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<article>
  <artheader>
    <title>Committer Guide</title>

    <authorgroup>
      <author>
	<surname>The FreeBSD Documentation Project</surname>
      </author>
    </authorgroup>

    <pubdate>September 1999</pubdate>

    <copyright>
      <year>1999</year>
      <holder>The FreeBSD Documentation Project</holder>
    </copyright>

    <abstract>
      <para>Welcome, committer, to the FreeBSD development
	team!</para>

      <para>The following docs are provided to orient you on doing CVS
	operations on the FreeBSD central repository machine.  A basic
	familiarity with CVS is already assumed, although CVS
	reference information, tutorials, and FAQs can also be found
	at: <ulink url="http://www.cyclic.com/cyclic-pages/books.html">http://www.cyclic.com/cyclic-pages/books.html</ulink></para>

      <para>Good luck, and welcome aboard!</para>
    </abstract>
  </artheader>

  <sect1 id="admin">
    <title>Administrative Details</title>

    <informaltable frame="none" orient="port">
      <tgroup cols="2">
	<tbody>
	  <row>
	    <entry><emphasis>Main Repository Host</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry><hostid>freefall.FreeBSD.org</hostid></entry>
	  </row>
	  
	  <row>
	    <entry>
	      <emphasis>International Crypto Repository Host</emphasis>
	    </entry>
	    <entry><hostid>internat.FreeBSD.org</hostid></entry>
	  </row>

	  <row>
	    <entry><emphasis>Login Methods</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry>&man.ssh.1;</entry>
	  </row>
	  
	  <row>	  
	    <entry><emphasis>Main CVSROOT</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry>/home/ncvs</entry>
	  </row>
	  
	  <row>
	    <entry><emphasis>International Crypto CVSROOT</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry>/home/cvs.crypt</entry>
	  </row>

	  <row>
	    <entry><emphasis>Main CVS Repository Meisters</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry>&a.jdp; and &a.peter; as well as &a.asami; for
	      <filename>ports/</filename></entry>
	  </row>
	  
	  <row>
	    <entry>
	      <emphasis>International Crypto CVS Repository Meister</emphasis>
	    </entry>
	    <entry>&a.markm;</entry>
	  </row>

	  <row>	  
	    <entry><emphasis>Mailing List</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry><email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email></entry>
	  </row>
	  
	  <row>	  
	    <entry><emphasis>Noteworthy CVS Tags</emphasis></entry>
	    <entry>RELENG_3 (3.x-STABLE), RELENG_4 (4.x-STABLE), HEAD (-CURRENT)</entry>
	  </row>
	</tbody>
      </tgroup>
    </informaltable>
    
    <para>It is required that you use &man.ssh.1; or &man.telnet.1;
      with Kerberos 5 to connect to the repository hosts.  These are
      generally more secure than plain &man.telnet.1; or
      &man.rlogin.1; since credential negotiation will always be
      encrypted.  All traffic is encrypted by default with &man.ssh.1;.
      With utilities like &man.ssh-agent.1; and &man.scp.1; also
      available, &man.ssh.1; is also far more convenient.  If you do
      not know anything about &man.ssh.1;, please see
      <xref linkend="ssh.guide">.</para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="cvs.operations">
    <title>CVS Operations</title>

    <para>CVS operations are usually done by logging into
      <hostid>freefall</hostid>, making sure the
      <envar>CVSROOT</envar> environment variable is set to
      <filename>/home/ncvs</filename>, and then doing the appropriate
      check-out/check-in operations.  If you wish to add
      something which is wholly new (like new ports, contrib-ified
      sources, etc), a script called <quote>easy-import</quote> is
      also provided for making the process easier.  It automatically
      adds the new module entry, does the appropriate thing with
      <command>cvs import</command>, etc. &ndash; just run it without
      arguments and it will prompt you for everything it needs to
      know.</para>

    <para>If you are familiar with remote CVS and consider yourself
      pretty studly with CVS in general, you can also do CVS
      operations directly from your own machine and local working
      sources. Just remember to set <envar>CVS_RSH</envar> to
      <wordasword>ssh</wordasword> so that you are using a relatively
      secure and reliable transport.  If you have no idea what any of
      the above even means, on the other hand, then please stick with
      logging into <hostid>freefall</hostid> and applying your diffs
      with &man.patch.1;.</para>

    <para>If you need to use CVS <command>add</command> and
      <command>delete</command> operations in a manner that is
      effectively a <quote>mv</quote> operation, then a repository
      copy is in order rather than your CVS <command>add</command> and
      <command>delete</command>.  In a repository copy, a <link
      linkend="conventions">CVS Meister</link> will copy the file(s)
      to their new name and/or location and let you know when it is
      done.  The purpose of a repository copy is to preserve file
      change history, or logs.  We in the FreeBSD Project greatly
      value the change history CVS gives to the project.</para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="conventions">
    <title>Conventions and Traditions</title>

    <para>The CVS Repository Meisters (Peter Wemm and John Polstra)
      are the <quote>owners</quote> of the CVS repository and
      responsible for any and <emphasis>all</emphasis> direct
      modification of it for the purposes of cleanup or fixing some
      grievous abuse of CVS by a committer.  No one else should
      attempt to touch the repository directly.  Should you cause some
      repository accident, say a bad cvs import or tag operation, do
      <emphasis role="bold">not</emphasis> attempt to fix it yourself!
      Mail or call John or Peter immediately and report the problem to
      one of them instead.  The only ones allowed to directly fiddle
      the repository bits are the repomeisters.  Satoshi Asami is also a
      repomeister for the <filename>ports/</filename> portion of the
      tree.  Mark Murray is the repomeister for the International
      Crypto Repository in South Africa.</para>

    <para>If you are a new committer, your very first commit should be
      to add yourself to the developer's section (28.2) of the
      Handbook and remove yourself from the Additional Contributors section
      (19.6).  Figuring out how to check the handbook out and add an
      entry for yourself is relatively easy but still remains a good
      first test of your CVS skills.  If you can handle that one,
      you are probably going to be ok.</para>

    <para>Your second commit should be to add an entry for yourself to
      <filename>www/en/news/newsflash.sgml</filename>.  Look for the other
      entries that look like <quote>A new committer</quote> and follow the
      format.</para>

    <para>Your next step should be to introduce yourself to the other
      committers, otherwise no one will have any idea who you are or
      what you are working on.  You do not have to write a comprehensive
      biography, just write a paragraph or two about who you are and
      what you plan to be working on as a committer in FreeBSD.  Email
      this to <email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email> and you will be on
      your way!</para>

    <para>Also, be sure to log into <hostid>hub.FreeBSD.org</hostid>
      and create a
      <filename>/var/forward/<replaceable>user</replaceable></filename>
      (where <replaceable>user</replaceable> is your username) file
      containing the e-mail address where you want mail addressed
      to <replaceable>yourusername</replaceable>@FreeBSD.org
      to be forwarded.  This includes all of the commit messages as
      well as any other mail addressed to
      <email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email>.  Really large
      mailboxes which have taken up permanent residence on
      <hostid>hub</hostid> often get <quote>accidently</quote>
      truncated without warning, so forward it or read it and you will
      not lose it.</para>

    <para>All new committers also have a mentor assigned to them for
      the first few months.  Your mentor is more or less responsible for
      explaining anything which is confusing to you and is also
      responsible for your actions during this initial period.  If you
      make a bogus commit, it is only going to embarrass your mentor
      and you should probably make it a policy to pass at least your
      first few commits by your mentor before committing it to the
      repository.</para>

    <para>All commits should go to <literal>-CURRENT</literal> first
      before being merged to <literal>-STABLE</literal>.  No major new
      features or high-risk modifications should be made to the
      <literal>-STABLE</literal> branch.</para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="developer.relations">
    <title>Developer Relations</title>

    <para>If you are working directly on your own code or on code
      which is already well established as your responsibility, then
      there is probably little need to check with other committers
      before jumping in with a commit.  If you see a bug in an area of
      the system which is clearly orphaned (and there are a few such
      areas, to our shame), the same applies.  If, however, you are
      about to modify something which is clearly being actively
      maintained by someone else (and it is only by watching the
      <literal>cvs-committers</literal> mailing list that you can
      really get a feel for just what is and is not) then consider
      sending the change to them instead, just as you would have
      before becoming a committer.  For ports, you should contact the
      listed <makevar>MAINTAINER</makevar> in the
      <filename>Makefile</filename>.  For other parts of the
      repository, if you are unsure who the active maintainer might
      be, it may help to scan the output of <command>cvs log</command>
      to see who has committed changes in the past.  &a.fenner; has
      written a nice shell script that can help determine who the
      active maintainer might be.  It lists each person who has
      committed to a given file along with the number of commits each
      person has made.  It can be found on <hostid>freefall</hostid>
      at <filename>~fenner/bin/whodid</filename>.  If your queries go
      unanswered or the committer otherwise indicates a lack of
      proprietary interest in the area affected, go ahead and commit
      it.</para>

    <para>If you are at all unsure about a commit for any reason in
      general, have it reviewed by <literal>-hackers</literal> first
      before committing.  Better to have it flamed then and there
      rather than when it is part of the CVS repository.  If you do
      happen to commit something which results in controversy
      erupting, you may also wish to consider backing the change out
      again until the matter is settled.  Remember &ndash; with CVS we
      can always change it back.</para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="gnats">
    <title>GNATS</title>

    <para>The FreeBSD Project utilizes
      <application>GNATS</application> for tracking bugs and change
      requests.  Be sure that if you commit a fix or suggestion found
      in a <application>GNATS</application> PR, you use
      <command>edit-pr <replaceable>pr-number</replaceable></command>
      on <hostid>freefall</hostid> to close it.  It is also considered
      nice if you take time to close any PRs associated with your
      commits, if appropriate.  Your can also make use of
      &man.send-pr.1; yourself for proposing any change which you feel
      should probably be made, pending a more extensive peer-review
      first.</para>

    <para>You can find out more about <application>GNATS</application>
      at:</para>

    <itemizedlist>
      <listitem>
	<para><ulink url="http://www.cs.utah.edu/csinfo/texinfo/gnats/gnats.html">http://www.cs.utah.edu/csinfo/texinfo/gnats/gnats.html</ulink></para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para><ulink url="http://www.FreeBSD.org/support.html">http://www.FreeBSD.org/support.html</ulink></para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para><ulink url="http://www.FreeBSD.org/send-pr.html">http://www.FreeBSD.org/send-pr.html</ulink></para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>&man.send-pr.1;</para>
      </listitem>
    </itemizedlist>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="people">
    <title>Who's Who</title>

    <para>Besides Peter Wemm and John Polstra, the repository
    meisters, there are other FreeBSD project members whom you will
    probably get to know in your role as a committer.  Briefly,
    and by no means all-inclusively, these are:</para>

    <variablelist>
      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.asami;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Satoshi is the Ports Wraith, meaning that he has
	    ultimate authority over any modifications to the ports
	    collection or the ports skeleton makefiles.  He is also
	    the one responsible for administering code freezes before
	    the releases.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.bde;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Bruce is the Obersturmbahnfuhrer of the Style Police.
	    When you do a commit that could have been done better,
	    Bruce will be there to tell you.  Be thankful that someone
	    is.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.dg;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>David is our principal architect and overseer of the
	    VM system.  If you have a VM system change in mind,
	    coordinate it with David.  Should you become locked in a
	    bitter, intractable dispute with some other committer over
	    a proposed change (which does not happen very often,
	    thankfully) then an appeal to David to put on his P.A. hat
	    and make a final decision might be necessary.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.jkh;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Jordan is the release engineer.  He is responsible for
	    setting release deadlines and controlling the release
	    process.  During code freezes, he also has final authority
	    on all changes to the system for whichever branch is
	    pending release status.  If there is something you want
	    merged from <literal>-CURRENT</literal> to
	    <literal>-STABLE</literal> (whatever values those may have
	    at any given time), he is also the one to talk to about
	    it.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.markm;</term>
	<listitem>
	  <para>Mark is the CVS repository meister for the
	    international crypto repository kept on
	    <hostid>internat.FreeBSD.org</hostid> in South Africa.</para>

          <para>Mark also oversees most of the crypto code; if you have
            any crypto updates, please ask Mark first.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.steve;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Steve is the unofficial maintainer of
	    <filename>src/bin</filename>.  If you have something
	    significant you'd like to do there, you should probably
	    coordinate it with Steve first.  He is also a Problem
	    Report-meister, along with &a.phk;.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.brian;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Official maintainer of
	    <filename>/usr/bin/ppp</filename> and LPD.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>

      <varlistentry>
	<term>&a.wollman;</term>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>If you need advice on obscure network internals or
	    aren't sure of some potential change to the networking
	    subsystem you have in mind, Garrett is someone to talk
	    to.</para>
	</listitem>
      </varlistentry>
    </variablelist>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="ssh.guide">
    <title>SSH Quick-Start Guide</title>

    <procedure>
      <step>
	<para>Update and install one of the SSH ports.  In general,
	  you will probably want to get OpenSSH from the port in
	  <filename>/usr/ports/security/openssh</filename>.  You
	  may also wish to check out the original ssh1 in
	  <filename>/usr/ports/security/ssh</filename>, but make
	  certain you pay attention to its license.  Note that both
	  of these ports cannot be installed at the same time.</para>
      </step>

      <step>
	<para>If you do not wish to to type your password in every
	  time you use &man.ssh.1;, and you use RSA keys to
	  authenticate, &man.ssh-agent.1; is there for your
	  convenience.  If you want to use &man.ssh-agent.1;, make
	  sure that you run it before running other applications.  X
	  users, for example, usually do this from their
	  <filename>.xsession</filename> or
	  <filename>.xinitrc</filename> file.  See &man.ssh-agent.1;
	  for details.</para>
      </step>
      
      <step>
	<para>Generate a key pair using &man.ssh-keygen.1;.  The key
	  pair will wind up in the
	  <filename><envar>$HOME</envar>/.ssh</filename>
	  directory.</para>
      </step>

      <step>
	<para>Send your public key
	  (<filename><envar>$HOME</envar>/.ssh/identity.pub</filename>)
	  to the person setting you up as a committer so it can be put
	  into your <filename>authorized_keys</filename> file in your
	  home directory on <hostid>freefall</hostid>
	  (i.e.
	  <filename><envar>$HOME</envar>/.ssh/authorized_keys</filename>).
	</para>
      </step>
    </procedure>
    
    <para>Now you should be able to use &man.ssh-add.1; for
      authentication once per session.  This will prompt you for
      your private key's pass phrase, and then store it in your
      authentication agent (&man.ssh-agent.1;).  If you no longer
      wish to have your key stored in the agent, issuing
      <command>ssh-add -d</command> will remove it.</para>
    
    <para>Test by doing something such as <command>ssh
	freefall.FreeBSD.org ls /usr</command>.</para>

    <para>For more information, see
      <filename>/usr/ports/security/openssh</filename>, &man.ssh.1;,
      &man.ssh-add.1;, &man.ssh-agent.1;, &man.ssh-keygen.1;, and
      &man.scp.1;.</para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1>
    <title>The FreeBSD Committers' Big List of Rules</title>

    <orderedlist>
      <listitem>
        <para>Respect other committers.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Discuss any significant change
	  <emphasis>before</emphasis> committing.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Respect existing maintainers if listed in the
	  (<makevar>MAINTAINER</makevar> field in
	  <filename>Makefile</filename> or in the
	  <filename>MAINTAINER</filename> file in the top-level
	  directory).</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Never touch the repository directly.  Ask a
	  Repomeister.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Any disputed change must be backed out pending
	  resolution of the dispute if requested by a maintainer or
	  the Principal Architect.  Security related changes may
	  override a maintainer's wishes at the Security Officer's
	  discretion.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Changes go to <literal>-CURRENT</literal> before
	  <literal>-STABLE</literal> unless specifically permitted by
	  the release engineer or unless they're not applicable to
	  <literal>-CURRENT</literal>.  Any non-trivial or non-urgent
	  change which is applicable should also be allowed to sit in
	  <literal>-CURRENT</literal> for at least 3 days before
	  merging so that it can be given sufficient testing.  The
	  release engineer has the same authority over the
	  <literal>-STABLE</literal> branch as outlined for the
	  Principal Architect in rule #5.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Don't fight in public with other committers; it looks
	  bad.  If you must <quote>strongly disagree</quote> about
	  something, do so only in private.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Respect all code freezes and read the
	  <literal>committers</literal> mailing list on a timely basis
	  so you know when a code freeze is in effect.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>When in doubt on any procedure, ask first!</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
	<para>Test your changes before committing them.</para>
      </listitem>
    </orderedlist>

    <para>As noted, breaking some of these rules can be grounds for
      suspension or, upon repeated offense, permanent removal of
      commit privileges.  Three or more members of core, or the
      Principal Architect and another member of core acting in unison,
      have the power to temporarily suspend commit privileges until
      <literal>-core</literal> as a whole has the chance to review the
      issue.  In case of an <quote>emergency</quote> (a committer
      doing damage to the repository), a temporary suspension may also
      be done by the repository meisters or any other member of core
      who may happen to be awake at the time.  Only core as a whole
      has the authority to suspend commit privileges for any
      significant length of time or to remove them permanently, the
      latter generally only being done after consultation with
      committers.  This rule does not exist to set core up as a bunch
      of cruel dictators who can dispose of committers as casually as
      empty soda cans, but to give the project a kind of safety fuse.
      If someone is seriously out of control, it's important to be
      able to deal with this immediately rather than be paralyzed by
      debate.  In all cases, a committer whose privileges are
      suspended or revoked is entitled to a <quote>hearing</quote>,
      the total duration of the suspension being determined at that
      time.  A committer whose privileges are suspended may also
      request a review of the decision after 30 days and every 30 days
      thereafter (unless the total suspension period is less than 30
      days).  A committer whose privileges have been revoked entirely
      may request a review after a period of 6 months have elapsed.
      This review policy is <emphasis>strictly informal</emphasis>
      and, in all cases, core reserves the right to either act on or
      disregard requests for review if they feel their original
      decision to be the right one.</para>
    
    <para>In all other aspects of project operation, core is a subset
      of committers and is bound by the <emphasis>same
      rules</emphasis>.  Just because someone is in core doesn't mean
      that they have special dispensation to step outside of any of
      the lines painted here; core's <quote>special powers</quote>
      only kick in when it acts as a group, not on an individual
      basis.  As individuals, we are all committers first and core
      second.</para>
    
    <sect2>
      <title>Details</title>

      <orderedlist>
	<listitem>
	  <para>Respect other committers.</para>

	  <para>This means that you need to treat other committers as
	    the peer-group developers that they are.  Despite our
	    occasional attempts to prove the contrary, one doesn't get
	    into committers by being stupid and nothing rankles more
	    than being treated that way by one of your peers.  Whether
	    we always feel respect for one another or not (and
	    everyone has off days), we still have to
	    <emphasis>treat</emphasis> other committers with respect
	    at all times or the whole team structure rapidly breaks
	    down.</para>
	  
	  <para>Being able to work together long term is this project's
	    greatest asset, one far more important than any set of
	    changes to the code, and turning arguments about code into
	    issues that affect our long-term ability to work
	    harmoniously together is just not worth the trade-off by
	    any conceivable stretch of the imagination.</para>
	  
	  <para>To comply with this rule, don't send email when you're
	    angry or otherwise behave in a manner which is likely to
	    strike others as needlessly confrontational.  First calm
	    down, then think about how to communicate in the most
	    effective fashion for convincing the other person(s) that
	    your side of the argument is correct, don't just blow off
	    some steam so you can feel better in the short term at the
	    cost of a long-term flame war.  Not only is this very bad
	    <quote>energy economics</quote>, but repeated displays of
	    public aggression which impair our ability to work well
	    together will be dealt with severely by the project
	    leadership and may result in suspension or termination of
	    your commit privileges.  That's never an option which the
	    project's leadership enjoys in the slightest, but unity
	    comes first.  No amount of code or good advice is worth
	    trading that away.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Discuss any significant change
	    <emphasis>before</emphasis> committing.</para>
	  
	  <para>The CVS repository is not where changes should be
	    initially submitted for correctness or argued over, that
	    should happen first in the mailing lists and then
	    committed only once something resembling consensus has
	    been reached.  This doesn't mean that you have to ask
	    permission before correcting every obvious syntax error or
	    man page misspelling, simply that you should try to
	    develop a feel for when a proposed change isn't quite such
	    a no-brainer and requires some feedback first.  People
	    really don't mind sweeping changes if the result is
	    something clearly better than what they had before, they
	    just don't like being <emphasis>surprised</emphasis> by
	    those changes.  The very best way of making sure that
	    you're on the right track is to have your code reviewed by
	    one or more other committers.</para>

	  <para>When in doubt, ask for review!</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Respect existing maintainers if listed.</para>

	  <para>Many parts of FreeBSD aren't <quote>owned</quote> in
	    the sense that any specific individual will jump up and
	    yell if you commit a change to <quote>their</quote> area,
	    but it still pays to check first.  One convention we use
	    is to put a maintainer line in the
	    <filename>Makefile</filename> for any package or subtree
	    which is being actively maintained by one or more people;
	    see <ulink
	    url="http://www.FreeBSD.org/handbook/policies.html">http://www.FreeBSD.org/handbook/policies.html</ulink>
	    for documentation on this.  Where sections of code have
	    several maintainers, commits to affected areas by one
	    maintainer need to be reviewed by at least one other
	    maintainer.  In cases where the
	    <quote>maintainer-ship</quote> of something isn't clear,
	    you can also look at the CVS logs for the file(s) in
	    question and see if someone has been working recently or
	    predominantly in that area.</para>

	  <para>Other areas of FreeBSD fall under the control of
	    someone who manages an overall category of FreeBSD
	    evolution, such as internationalization or networking.
	    See <ulink url="http://www.FreeBSD.org/handbook/staff-who.html">http://www.FreeBSD.org/handbook/staff-who.html</ulink>
	    for more information on this.</para>
	</listitem>
	
	<listitem>
	  <para>Never touch the repository directly.  Ask a
	    Repomeister.</para>

	  <para>This is pretty clear - you're not allowed to make
	    direct modifications to the CVS repository, period.  In
	    case of difficulty, ask one of the repository meisters by
	    sending mail to <email>cvs@FreeBSD.org</email> and simply
	    wait for them to fix the problem and get back to you. Do
	    not attempt to fix the problem yourself!</para>
	  
	  <para>If you're thinking about putting down a tag or doing a
	    new import of code on a vendor branch, you might also find
	    it useful to ask for advice first.  A lot of people get
	    this wrong the first few times and the consequences are
	    expensive in terms of files touched and angry CVSup/CTM
	    folks who are suddenly getting a lot of changes sent over
	    unnecessarily.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Any disputed change must be backed out pending
	    resolution of the dispute if requested by a maintainer or
	    the Principal Architect.  Security related changes may
	    override a maintainer's wishes at the Security Officer's
	    discretion.</para>
	  
	  <para>This may be hard to swallow in times of conflict (when
	    each side is convinced that they're in the right, of
	    course) but CVS makes it unnecessary to have an ongoing
	    dispute raging when it's far easier to simply reverse the
	    disputed change, get everyone calmed down again and then
	    try and figure out how best to proceed.  If the change
	    turns out to be the best thing after all, it can be easily
	    brought back. If it turns out not to be, then the users
	    didn't have to live with the bogus change in the tree
	    while everyone was busily debating its merits.  People
	    very very rarely call for back-outs in the repository
	    since discussion generally exposes bad or controversial
	    changes before the commit even happens, but on such rare
	    occasions the back-out should be done without argument so
	    that we can get immediately on to the topic of figuring
	    out whether it was bogus or not.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Changes go to <literal>-CURRENT</literal> before
	    <literal>-STABLE</literal> unless specifically permitted
	    by the release engineer or unless they're not applicable
	    to <literal>-CURRENT</literal>.  Any non-trivial or
	    non-urgent change which is applicable should also be
	    allowed to sit in <literal>-CURRENT</literal> for at least
	    3 days before merging so that it can be given sufficient
	    testing.  The release engineer has the same authority over
	    the <literal>-STABLE</literal> branch as outlined in rule
	    #5.</para>
	
	  <para>This is another <quote>don't argue about it</quote>
	    issue since it's the release engineer who is ultimately
	    responsible (and gets beaten up) if a change turns out to
	    be bad.  Please respect this and give the release engineer
	    your full cooperation when it comes to the
	    <literal>-STABLE</literal> branch.  The management of
	    <literal>-STABLE</literal> may frequently seem to be
	    overly conservative to the casual observer, but also bear
	    in mind the fact that conservatism is supposed to be the
	    hallmark of <literal>-STABLE</literal> and different rules
	    apply there than in <literal>-CURRENT</literal>.  There's
	    also really no point in having <literal>-CURRENT</literal>
	    be a testing ground if changes are merged over to
	    <literal>-STABLE</literal> immediately.  Changes need a
	    chance to be tested by the <literal>-CURRENT</literal>
	    developers, so allow some time to elapse before merging
	    unless the <literal>-STABLE</literal> fix is critical,
	    time sensitive or so obvious as to make further testing
	    unnecessary (spelling fixes to manpages, obvious bug/typo
	    fixes, etc.)  In other words, apply common sense.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Don't fight in public with other committers; it looks
	    bad.  If you must <quote>strongly disagree</quote> about
	    something, do so only in private.</para>
	  
	  <para>This project has a public image to uphold and that
	    image is very important to all of us, especially if we are
	    to continue to attract new members.  There will be
	    occasions when, despite everyone's very best attempts at
	    self-control, tempers are lost and angry words are
	    exchanged, and the best we can do is try and minimize the
	    effects of this until everyone has cooled back down.  That
	    means that you should not air your angry words in public
	    and you should not forward private correspondence to
	    public mailing lists or aliases.  What people say
	    one-to-one is often much less sugar-coated than what they
	    would say in public, and such communications therefore
	    have no place there - they only serve to inflame an
	    already bad situation. If the person sending you a
	    flame-o-gram at least had the grace to send it privately,
	    then have the grace to keep it private yourself.  If you
	    feel you are being unfairly treated by another developer,
	    and it is causing you anguish, bring the matter up with
	    core rather than taking it public.  We will do our best to
	    play peace makers and get things back to sanity.  In cases
	    where the dispute involves a change to the codebase and
	    the participants do not appear to be reaching an amicable
	    agreement, core may appoint a mutually-agreeable 3rd party
	    to resolve the dispute.  All parties involved must then
	    agree to be bound by the decision reached by this 3rd
	    party.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Respect all code freezes and read the
	    <literal>committers</literal> mailing list on a timely
	    basis so you know when they are.</para>
	  
	  <para>Committing changes during a code freeze is a really
	    big mistake and committers are expected to keep up-to-date
	    on what's going on before jumping in after a long absence
	    and committing 10 megabytes worth of accumulated stuff.
	    People who abuse this on a regular basis will have their
	    commit privileges suspended until they get back from the
	    FreeBSD Happy Reeducation Camp we run in Greenland.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>When in doubt on any procedure, ask first!</para>

	  <para>Many mistakes are made because someone is in a hurry
	    and just assumes they know the right way of doing
	    something.  If you have not done it before, chances are
	    good that you do not actually know the way we do things
	    and really need to ask first or you are going to
	    completely embarrass yourself in public.  There's no shame
	    in asking <quote>how in the heck do I do this?</quote> We
	    already know you are an intelligent person; otherwise, you
	    would not be a committer.</para>
	</listitem>

	<listitem>
	  <para>Test your changes before committing them.</para>
	  
	  <para>This may sound obvious, but if it really were so
	    obvious then we probably wouldn't see so many cases of
	    people clearly not doing this.  If your changes are to the
	    kernel, make sure you can still compile both GENERIC and
	    LINT.  If your changes are anywhere else, make sure you
	    can still make world.  If your changes are to a branch,
	    make sure your testing occurs with a machine which is
	    running that code.  If you have a change which also may
	    break another architecture, be sure and test on all
	    supported architectures.  Currently, this is only the x86
	    and the alpha so it's pretty easy to do.  If you need to
	    test on the AXP, your account on <hostid
	    role="fqdn">beast.FreeBSD.org</hostid> will let you
	    compile and test alpha binaries/kernels/etc.  As other
	    architectures are added to the FreeBSD supported platforms
	    list, the appropriate shared testing resources will be
	    made available.</para>
	</listitem>
      </orderedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2>
      <title>Other Suggestions</title>

      <para>When committing documentation changes, use a spell checker
	before committing. :) For all SGML docs, you should also
	verify that your formatting directives are correct by running
	<command>make lint</command>.</para>

      <para>For all on-line manual pages, run <command>manck</command>
	(from ports) over the man page to verify the all of the cross
	references and file references are correct and that the man
	page has all of the appropriate <makevar>MLINK</makevar>s
	installed.</para>

      <para>Do not mix style fixes with new functionality.  A style
	fix is any change which does not modify the functionality of
	the code.  Mixing the changes ofucsates the functionality
	change when using <command>cvs diff</command>, which can hide
	any new bugs.  Do not include whitespace changes with content
	changes in commits to <filename>doc/</filename> or
	<filename>www/</filename>.  The extra clutter in the diffs
	makes the translators' job much more difficult.  Instead, make
	any style or whitespace changes in seperate commits that are
	clearly labeled as such in the commit message.</para>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1>
    <title>Ports Specific FAQ</title>

    <qandaset>
      <qandadiv>
	<title>Importing a New Port</title>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>How do I import a new port?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>First, please read the section about repository
	      copy.</para>

	    <para>The easiest way to import a new port is to use the
	      <command>easy-import</command> script on
	      <hostid>freefall</hostid>.  It will ask you some
	      questions and import the port in the directory you
	      specify.  It will also add an entry to the
	      <filename>CVSROOT/modules</filename> file.  It was
	      written by &a.joerg; so please send mail to him if you
	      have questions about
	      <command>easy-import</command>.</para>

	    <para>One thing it will not do for you is add the port to
	      the parent (category) <filename>Makefile</filename>.
	      You have to do that yourself.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>Any other things I need to know when I import a new
	      port?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>Check the port, preferably to make sure it compiles
	      and packages correctly.  This is the recommended
	      sequence:</para>

	    <screen>&prompt.user; <userinput>make install</userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>make package</userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>make deinstall</userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>pkg_add <replaceable>package you built above</replaceable></userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>make deinstall</userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>make reinstall</userinput>
&prompt.user; <userinput>make package</userinput>
	    </screen>

	    <para>The Handbook's
	      <ulink url="../handbook/porting.html">porting
	      section</ulink> contains more detailed
	      instructions.</para>

	    <para>Use &man.portlint.1; to check the syntax of the port.
	      You don't necessarily have to eliminate all warnings but
	      make sure you have fixed the simple ones.</para>

	    <para>If the port came from a submitter who has not
	      contributed to the project before, add that person's
	      name to the Handbook's <citetitle
	      pubwork="section">Additional Contributors</citetitle>
	      section.</para>

	    <para>Close the PR if the port came in as a PR.  To close
	      a PR, just do 
	      <userinput>edit-pr <replaceable>PR#</replaceable></userinput>
	      on <hostid>freefall</hostid> and change the
	      <varname>state</varname> from <constant>open</constant>
	      to <constant>closed</constant>.  You will be asked to
	      enter a log message and then you are done.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>
      </qandadiv>

      <qandadiv>
	<title>Repository Copies</title>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>When do we need a repository copy?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>When you want to import a port that is related to
	      any port that is already in the tree in a separate
	      directory, please send mail to the ports manager asking
	      about it.  Here <wordasword>related</wordasword> means
	      it is a different version or a slightly modified
	      version.  Examples are
	      <filename>print/ghostscript*</filename> (different
	      versions) and <filename>x11-wm/windowmaker*</filename>
	      (English-only and internationalized version).</para>

	    <para>Another example is when a port is moved from one
	      subdirectory to another, or when you want to change the
	      name of a directory because the author(s) renamed their
	      software even though it is a
	      descendant of a port already in a tree.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>When do we <emphasis>not</emphasis> need a
	      repository copy?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>When there is no history to preserve.  If a port is
	      imported into a wrong category and is moved immediately,
	      it suffices to simply <command>cvs remove</command> the
	      old one and <command>cvs import</command> the new
	      one.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>What do I need to do?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>Send mail to the ports manager, who will do a copy
	      from the old location/name to the new location/name.
	      You will then get a notice, at which point you are
	      expected to perform the following:</para>

	    <procedure>
	      <step>
		<para><command>cvs remove</command> the old port (if
		  necessary)</para>
	      </step>

	      <step>
		<para>Adjust the parent (category)
		  <filename>Makefile</filename></para>
	      </step>

	      <step>
		<para>Update <filename>CVSROOT/modules</filename></para>
	      </step>

	      <step>
		<para>If other ports depend on the updated port,
		  change their <filename>Makefile</filename>s'
		  dependency lines</para>
	      </step>

	      <step>
		<para>If the port changed categories, modify the
		  <makevar>CATEGORIES</makevar> line of the port's
		  <filename>Makefile</filename> accordingly</para>
	      </step>
	    </procedure>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>
      </qandadiv>

      <qandadiv>
	<title>Ports Freeze</title>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>What is a <quote>ports freeze</quote>?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>Before a release, it is necessary to restrict
	      commits to the ports tree for a short period of time
	      while the packages and the release itself are being
	      built.  This is to ensure consistency among the various
	      parts of the release, and is called the <quote>ports
	      freeze</quote>.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>How long is a ports freeze?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>Usually two to three days.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>What does it mean to me?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>During the ports freeze, you are not allowed to
	      commit anything to the tree without explicit approval
	      from the ports manager.  <quote>Explicit
	      approval</quote> here means either of the
	      following:</para>

	    <itemizedlist>
	      <listitem>
		<para>You asked the ports manager and got a reply
		  saying, <quote>Go ahead and commit
		  it.</quote></para>
	      </listitem>

	      <listitem>
		<para>The ports manager sent a mail to you or the
		  mailing lists during the ports freeze pointing out
		  that the port is broken and has to be fixed.</para>
	      </listitem>
	    </itemizedlist>

	    <para>Note that you do not have implicit permission to fix
	      a port during the freeze just because it is
	      broken.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>How do I know when the ports freeze starts?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>The ports manager will send out warning messages to
	      the <email>freebsd-ports@FreeBSD.org</email> and
	      <email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email> mailing lists
	      announcing the start of the impending release, usually
	      two or three weeks in advance.  The exact starting time
	      will not be determined until a few days before the
	      actual release.  This is because the ports freeze has to
	      be synchronized with the release, and it is usually not
	      known until then when exactly the release will be
	      rolled.</para>

	    <para>When the freeze starts, there will be another
	      announcement to the
	      <email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email> list, of
	      course.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>How do I know when the ports freeze ends?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>A few hours after the release, the ports manager
	      will send out a mail to the
	      <email>freebsd-ports@FreeBSD.org</email> and
	      <email>cvs-committers@FreeBSD.org</email> mailing lists
	      announcing the end of the ports freeze.  Note that the
	      release being cut does not automatically end the freeze.
	      We have to make sure there will not be any last minute
	      snafus that result in an immediate re-rolling of the
	      release.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>
      </qandadiv>

      <qandadiv>
	<title>Miscellaneous Questions</title>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>How do I know if my port is building correctly or
	      not?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>First, go check
	      <ulink url="http://bento.FreeBSD.org/~asami/errorlogs/">http://bento.FreeBSD.org/~asami/errorlogs/</ulink>.

	      There you will find error logs from the latest package
	      building runs on 3-stable and 4-current.</para>

	    <para>However, just because the port doesn't show up there
	      doesn't mean it's building correctly.  (One of the
	      dependencies may have failed, for instance.)  Here are
	      the relevant directories on bento, so feel free to dig
	      around.</para>

	    <programlisting> /a/asami/portbuild/3/errors        error logs from latest 3-stable run
                     /logs          all logs from latest 3-stable run
                     /packages      packages from latest 3-stable run
                     /bak/errors    error logs from last complete 3-stable run
                     /bak/logs      all logs from last complete 3-stable run
                     /bak/packages  packages from last complete 3-stable run
                   /4/errors        error logs from latest 4-current run
                     /logs          all logs from latest 4-current run
                     /packages      packages from latest 4-current run
                     /bak/errors    error logs from last complete 4-current run
                     /bak/logs      all logs from last complete 4-current run
                     /bak/packages  packages from last complete 4-current run
	    </programlisting>

	    <para>Basically, if the port shows up in
	      <filename>packages</filename>, or it is in
	      <filename>logs</filename> but not in
	      <filename>errors</filename>, it built fine.  (The
	      <filename>errors</filename> directories are what you get
	      from the web page.)</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>I added a new port.  Do I need to add it to the
	      <filename>INDEX</filename>?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>No.  The ports manager will regenerate the
	      <filename>INDEX</filename> and commit it every few
	      days.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>

	<qandaentry>
	  <question>
	    <para>Are there any other files I'm not allowed to
	      touch?</para>
	  </question>

	  <answer>
	    <para>Any file directly under <filename>ports/</filename>, or
	      any file under a subdirectory that starts with an
	      uppercase letter (<filename>Mk/</filename>,
	      <filename>Tools/</filename>, etc.).  In particular, the
	      ports manager is very protective of
	      <filename>ports/Mk/bsd.port*.mk</filename> so don't
	      commit changes to those files unless you want to face his
	      wra(i)th.</para>
	  </answer>
	</qandaentry>
      </qandadiv>
    </qandaset>
  </sect1>

  <sect1>
    <title>Miscellaneous questions</title>

    <qandaset>
      <qandaentry>
	<question>
	  <para>Why are trivial or cosmetic changes to files on a vendor
	    branch a bad idea?</para>
	</question>

	<answer>
	  <para>The RCS file format is quite braindead and certain
	    operations to achieve things for CVS are hideously
	    expensive for the repository.  Making changes to files on
	    a vendor branch, thereby pulling the file off that branch,
	    is one example of this.</para>

	  <para>Suppose you have a file which was first imported on a
	    vendor branch, and was then re-imported three times (still
	    on the vendor branch) as the vendor makes updates to the
	    file.</para>

	  <segmentedlist>
	    <seglistitem>
	      <seg>1.1.1.1</seg>
	      <seg>vendor import</seg>
	    </seglistitem>

	    <seglistitem>
	      <seg>1.1.1.2</seg>
	      <seg>vendor import, +1000, -500 lines</seg>
	    </seglistitem>

	    <seglistitem>
	      <seg>1.1.1.3</seg>
	      <seg>vendor import, +2000, -500 lines</seg>
	    </seglistitem>

	    <seglistitem>
	      <seg>1.1.1.4</seg>
	      <seg>vendor import, +1000, -1000 lines</seg>
	    </seglistitem>
	  </segmentedlist>

	  <para>Now suppose that one of the FreeBSD committers makes a
	    one line change to this file, causing it to go to version
	    1.2.  This causes it to leave the branch, resulting in
	    4,001 lines being added to the file's history, and 2,001
	    lines being deleted.</para>

	  <para>This is because the 1.2 delta is stored relative to
	    1.1.1.1, <emphasis>not</emphasis> 1.1.1.4, and so the
	    entire vendor history is duplicated in the 1.2 delta.
	    Now, repeat this for 2000 files in a large directory, it
	    adds up a lot.</para>

	  <para><emphasis>This</emphasis> is why we have such
	    <quote>hands off</quote> policies for
	    <filename>src/contrib</filename> and other things that
	    track the vendor releases.  This is why <quote>typo
	    fixes</quote> in man pages and spelling
	    <quote>corrections</quote> are so strongly discouraged for
	    vendor code.</para>
	</answer>
      </qandaentry>
    </qandaset>
  </sect1>
</article>