Contributing

Requirements

Coder requires Go 1.18+, Node 14+, and GNU Make.

Note: Use Nix for a one-command setup: nix-shell

Development workflow

Use the following make commands and scripts in development:

make dev runs the frontend and backend development server
make build compiles binaries and release packages
make install installs binaries to $GOPATH/bin
make test

Styling

Backend

Use Go style

Contributions must adhere to the guidelines outlined in Effective Go. We prefer linting rules over documenting styles (run ours with make lint); humans are error-prone!

Read Go's Code Review Comments Wiki for information on common comments made during reviews of Go code.

Avoid unused packages

Coder writes packages that are used during implementation. It isn't easy to validate whether an abstraction is valid until it's checked against an implementation. This results in a larger changeset, but it provides reviewers with a holistic perspective regarding the contribution.

Frontend

Follow component conventions

Each component gets its own folder. Make sure you add a test and Storybook stories for the component as well. By keeping these tidy, the codebase will remain easy-to-navigate, healthy and maintainable for all contributors.

Keep accessibility in mind

We strive to keep our UI accessible. When using colors, avoid adding new elements with low color contrast. Always use labels on inputs, not just placeholders. These are important for screen-readers.

Reviews

The following information has been borrowed from Go's review philosophy.

Coder values thorough reviews. For each review comment that you receive, please "close" it by implementing the suggestion or providing an explanation on why the suggestion isn't the best option. Be sure to do this for each comment; you can click Done to indicate that you've implemented the suggestion, or you can add a comment explaining why you aren't implementing the suggestion (or what you chose to implement instead).

It is perfectly normal for changes to go through several rounds of reviews, with one or more reviewers making new comments every time, then waiting for an updated change before reviewing again. All contributors, including those from maintainers, are subject to the same review cycle; this process is not meant to be applied selectively or to discourage anyone from contributing.

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