CONTRIBUTING.rst

Contribution Rules

Coding Guidelines

• We follow Google C++ Style Guide. When no rules can be found, follow the already occuring conventions. If there is no precedence in our codebase we are open to discussion.

• Prior to your contribution, please make sure that the code passes the linter check. We do both C++ and Python linting. To invoke the check, please use

  TE_PATH=<path to TE source> bash qa/L0_<framework>_lint/test.sh

• Avoid introducing unnecessary complexity into existing code so that maintainability and readability are preserved.

• Try to keep pull requests (PRs) as concise as possible:

  • Avoid committing commented-out code.
  • Wherever possible, each PR should address a single concern. If there are several otherwise-unrelated things that should be fixed to reach a desired endpoint, our recommendation is to open several PRs and indicate the dependencies in the description. The more complex the changes are in a single PR, the more time it will take to review those changes.

• Write PR and commit titles using imperative mood.

  • Format commit messages sticking to rules described in this guide.

• Make sure all L0_* tests pass:

  • In the qa/ directory, there are basic sanity tests scripted in directories named L0_.... A given test can be executed by running the ./test.sh command in each test directory. The test.sh script assumes that the TE source can be found under /opt/transformerengine. This assumption can be changed by setting TE_PATH environment variable to the directory containing TE source.
  • One of the tests, L0_license tests for valid NVIDIA copyright and license text. If you create a new file and do not want to pass copyright rights to NVIDIA, please add the file to the exclude_copyright list in qa/L0_license/config.json.

• Transformer Engine's default build assumes recent versions of TE's dependencies (CUDA toolkit etc.). Contributions that add compatibility with older versions of those dependencies will be considered, but NVIDIA cannot guarantee that all possible build configurations work, are not broken by future contributions, and retain highest performance.

• Make sure that you can contribute your work to open source (no license and/or patent conflict is introduced by your code). You need to Sign Your Work.

• Thanks in advance for your patience as we review your contributions; we do appreciate them!

Sign Your Work

• We require that all contributors "sign-off" on their commits. This certifies that the contribution is your original work, or you have rights to submit it under the same license, or a compatible license.

  • Any contribution which contains commits that are not Signed-Off will not be accepted.

• To sign off on a commit you simply use the --signoff (or -s) option when committing your changes:

  $ git commit -s -m "Add cool feature."

  This will append the following to your commit message:

  Signed-off-by: Your Name <your@email.com>
  

• Full text of the DCO:

  Developer Certificate of Origin
  Version 1.1
  
  Copyright (C) 2004, 2006 The Linux Foundation and its contributors.
  
  Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this
  license document, but changing it is not allowed.
  
  
  Developer's Certificate of Origin 1.1
  
  By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
  
  (a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
      have the right to submit it under the open source license
      indicated in the file; or
  
  (b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
      of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
      license and I have the right under that license to submit that
      work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
      by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
      permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
      in the file; or
  
  (c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
      person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
      it.
  
  (d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
      are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
      personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
      maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
      this project or the open source license(s) involved.