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Introduction

This governance policy sets forth the proposal process for projects to be accepted into the Foundation. The process is the same for both existing projects which seek to move into the Foundation, and new projects to be formed within the Foundation.

Project Proposal Requirements

Projects must be proposed on this Wiki. Please leverage the Project Proposal Template available here, adding new proposals below this tab. A full set of instructions on how to add new Proposals have been posted here.

Note: New page creation on the LF Edge Wiki will require a LF ID. If you do not have one already, you may create one at https://identity.linuxfoundation.org/.

Project proposals submitted to the Foundation must provide the following information to the best of their ability:

  • name of project
  • project description (what it does, why it is valuable, origin and history)
  • statement on alignment with Foundation charter mission and LF Edge taxonomy
  • high level assessment of project synergy with existing projects under LF Edge
  • link to current Code of Conduct
  • sponsor from TAC, if identified (a sponsor helps mentor projects)
  • project license
  • source control (GitHub by default)
  • issue tracker (GitHub by default)
  • external dependencies (including licenses)
  • release methodology and mechanics
  • names of initial committers, if different from those submitting proposal
  • briefly describe the project's leadership team and decision-making processpreferred maturity level (see stages below)
  • list of project's official communication channels (slack, irc, mailing lists)
  • link to project's website
  • links to social media accounts
  • existing financial sponsorship
  • infrastructure needs or requests
  • project logo in svg format (see https://github.com/lf-edge/lfedge-landscape#logos for guidelines)
  • trademark status

  • get onboarded into LFX security within 90 days of joining


Project Proposal Acceptance Process

  • New Project Proposals will be considered under Stage 1. Projects can apply for a different stage, after initial acceptance into LF Edge, through the Project Proposal Process and/or during the Annual Review Process.
  • Projects are required to present their proposal at a TAC meeting with a minimum 2 weeks notice ahead of TAC presentation meeting. Projects to work with their TAC sponsor to ensure they are aware of and correctly understanding each of the criteria points and properly addressing them in their upcoming TAC presentation.
  • For Stage 1 projects,
    • The TAC may ask for changes to bring the project into better alignment with the Foundation (adding a governance document to a repository or adopting a more stringent Code of Conduct, for example). 
    • The project will need to make these changes in order to progress further
    .Projects get accepted via a 2/3 supermajority vote of the TAC and a majority vote of the Governing Board
    • .
    • The proposal document will be finalized as a project charter. This charter document must be included in the project's main repository.
  • The TAC will determine the appropriate initial stage for the project. The project can apply for a different stage via the review process.

III. Stages - Definitions & Expectations

Every Foundation project has an associated maturity level. Proposed Foundation projects should state their preferred maturity level. Projects of all maturities have access to Foundation resources.

All Foundation projects may attend TAC meetings and contribute work regardless of their stage.

  • For all Project Proposals, a TAC Subgroup of at least 4 community members (including your 2 TAC sponsors) will be created to review the admission of the new Project Proposal and then when ready, or a Project’s Proposal to move to a different Stage.
    • Subgroup participants can include any LF Edge community members and is formed within a week after the presentation to the TAC
    • Call for volunteers is sent via the LF Edge TAC mailing list and can be forwarded to any LF Edge community member
    • Subgroup recommendations will be presented back to the TAC within 4 weeks from the presentation from the TAC, prior to TAC vote on recommendation for the Governing Board or Governing Board's Strategic Planning Committee approval. 
    • If the subgroup determines a criteria point has not been met, but the project team feels they can immediately resolve the point, the resolution can be implemented and the subgroup will reevaluate immediately. 
    • A Project's Proposal get accepted via a two-thirds supermajority vote of the TAC and
      • for Stage 1, a majority vote of the Governing Board's Strategic Planning Committee
      • for Stage 2-3, a majority vote of the Governing Board
  • Upon LF Edge TAC Project Proposal acceptance, a series of asset transfers will be set in motion. Standard transfer list includes:
    • Trademark (Unless we are coming up with a new name for the Project or the Project is newly created, all Project names need to be transferred to LF Projects, LLC to be held for the benefit of the community (done using a Project Contribution Agreement). This is required even if no trademark registrations have been secured in the Project's name.)
    • Website Domain (if Project has an existing site)
    • Social Media Handles (if any)GitHub (LF enforces 2FA on all of our organizations. Please also inform all developers to enable 2FA on their Github accounts, if they haven't already.)
    • Full list of items can be found in the Technical Project Getting Started Checklist.
  • If a project proposal is not accepted, then they can reapply after 6 months. When a project re-applies they should highlight the shortcoming issues in their last submittal and the changes they made to address those issues. This info is in addition to the full application per the criteria list.
  • Additional steps post-acceptance can be found under the Project Getting Started Guide 

At Large Projects (formerly 'Sandbox')

Definition

At Large projects are projects which the TAC believes are, or have the potential to be, important to the ecosystem of Top-Level Projects or the Edge ecosystem as a whole. They may be early-stage projects just getting started, or they may be long-established projects with minimal resource needs. The At Large stage provides a beneficial, neutral home for these projects in order to foster collaborative development and provide a path to deeper alignment with other Foundation projects via the graduation process.

Examples

  1. New projects that are designed to extend one or more Foundation projects with functionality or interoperability libraries.
  2. Independent projects that fit the Foundation mission and provide potential for a novel approach to existing functional areas (or are an attempt to meet an unfulfilled need).
  3. Projects commissioned or sanctioned by the Foundation.
  4. Any project that realistically intends to join the Foundation Growth or Impact  Level Stages in the future and wishes to lay the foundations for that transition.

Expectations

End users should evaluate At Large projects with care, as this stage does not set requirements for community size, governance, or production readiness. At Large projects will receive minimal marketing support from the Foundation. Projects will be reviewed on an annual basis; they may also request a status review by submitting a report to the TAC.

Acceptance Criteria

To be considered for the At Large Stage, the project must meet the following requirements:

  • 2 TAC sponsors to champion the project & provide mentorship as needed
  • A presentation at an upcoming  meeting of the TAC
  • Adherence to the Foundation IP Policy
  • Upon acceptance, At Large projects must list their status prominently on website/readme