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---
comments: false
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description: 'Learn how to contribute to GitLab.'
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---
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# GitLab development guides
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## Get started!
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- Set up GitLab's development environment with [GitLab Development Kit (GDK) ](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-development-kit/blob/master/doc/howto/README.md )
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- [GitLab contributing guide ](contributing/index.md )
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- [Architecture ](architecture.md ) of GitLab
- [Rake tasks ](rake_tasks.md ) for development
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## Processes
- [GitLab core team & GitLab Inc. contribution process ](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/gitlab-ce/blob/master/PROCESS.md )
- [Generate a changelog entry with `bin/changelog` ](changelog.md )
- [Code review guidelines ](code_review.md ) for reviewing code and having code reviewed.
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- [Automatic CE->EE merge ](automatic_ce_ee_merge.md )
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- [Guidelines for implementing Enterprise Edition features ](ee_features.md )
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- [Security process for developers ](https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/release/docs/blob/master/general/security/developer.md#security-releases-critical-non-critical-as-a-developer )
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## UX and frontend guides
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- [GitLab Design System ](https://design.gitlab.com/ ) for building GitLab with existing CSS styles and elements
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- [Frontend guidelines ](fe_guide/index.md )
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- [Emoji guide ](fe_guide/emojis.md )
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## Backend guides
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- [GitLab utilities ](utilities.md )
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- [Logging ](logging.md )
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- [API styleguide ](api_styleguide.md ) Use this styleguide if you are
contributing to the API.
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- [GraphQL API styleguide ](api_graphql_styleguide.md ) Use this
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styleguide if you are contribution to the [GraphQL API ](../api/graphql/index.md )
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- [Sidekiq guidelines ](sidekiq_style_guide.md ) for working with Sidekiq workers
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- [Working with Gitaly ](gitaly.md )
- [Manage feature flags ](feature_flags.md )
- [View sent emails or preview mailers ](emails.md )
- [Shell commands ](shell_commands.md ) in the GitLab codebase
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- [`Gemfile` guidelines ](gemfile.md )
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- [Pry debugging ](pry_debugging.md )
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- [Sidekiq debugging ](sidekiq_debugging.md )
- [Gotchas ](gotchas.md ) to avoid
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- [Avoid modules with instance variables ](module_with_instance_variables.md ) if possible
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- [How to dump production data to staging ](db_dump.md )
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- [Working with the GitHub importer ](github_importer.md )
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- [Import/Export development documentation ](import_export.md )
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- [Working with Merge Request diffs ](diffs.md )
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- [Permissions ](permissions.md )
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- [Prometheus metrics ](prometheus_metrics.md )
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- [Guidelines for reusing abstractions ](reusing_abstractions.md )
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- [DeclarativePolicy framework ](policies.md )
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## Performance guides
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- [Instrumentation ](instrumentation.md ) for Ruby code running in production
environments
- [Performance guidelines ](performance.md ) for writing code, benchmarks, and
certain patterns to avoid
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- [Merge request performance guidelines ](merge_request_performance_guidelines.md )
for ensuring merge requests do not negatively impact GitLab performance
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- [Profiling ](profiling.md ) a URL, measuring performance using Sherlock, or
tracking down N+1 queries using Bullet
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## Database guides
### Tooling
- [Understanding EXPLAIN plans ](understanding_explain_plans.md )
- [explain.depesz.com ](https://explain.depesz.com/ ) for visualising the output
of `EXPLAIN`
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### Migrations
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- [What requires downtime? ](what_requires_downtime.md )
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- [SQL guidelines ](sql.md ) for working with SQL queries
- [Migrations style guide ](migration_style_guide.md ) for creating safe SQL migrations
- [Post deployment migrations ](post_deployment_migrations.md )
- [Background migrations ](background_migrations.md )
- [Swapping tables ](swapping_tables.md )
### Best practices
- [Merge Request checklist ](database_merge_request_checklist.md )
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- [Adding database indexes ](adding_database_indexes.md )
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- [Foreign keys & associations ](foreign_keys.md )
- [Single table inheritance ](single_table_inheritance.md )
- [Polymorphic associations ](polymorphic_associations.md )
- [Serializing data ](serializing_data.md )
- [Hash indexes ](hash_indexes.md )
- [Storing SHA1 hashes as binary ](sha1_as_binary.md )
- [Iterating tables in batches ](iterating_tables_in_batches.md )
- [Ordering table columns ](ordering_table_columns.md )
- [Verifying database capabilities ](verifying_database_capabilities.md )
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- [Database Debugging and Troubleshooting ](database_debugging.md )
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- [Query Count Limits ](query_count_limits.md )
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- [Database helper modules ](database_helpers.md )
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## Testing guides
- [Testing standards and style guidelines ](testing_guide/index.md )
- [Frontend testing standards and style guidelines ](testing_guide/frontend_testing.md )
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## Documentation guides
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- [Writing documentation ](documentation/index.md )
- [Documentation styleguide ](documentation/styleguide.md )
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- [Markdown ](../user/markdown.md )
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## Internationalization (i18n) guides
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- [Introduction ](i18n/index.md )
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- [Externalization ](i18n/externalization.md )
- [Translation ](i18n/translation.md )
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## Build guides
- [Building a package for testing purposes ](build_test_package.md )
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## Compliance
- [Licensing ](licensing.md ) for ensuring license compliance