About Gitea
Gitea is a Git server with a web interface for repositories, issues and pull requests. A single Go binary or a container is enough for a small team. Actions can run CI. SQLite fits a few people. PostgreSQL or MariaDB fits a larger team.
Why it exists
Teams wanted repository hosting on their own network without operating a large platform.
Who uses it
Engineering teams that keep source code on a server they administer.
What it is used for
Git hosting, code review and a simple issue tracker. It is not a full project-management suite.
Open source behind the product
The MIT-licensed server is the product you run. Forgejo is a separate fork with its own governance. Treat it as a different project. Hosted Git services in the market solve the same job. They are not this binary.
How to run it on a server
- Run the official container or the binary. Persist the data directory. It holds the repositories.
- Use PostgreSQL when more than a small group will push code. Back up that database with the data directory.
- Serve it on HTTPS and set the root URL, or clone URLs will be wrong.
- Take a backup with the project's dump command before you upgrade.
Follow the project's own guide for the version you install. Commands and file names change between releases.
How to contribute
go-gitea/gitea accepts docs, bug reports and pull requests. Read CONTRIBUTING. A small fix to an open issue is the easiest review.
- Read the project's guidelines. Open the repository and look for CONTRIBUTING, the code of conduct and the README.
- Find something to work on. Browse good first issues or all open issues. Documentation and bug reports count.
- Make a small change. Fork the repository, work on a branch, and keep the change focused.
- Open a pull request. Say what changed and why, and link the issue. See open pull requests.
Contributions are accepted under the project's own licence (MIT). Some projects also ask you to sign a contributor agreement. A doc fix or a reproduced bug is a real contribution.
Licence: MIT
Permissive. You can use, modify and distribute it, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright and licence notice.
This is a plain-English guide, not legal advice. Read the licence in the repository before you ship it or sell a service on top of it.