PC-BSD

Welcome to the PC-BSD Development gateway! In PC-BSD we have several areas where users can get more involved with the development cycle.

Testing and Bug Fixes

Most users can help us by testing pre-release snapshots of PC-BSD and reporting problems. Users who are interested in this will need to sign-up on the Testing Mailing List to receive notification of new ISOs & features for testing that are available for community testing. 

If you are looking for something a bit more challenging, or would like to work on specific bugs / issues, then please take a look at our Trac database. From here it is possible to help us with sorting through reported bugs and suggesting fixes / submitting patches for them.  

System Development

Are you looking to become a PC-BSD committer? Developers who want to help improve the PC-BSD codebase are always welcome! If you would like to take part in core development, and possibly earn a commit bit, a good place to get started is by signing up for the developers mailing list. Once you've signed up then feel free to browse our active TODO list, or search for bugs that need fixing in the Trac database . If you see something of interest you want to work on, or have a proposal for a project you with to get added, then feel free to let us know via the developers list and we'll be happy to help get you started. 

Most of the PC-BSD specific GUI tools are developed in C++ using the QT Libraries, and other non-GUI development is done using standard shell (/bin/sh) scripts. There may be cases where other languages / libraries are needed, but those will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, so feel free to let us know your proposals on the developers mailing list. 

 Developers Links

• Developers Mailing List
• Commits Mailing List
• Development Wiki
• PC-BSD source
• Active TODO List
• The PC-BSD Team

PBI Porting

One of the main features of PC-BSD is its unique PBI package management system. As such, the project can always use the help of talented individuals to assist in creating new PBIs for PC-BSD users to install and enjoy. There are currently two methods of PBI Creation:

Converting a FreeBSD Port into a PBI file (Recommended Method)

Most open source applications have already been ported for FreeBSD. PC-BSD offers the easy to use PBI Builder software which allows building FreeBSD ports in a "clean" environment, and converting the finished port into a PBI file. This is the preferred method of creating a PBI as it allows us to add the module to our subversion server, and to rebuild the PBI automatically each time the respective FreeBSD port is updated. Developers are encouraged to contact us via the PBI Developer mailing list to submit new modules or fixes to existing modules. 

• Download the PBI Builder software
  
• Information on Using the PBI Module Builder Software
  
• Information about the PBI Build Server
• Discuss or submit code on the PBI Developer Mailing List
• View existing PBI Builder modules 

Building a PBI from a binary application NOT in the ports tree

Occasionally a PBI is needed for an application that has not yet been ported to FreeBSD. The PBI Creator software can be used to port the software directly to PC-BSD. In additon to the resources already mentioned, the following resources are available:

• Download the PBI Creator GUI Application
  
• Read the PBI developer handbook
• Read the PBI tutorial FAQ's
  
• Read the PBI developer FAQ's

Good luck and thanks for your support!

The Development team.