# Commit Checklist for Chromium Workflow
Here is a helpful checklist to go through before uploading change lists (CLs) on
Gerrit and during the code review process. Gerrit is the code review platform
for the Chromium project. This checklist is designed to be streamlined. See
[contributing to Chromium][contributing] for a more thorough reference. The
intended audience is software engineers who are unfamiliar with contributing to
the Chromium project. Feel free to skip steps that are not applicable to the
patchset you're currently uploading.
According to the Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande, checklists are a marvelous
tool for ensuring consistent quality in the work you produce. Checklists also
help you work more efficiently by ensuring you never skip a step or waste brain
power figuring out the next step to take.
[TOC]
## 1. Create a new branch or switch to the correct branch
You should create a new branch before starting any development work. It's
helpful to branch early and to branch often in Git. Use the command
`git new-branch <branch_name>`. This is equivalent to
`git checkout -b <branch_name> --track origin/main`.
You may also want to set another local branch as the upstream branch. You can do
that with `git checkout -b <branch_name> --track <upstream_branch>`. Do this if
you want to split your work across multiple CLs, but some CLs have dependencies
on others. Use `git new-branch --upstream_current <new_branch_name>` to create a
new branch while setting the current branch as the upstream.
Mark the associated crbug as "started" so that other people know that you have
started working on the bug. Taking this step can avoid duplicated work.
If you have already created a branch, don't forget to `git checkout
<branch_name>` to the correct branch before resuming development work. There's
few things more frustrating than to finish implementing your ideas or feedback,
and to spend hours debugging some mysterious bug, only to discover that the bug
was caused by working on the wrong branch this whole time.
## 2. If there's a local upstream branch, rebase the upstream changes
Suppose you have a downstream branch chained to an upstream branch. If you
commit changes to the upstream branch, and you want the changes to appear in
your downstream branch, you need to:
* `git checkout <branch_name>` to the downstream branch.
* Run `git rebase -i @{u}` to pull the upstream changes into the current
branch.
* Run `git rebase -i @{u}` again to rebase the downstream changes onto the
upstream branch.
Expect to fix numerous merge conflicts. Use `git rebase --continue` once you're
done.
## 3. Make your changes
Do your thing. There's no further advice here about how to write or fix code.
## 4. Make sure the code builds correctly
After making your changes, check that common targets build correctly:
* chrome (for Linux, ChromeOS, etc.)
* unit_tests
* browser_tests
You can find [instructions here][build-instructions] for building various
targets.
It's easy to inadvertently break one of the other builds you're not currently
working on without realizing it. Even though the Commit Queue should catch any
build errors, checking locally first can save you some time since the CQ Dry Run
can take a while to run, on the order of a few hours sometimes.
## 5. Test your changes
Test your changes manually by running the Chrome binary or deploying your
changes to a test device. If you're testing Chrome for ChromeOS, follow the
[Simple Chrome][simple-chrome] instructions to deploy your changes to a test
device. Make sure you hit every code path you changed.
Some testing tips:
* Use `LOG(ERROR) << "debug print statement"` for debugging. You can find
the logs in /var/logs/chrome/ on the ChromeOS device. You can add a
keyword to your print statement to help find your log statements
more quickly.
* Use GDB for setting breakpoints while debugging.
Think about testing any edge cases that could break your code. Some common edge
cases to consider:
* Guest mode
* Enterprise/EDU/Supervised users
* Accessibility
* Official Chrome-branded build (for Googlers)
## 6. Write unit or browser tests for any new code
Consider automating any manual testing you did in the previous step.
## 7. Ensure the code is formatted nicely
Run `git cl format --js`. The `--js` option also formats JavaScript changes.
## 8. Review your changes
Use `git diff` to review all of the changes you've made from the previous
commit. Use `git upstream-diff` to review all of the changes you've made
from the upstream branch. The output from `git upstream-diff` is what will
be uploaded to Gerrit.
## 9. Stage relevant files for commit
Run `git add <path_to_file>` for all of the files you've modified that you want
to include in the CL. Unlike other version-control systems such as svn, you have
to specifically `git add` the files you want to commit before calling
`git commit`.
## 10. Commit your changes
Run `git commit`. Be sure to write a useful commit message. Here are some
[tips for writing good commit messages][uploading-a-change-for-review]. A
shortcut for combining the previous step and this one is `git commit -a -m
<commit_message>`.
## 11. Squash your commits
If you have many commits on your current branch, and you want to avoid some
nasty commit-by-commit merge conflicts in the next step, consider collecting all
your changes into one commit. Run `git rebase -i @{u}`. The `@{u}` is a
short-hand pointer for the upstream branch, which is usually origin/main, but
can also be one of your local branches. After running the `git rebase` command,
you should see a list of commits, with each commit starting with the word
"pick". Make sure the first commit says "pick" and change the rest from "pick"
to "squash". This will squash each commit into the previous commit, which will
continue until each commit is squashed into the first commit.
An alternative way to squash your commits into a single commit is to do `git
commit --amend` in the previous step.
Alternatively you can also run `git squash-branch`.
## 12. Rebase your local repository
Rebasing is a neat way to sync changes from the remote repository and resolve
any merge conflict errors on your CL. Run `git rebase-update`. This command
updates all of your local branches with remote changes that have landed since
you started development work, which could've been a while ago. It also deletes
any branches that match the remote repository, such as after the CL associated
with that branch has been merged. In summary, `git rebase-update` cleans up your
local branches.
You may run into rebase conflicts. Fix them manually before proceeding with
`git rebase --continue`.
Note that rebasing has the potential to break your build, so you might want to
try re-building afterwards. You need to run `gclient sync -D` before trying to
build again after a rebase-update, to update third-party dependencies.
## 13. Upload the CL to Gerrit
Run `git cl upload`. Some useful options include:
* `--cq-dry-run` (or `-d`) will set the patchset to do a CQ Dry Run. It is a
good idea to run try jobs for each new patchset with significant changes.
* `-r <chromium_username>` will add reviewers.
* `-b <bug_number>` automatically populates the bug reference line of the
commit message. Use `-b None` if there is no relevant crbug.
* `-x <bug_number>` automatically populates the bug reference line of the
commit message and will automatically mark the bug as closed when the
CL is submitted and merged.
* `--edit-description` will let you update the commit message. Using square
brackets in the commit message title, like [hashtag], will add a hashtag to
your CL. This feature is useful for grouping related CLs together.
Check `git cl issue` to ensure that you are uploading to the correct Gerrit CL.
If you are uploading a new CL, then the issue number will be none. Uploading
will automatically create a new CL. Use `git cl issue <issue_number>` to target
an existing CL for uploading new patches.
To help guide your reviewers, it is also recommended to provide a title for each
patchset summarizing the changes and indicating whose comments the patchset
addresses. Running `git cl upload` will upload a new patchset and prompt you for
a brief patchset title. The title defaults to your most recent commit summary
(the `-T` option will use this without prompting). If you tend to squash all
your commits into one, try to enter a new summary each time you upload. You can
also modify the patchset title directly in Gerrit.
## 14. Check the CL again in Gerrit
Run `git cl web` to go to the Gerrit URL associated with the current branch.
Open the latest patchset and verify that all of the uploaded files are correct.
Click `Expand All` to check over all of the individual line-by-line changes
again. Basically do a self-review before asking your reviewers for a review.
## 15. Make sure all auto-regression tests pass
Click `CQ Dry Run`. Fix any errors because otherwise the CL won't pass the
commit queue (CQ) checks. Consider waiting for the CQ Dry Run to pass before
notifying your reviewers, in case the results require major changes in your CL.
Alternatively you can run `git cl try`.
## 16. Add reviewers to review your code
Click `Find Owners` or run `git cl owners` to find file owners to review your
code and instruct them about which parts you want them to focus on. Prefer
owners who are more specific to files you are modifying, as they usually
have the best domain knowledge (i.e. prefer `//chrome/foo/bar/OWNERS` over
`//chrome/OWNERS`). Next, add anyone else you think should review your code. The
blame functionality in Code Search is a good way to identify reviewers who may
be familiar with the parts of code your CL touches. For your CL to land, you
need an approval from an owner for each file you've changed, unless you are an
owner of some files, in which case you don't need separate owner approval for
those files.
You are expected to wait for all actively participating reviewers to CR+1 the
change before submitting (CQ+2), even if your CL already has all required owners
reviews. Other than preventing confusion and mistakes, this expectation exists
because:
1. Participating reviewers are
[helping you write sustainable code][sustainable-code], and letting them sign
off is respectful of their efforts.
1. The owners system is not perfect, and sometimes you will need an owner who
*can* approve the whole change, but will delegate approval of pieces to
other, more knowledgeable owners.
If this expectation needs to be broken, then the reason should be justified in a
comment, and appropriate extra care may be appropriate (e.g. getting a
post-submit review, monitoring for failing or flaky tests, reverting if any
problems occur, etc).
## 17. Start Your Review
Click on the `Start Review` button to begin the actual review process. Until
you press this button, nobody will look at your change. Once pressed, you'll
have the opportunity to include an additional message in the notification sent
to your reviewers.
## 18. Implement feedback from your reviewers
Then go through this commit checklist again. Reply to all comments from the
reviewers on Gerrit and mark all resolved issues as resolved. To see all
unresolved comments, click on the "Comments" tab in Gerrit. Other than freeform
interaction on the comments (using `Reply` or `Quote`), here are common
conventions:
* Clicking `Done` on the comment will comment "Done" and resolve this comment.
This usually is used in response to a requested change by the reviewer, and
tells the reviewer that you have made the change that they requested.
* Clicking `Ack` on the comment will comment "Ack" (short for "Acknowledged")
and resolve this comment. This usually is used in response to a non-actionable
comment by the reviewer, and tells the reviewer that you understand.
Finally, click `Reply` on the CL to ensure that your reviewers receive a
notification. Doing this signals that your CL is ready for review again, since
the assumption is that your CL is not ready for review until you hit reply.
To ensure a fast, productive, and respectful review, please follow the
guidelines in [Respectful Changes][respectful-changes].
If your change is simple and you feel confident that your reviewer will approve
your CL on the next iteration, you can set Auto-Submit +1. The CL will proceed
to the next step automatically after approval. This feature is useful if your
reviewer is in a different time zone and you want to land the CL sooner. Setting
this flag also puts the onus on your reviewer to land the CL.
## 19. Land your CL
To meet the minimum requirements to land your changes you must have:
* Obtained a Looks Good To Me (LGTM), which is reflected by a
Code-Review+1 in Gerrit
* from at least one owner for each file, excluding files you are an owner of
* from two committers, or one committer if you are also a committer
* Resolved all code review comments
As mentioned above, you are generally expected to wait for all of your reviewers
to approve your changes as well, even if you already have OWNERS approval. Don't
use `chrome/OWNERS` as a blanket stamp if your CL makes significant changes to
subsystems. Click `Submit to CQ` (Commit-Queue +2) to both try your change in
the commit queue (CQ) and automatically land it if successful.
Alternatively you can run `git cl set-commit`.
Just because your CL made it through the CQ doesn't mean you're in the clear
yet. There might be internal non-public try job failures, or bugs that went
unnoticed during the code review process. Consider monitoring the
[Chromium tree][chromium-tree] for about a day after your CL lands. If
the Sheriff or anyone else brings any failures to your attention, revert the CL
first and ask questions later. Gerrit can automatically generate revert CLs.
## 20. Cleanup
After your CL is landed, you can use `git rebase-update` or `git cl archive` to
clean up your local branches. These commands will automatically delete merged
branches. Please mark the associated crbug as "fixed".
[//]: # (the reference link section should be alphabetically sorted)
[build-instructions]: https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src.git/+/main/docs/#Checking-Out-and-Building
[chromium-tree]: https://ci.chromium.org/p/chromium/g/main/console
[contributing]: contributing.md
[respectful-changes]: cl_respect.md
[simple-chrome]: https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromiumos/docs/+/HEAD/simple_chrome_workflow.md
[sustainable-code]: cr_respect.md
[uploading-a-change-for-review]: contributing.md#Uploading-a-change-for-review
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