Contributing to F-Droid

For information about all aspects of F-Droid, check out the docs

Issue Tracker

You may use the issue tracker to report issues on app metadata and issues with the packages distributed through our repository.

Before opening an issue about an outdated app, have a look at its metadata file and make sure that updating the app is actually possible.

Merge Requests

Setting up fdroiddata for merge requests

Register on GitLab
Visit and fork the fdroiddata repository
Clone your fork
Follow the Quickstart

Note that to use the master branch of fdroiddata you will need the master branch of fdroidserver. Using the latest stable release of fdroidserver would probably work, but it is not guaranteed.

Adding a new app

If you want to add a new app you will have to add a new metadata file to the repository, like metadata/app.id.yml. Here is how to write that file.

If the app is on GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket, use fdroid import:

fdroid import --url https://github.com/foo/bar --subdir app

Alternatively, start the metadata file from scratch, see the templates:

cp templates/app-full metadata/app.id.yml

Or by download:

wget -O metadata/app.id.yml https://gitlab.com/fdroid/fdroiddata/raw/master/templates/app-full

Now that the file is created, you need to fill up all the app information and add a working build recipe.

You can use the metadata section in the manual for reference, or the full template at templates/app-full for some suggestions.

Once you're done, see if fdroid readmeta runs without any errors. If it doesn't, there are syntax errors in your metadata file.

Building it

We build apps from source, so a new app must have at least one working build.

You can have a look at the build templates at templates/build-* for some quick suggestions. You may also follow the manual or look at how other apps are built for working examples.

Run fdroid readmeta again to make sure there still aren't any syntax errors
Run fdroid rewritemeta app.id to clean up your file
Run fdroid checkupdates app.id to fill automated fields like Auto Name and Current Version
Make sure that fdroid lint app.id doesn't report any warnings. If it does, fix them.
Test your build recipe with fdroid build -v -l app.id

Congratulations! You can now open a merge request to add your app.

Our buildserver runs builds once a day, so it may take up to 24h for your app to appear in our repository.

General recommendations

Squash your commits
Make sure you've ran fdroid lint and fdroid rewritemeta before opening a merge request
If you haven't tested your build, say so in the merge request.
Check for CI errors once you have opened your Merge Request

After You Added Your App

Once your app metadata is merged, it can take a day or more for the build system to build the app.
If you have enabled auto-updates, F-Droid will build new versions from tags automatically.
```
AutoUpdateMode: Version v%v
UpdateCheckMode: Tags
```
You may like to add localization and screenshots, so users can have a glance at the app in pictures and in their preferred language.
You can advertise the download of your app in this app store using the official grafic.
```
<img src="https://fdroid.gitlab.io/artwork/badge/get-it-on.png" height="75">
```
You can add a badge of your apps F-Droid version from shields.io.
```
https://img.shields.io/f-droid/v/APP.ID.svg
```
You can also include a GitHub release badge to know if your version is up to date.
```
https://img.shields.io/github/release/USER/REPO.svg?logo=github
```

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