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Co-Authored-by: Doug Hellmann <doug@doughellmann.com> Change-Id: I04577bf5480cd696d0e39dc7d524e49975e4465b
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147 lines
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==================
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Guiding Principles
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==================
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OpenStack has a set of guiding principles that are used to inform and shape
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decisions. These principles are not aspirational. Rather, they form the
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bedrock upon which the OpenStack community and software are built.
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First and foremost, OpenStack follows :doc:`opens`. All four of
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them are essential, and most of the principles described in this document
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derive from them. In their personal interactions, our community members
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are also bound by the rules described in the
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`OpenStack Community Code of Conduct
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<https://www.openstack.org/legal/community-code-of-conduct/>`__.
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One OpenStack
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-------------
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OpenStack is one community with one common mission, producing one framework
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of collaborating components. Our organization into separate source code
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repositories and teams allows contributors to focus on their areas of
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interest and expertise, but does not make OpenStack a loose collection of
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disconnected projects.
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OpenStack Primarily Produces Software
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-------------------------------------
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While the software that OpenStack produces has well defined and documented
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APIs, the primary output of OpenStack is software, not API definitions.
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We expect people who say they run "OpenStack" to run the software produced by
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and in the community, rather than alternative implementations of the API.
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OpenStack is Built for our Users
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--------------------------------
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OpenStack is ultimately built to be deployed and used. We need to factor the
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needs of our existing and anticipated users (operators but also application
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developers) when making decisions.
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Contribution Is Our Currency
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----------------------------
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Change happens in OpenStack because anyone in the community can identify an
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issue and volunteer to do the necessary work. Contribution is the mechanism
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of change and how trust is built between community members. Though elected
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leadership exists, that leadership is not solely responsible for change.
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The entire OpenStack community is empowered to identify problems and, where
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possible, assemble the teams to resolve them.
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One Contributor, One Vote
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-------------------------
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The voice of the contributor community is essential, and forms the basis
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of our democracy. A person with a thousand patches in an OpenStack release
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should not have a voice a thousand times as strong (and writing patches is
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not the only way to contribute). Efforts to limit the electorate to those
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who make quantifiable contributions, no matter the form, are intended only
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to prevent gaming of the system, not as a value judgement on relative worth
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of the various different forms of community contributions.
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Representative Democracy
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------------------------
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While we strive to build community consensus around decisions, all decisions
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are finally made or delegated by people who have been democratically elected.
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OpenStack Leaders Exist to Serve Their Community
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------------------------------------------------
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OpenStack leaders hold their positions only in order to serve the people
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they lead. The TC only exists to serve the technical community. PTLs
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exist to serve the contributors to and users of their projects.
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Changes in Leadership are Good
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------------------------------
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It is important for the long-term health of OpenStack that its democratically
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elected leaders change over time to remain representative of the body of
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contributors. OpenStack does not have and does not want any sort of dictator,
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benevolent or otherwise. Leaders (and other community members) in OpenStack
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are encouraged to participate in mentoring activities (external or internal
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to the OpenStack community) to help cultivate the next generation of
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contributors and leaders. No one should consider their role as permanent.
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Leaders, specifically, should consider stepping down from their role when
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they can't fully focus on it anymore, and always ensure a good transition
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path with their successors.
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We value clear, friendly, and open communication
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------------------------------------------------
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OpenStack is a geographically distributed community, with members from different
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cultures whose first language may not be English. Both of those characteristics
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can make communication more difficult and lead to misunderstandings, but we
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encourage everyone to consciously work to overcome that challenge through careful
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and constructive writing and by looking for positive interpretations of unclear
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messages. Communicating clearly improves our ability to collaborate to solve
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technical challenges more effectively.
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OpenStack First, Project Team Second, Company Third
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---------------------------------------------------
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OpenStack leaders are expected to put the needs of OpenStack first in
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their decision making, before the needs of any individual project team.
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They are also expected to put the needs of their project team before the
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needs of the organization they work for, if any. They can of course
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represent the needs of their project team or their company, but in case
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of conflicts of interest, they should be ready to put those needs aside
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and make the best call for OpenStack as a whole.
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Empowering Businesses, on a Level Playing Field
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-----------------------------------------------
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From the beginning, OpenStack has striven to support businesses who build
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products on or with OpenStack, and help them be successful. However,
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OpenStack should not empower one business over another, or else our community
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would not truly be a place where everyone can collaborate. While the needs of
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the constituent businesses are essential, they must be balanced with each other
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lest OpenStack decisions unwittingly be made by unelected people behind
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closed doors.
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We all should Always Follow the OpenStack Way
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---------------------------------------------
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No one is outside of the rules. We derive considerable value from the
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empowerment that everyone in the community enjoys from equal application
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of our key values, principles, and common processes. If parts of OpenStack
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exist outside of the rules, everyone suffers. While it can be tempting to
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circumvent process for expedience, doing so is not scalable from a community
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perspective. It leads to the subversion of democracy and an abdication of our
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principles of Open Design and Open Community. Large code changes designed
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outside of community processes, and decisions made outside of OpenStack
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governance are generally rejected because they, by definition, did not
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include the community.
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Participation is Voluntary
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--------------------------
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The leadership of OpenStack should not need to find itself in a position
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of enforcing the rules because participation in the OpenStack community is
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a choice made by its participants in the first place. If you disagree with
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the principles or processes we follow, you may of course seek a different
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community that is better aligned with your ideals or opinions. However, if
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you are committed to the mission of OpenStack and our Four Open ideals, we
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encourage you to contribute to OpenStack and participate in improving the
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OpenStack processes and the documenting of our principles from within our
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community according to our rules of governance.
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