1==================================
2Contributing to LLVM
3==================================
4
5
6Thank you for your interest in contributing to LLVM! There are multiple ways to
7contribute, and we appreciate all contributions. In case you
8have questions, you can either use the `Developer's List (llvm-dev)`_
9or the #llvm channel on `irc.oftc.net`_.
10
11If you want to contribute code, please familiarize yourself with the :doc:`DeveloperPolicy`.
12
13.. contents::
14  :local:
15
16
17Ways to Contribute
18==================
19
20Bug Reports
21-----------
22If you are working with LLVM and run into a bug, we definitely want to know
23about it. Please let us know and follow the instructions in
24:doc:`HowToSubmitABug`  to create a bug report.
25
26Bug Fixes
27---------
28If you are interested in contributing code to LLVM, bugs labeled with the
29`beginner keyword`_ in the `bug tracker`_ are a good way to get familiar with
30the code base. If you are interested in fixing a bug, please create an account
31for the bug tracker and assign it to yourself, to let people know you are working on
32it.
33
34Then try to reproduce and fix the bug with upstream LLVM. Start by building
35LLVM from source as described in :doc:`GettingStarted` and
36and use the built binaries to reproduce the failure described in the bug. Use
37a debug build (`-DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Debug`) or a build with assertions
38(`-DLLVM_ENABLE_ASSERTIONS=On`, enabled for Debug builds).
39
40Reporting a Security Issue
41--------------------------
42
43There is a separate process to submit security-related bugs, see :ref:`report-security-issue`.
44
45Bigger Pieces of Work
46---------------------
47In case you are interested in taking on a bigger piece of work, a list of
48interesting projects is maintained at the `LLVM's Open Projects page`_. In case
49you are interested in working on any of these projects, please send a mail to
50the `LLVM Developer's mailing list`_, so that we know the project is being
51worked on.
52
53How to Submit a Patch
54=====================
55Once you have a patch ready, it is time to submit it. The patch should:
56
57* include a small unit test
58* conform to the :doc:`CodingStandards`. You can use the `clang-format-diff.py`_ or `git-clang-format`_ tools to automatically format your patch properly.
59* not contain any unrelated changes
60* be an isolated change. Independent changes should be submitted as separate patches as this makes reviewing easier.
61
62.. _format patches:
63
64Before sending a patch for review, please also try to ensure it is
65formatted properly. We use ``clang-format`` for this, which has git integration
66through the ``git-clang-format`` script. On some systems, it may already be
67installed (or be installable via your package manager). If so, you can simply
68run it -- the following command will format only the code changed in the most
69recent commit:
70
71.. code-block:: console
72
73  % git clang-format HEAD~1
74
75Note that this modifies the files, but doesn't commit them -- you'll likely want
76to run
77
78.. code-block:: console
79
80  % git commit --amend -a
81
82in order to update the last commit with all pending changes.
83
84.. note::
85  If you don't already have ``clang-format`` or ``git clang-format`` installed
86  on your system, the ``clang-format`` binary will be built alongside clang, and
87  the git integration can be run from
88  ``clang/tools/clang-format/git-clang-format``.
89
90
91To get a patch accepted, it has to be reviewed by the LLVM community. This can
92be done using `LLVM's Phabricator`_ or the llvm-commits mailing list.
93Please  follow :ref:`Phabricator#requesting-a-review-via-the-web-interface <phabricator-request-review-web>`
94to request a review using Phabricator.
95
96To make sure the right people see your patch, please select suitable reviewers
97and add them to your patch when requesting a review. Suitable reviewers are the
98code owner (see CODE_OWNERS.txt) and other people doing work in the area your
99patch touches. If you are using Phabricator, add them to the `Reviewers` field
100when creating a review and if you are using `llvm-commits`, add them to the CC of
101your email.
102
103A reviewer may request changes or ask questions during the review. If you are
104uncertain on how to provide test cases, documentation, etc., feel free to ask
105for guidance during the review. Please address the feedback and re-post an
106updated version of your patch. This cycle continues until all requests and comments
107have been addressed and a reviewer accepts the patch with a `Looks good to me` or `LGTM`.
108Once that is done the change can be committed. If you do not have commit
109access, please let people know during the review and someone should commit it
110on your behalf.
111
112If you have received no comments on your patch for a week, you can request a
113review by 'ping'ing a patch by responding to the email thread containing the
114patch, or the Phabricator review with "Ping." The common courtesy 'ping' rate
115is once a week. Please remember that you are asking for valuable time from other
116professional developers.
117
118For more information on LLVM's code-review process, please see :doc:`CodeReview`.
119
120
121Helpful Information About LLVM
122==============================
123:doc:`LLVM's documentation <index>` provides a wealth of information about LLVM's internals as
124well as various user guides. The pages listed below should provide a good overview
125of LLVM's high-level design, as well as its internals:
126
127:doc:`GettingStarted`
128   Discusses how to get up and running quickly with the LLVM infrastructure.
129   Everything from unpacking and compilation of the distribution to execution
130   of some tools.
131
132:doc:`LangRef`
133  Defines the LLVM intermediate representation.
134
135:doc:`ProgrammersManual`
136  Introduction to the general layout of the LLVM sourcebase, important classes
137  and APIs, and some tips & tricks.
138
139`LLVM for Grad Students`__
140  This is an introduction to the LLVM infrastructure by Adrian Sampson. While it
141  has been written for grad students, it provides  a good, compact overview of
142  LLVM's architecture, LLVM's IR and how to write a new pass.
143
144  .. __: http://www.cs.cornell.edu/~asampson/blog/llvm.html
145
146`Intro to LLVM`__
147  Book chapter providing a compiler hacker's introduction to LLVM.
148
149  .. __: http://www.aosabook.org/en/llvm.html
150
151.. _Developer's List (llvm-dev): http://lists.llvm.org/mailman/listinfo/llvm-dev
152.. _irc.oftc.net: irc://irc.oftc.net/llvm
153.. _beginner keyword: https://bugs.llvm.org/buglist.cgi?bug_status=NEW&bug_status=REOPENED&keywords=beginner%2C%20&keywords_type=allwords&list_id=130748&query_format=advanced&resolution=---
154.. _bug tracker: https://bugs.llvm.org
155.. _clang-format-diff.py: https://reviews.llvm.org/source/clang/browse/cfe/trunk/tools/clang-format/clang-format-diff.py
156.. _git-clang-format: https://reviews.llvm.org/source/clang/browse/cfe/trunk/tools/clang-format/git-clang-format
157.. _LLVM's Phabricator: https://reviews.llvm.org/
158.. _LLVM's Open Projects page: https://llvm.org/OpenProjects.html#what
159.. _LLVM Developer's mailing list: http://lists.llvm.org/mailman/listinfo/llvm-dev
160