From Zero to Code: A Hands-On Guide to Making Your First OpenStack Code Contribution

If you have ever wondered what it takes to develop OpenStack, look no further. This workshop is designed for attendees with any level of OpenStack experience. In this workshop, we will provide attendees a walkthrough of making a code change into OpenStack. Attendees will understand how developers identify bugs/features to work on, create contributor accounts, develop the code change, test it against an OpenStack deployment and submit it for community code review. As seasoned core maintainers of OpenStack, we can share strategies we have learned to engage with the community and get these code changes merged. We hope this session will serve as a quickstart to in-person audiences who get to follow along hands-on.

Target Audience:

• Developers, engineers, and users with varying levels of experience with OpenStack
• Professionals interested in open-source contributions

Prerequisites:

• Basic Linux command-line knowledge
• Laptop with internet access

Workshop Overview:

This workshop is an accelerated introduction to contributing to OpenStack, designed for participants of all experience levels. By the end of the session, participants will have made a small code change to OpenStack, tested it using DevStack, and submitted it for review. This provides a fast-track path to becoming active contributors in the OpenStack community.

Objectives:

Participants will:

1. Set up a basic development environment for OpenStack.

2. Navigate the OpenStack codebase.

3. Make, test, and validate a simple code change using DevStack.

4. Submit the change for review using Gerrit.

Workshop Agenda:

1. Introduction to OpenStack and Contribution Basics

• Brief overview of OpenStack and its components
• The importance of open-source contributions

2. Setting Up the Development Environment

• Quick installation and configuration of Git and Gerrit
• Overview of DevStack for local development and testing

3. Navigating the OpenStack Codebase

•   Overview of the directory structure
•  Identifying a simple task for contribution

4. Making and Testing Your First Code Change

• Hands-on coding: making a small change (e.g., a bug fix)
• Running the change on DevStack to ensure it works as expected

5. Submitting Your Patch

• Introduction to Gerrit and the submission process
• Walkthrough of submitting the patch and handling initial feedback

6. Q&A and Next Steps

• Answering questions and providing resources for continued contribution
• Guidance on engaging with the OpenStack community

Why Attend?

• Gain hands-on experience with OpenStack development and testing using DevStack in a short time
• Make a real contribution to a major open-source project
• Receive support from experienced OpenStack contributors