Contributing to SynoCommunity¶

SynoCommunity is a community-driven project that provides open-source packages for Synology NAS devices. We welcome contributions of all kinds!

Ways to Contribute¶

Package Development¶

New Packages - Add support for applications not yet available
Package Updates - Keep existing packages current with upstream releases
Bug Fixes - Fix installation, runtime, or compatibility issues
Architecture Support - Extend packages to work on more devices

Documentation¶

Improve Guides - Clarify instructions, add examples
Package Documentation - Write or update package-specific docs
Translations - Help translate wizard dialogs and descriptions

Community Support¶

Issue Triage - Help categorize and reproduce bug reports
User Support - Answer questions in issues
Testing - Test packages on different hardware and DSM versions

Getting Started¶

1. Set Up Your Environment¶

Follow the development environment setup to prepare your build system.

2. Understand the Framework¶

Read through the developer basics to understand:

Package structure and anatomy
Build workflow and targets
How cross-compilation works

3. Find Something to Work On¶

Good first issues:

Look for issues labeled good first issue
Simple version updates
Documentation improvements

More advanced:

New package requests
Architecture-specific fixes
Framework improvements

4. Follow the Development Process¶

See Development Process for the full workflow from fork to merge.

Contribution Guidelines¶

Code Quality¶

Follow existing code style and patterns
Keep changes focused - one package or fix per PR
Test on real hardware when possible
Update changelog and version numbers appropriately

Commit Messages¶

Use the DISPLAY_NAME from the package's spk/*/Makefile as the commit prefix. See Development Process for format details and examples.

Pull Request Guidelines¶

Title: {DISPLAY_NAME}: brief description
Description: Explain what and why, not just how
Testing: Describe how you tested the changes
Screenshots: Include for UI changes or wizard updates

See Pull Request Guidelines for detailed requirements and the PR template.

Communication¶

GitHub Issues¶

Bug reports and feature requests
Package-specific problems
Build failures

Discord¶

Real-time chat with maintainers and contributors
Quick questions and debugging help
Use the #package-dev channel for development discussions

Join the SynoCommunity Discord

Recognition¶

Contributors are recognized in:

Package maintainer credits
Repository contributor list
Release notes for significant contributions

Code of Conduct¶

All contributors are expected to follow the Contributor Covenant Code of Conduct. We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment.