[S4-35] define development workflow for git

• Type: Task
• Status: Open
• Priority: Major
• Resolution: Unresolved
• Affects Version/s: generic
• Fix Version/s: generic
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: Matthieu Morel
• Created: 20/Dec/11 18:24
• Updated: 23/Aug/12 10:07

Description

We just got accepted to the ASF git program!

We'll get a git repository hosted at Apache soon, therefore we should define a development process that is compatible with the Apache way and takes advantage of git.

Here is a proposal, please feel free to amend/improve/reject it.

It is inspired by the linux kernel approach, where the "benevolent dictator" is actually the S4 community, (though only committers have with write access to the blessed repository), and where contributors submit patches from their feature branches, created after rebasing on top of the latest changes from the blessed repository.

Infrastructure:

• Apache S4 git repository is the "blessed" repository.

• Only S4 committers have write access.

• Apache S4 git repository can be cloned by anyone, therefore anyone can contribute

Repository structure:

we could adapt a suggestion from there http://nvie.com/posts/a-successful-git-branching-model/

• master branch holds the released code and a tag is associated to each release

• dev branch holds the code that has been accepted for inclusion and that will be part of the next release

Workflow:

1. Whenever you make some changes to the codebase, it's good to have a related issue filed in the issue tracker of the project and to use a similarly named branch in your Git repository. For example, to create a branch for an issue with the key S4-42 (see http://www.apache.org/dev/git.html#workflow)
2. you can share your code during the development of the feature by pushing it to their public repository (not sure where that will be though). For instance, one may take the github mirror of the Apache S4 repo, create an S4-42 branch, and share it.
3. once the feature looks ready, you rebase on top of the changes from dev , generate a patch and upload it to the corresponding Jira issue. (git format-patch)
4. people review the patch and vote on it (see decision making http://www.apache.org/foundation/how-it-works.html)
5. when the patch is accepted, a committer commits the patch to the Apache S4 git repository (to the "dev" branch) (git am)
6. if you work on a different feature, you simply fetch and merge the updates to "dev".

Issue Links

• relates to: S4-46 git checkout fails