secure coding practices
  • Validate all inputs and sanitize outputs
  • Use established libraries for cryptographic operations
  • Consider security implications of your changes
  • Report security issues via the ASF security process (not public issues)

Getting help

Alternative: email patches

If you prefer not to use GitHub, you can email patches using standard Git patch formatting.