WEBUILD Consortium - GitHub Policies and Guidelines

Version: 4.2 Date: December 2025 Status: Active

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Overview

This repository defines GitHub policies, guidelines, and procedures for the WEBUILD consortium. It sets project-wide standards for collaborative development, version control, and repository management across all Work Packages (WPs), groups, and partner organizations.

Organization: https://github.com/webuild-consortium

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Documentation Structure

Core Policy Documents

1. GitHub Policies and Guidelines Consortium-wide policies for GitHub usage, governance, and repository standards.

2. Contribution Guidelines How to contribute code, documentation, and handle pull requests and reviews.

3. Onboarding Procedures Steps for new members to join the consortium, get repository access, and start contributing.

4. Repository Management Guidelines for creating, maintaining, archiving, and managing the lifecycle of repositories within the consortium.

5. Licensing Guidelines Policies and procedures for licensing consortium outputs, including default licenses, license selection criteria, and compliance requirements.

6. Security and Compliance Best practices for securing repositories, handling sensitive information, and meeting compliance requirements.

7. Branching and Workflow Standardized Git workflows, branching strategies, and version control practices for the consortium.

Supporting Materials:

• The docs/guides/ folder contains step-by-step guides for common tasks
• The docs/templates/ folder provides templates for new repositories

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Quick Start

For New Members

1. Start: Quick Start Guide (5-10 min)
2. Then: Onboarding Procedures

For Contributors

1. Contributing: Contribution Guidelines
2. Code of Conduct: Community Standards

WP/Group Lead

1. Governance: Roles & Responsibilities
2. Access: Access Management
3. Repositories: Creation Process

For Repository Maintainer

1. Essential: Repository Management Best Practices
2. Security: Security Checklist
3. Workflow: Branching Strategy

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Key Principles

1. Open Collaboration: Repositories are public by default to encourage transparency and sharing.
2. Clear Access Control: WP and group leads manage permissions according to project policies.
3. Quality through Review: All changes are peer-reviewed before merging to maintain high standards.
4. Security Conscious: Sensitive data protection and compliance are priorities
5. Well Documented: Clear documentation accompanies all technical work
6. EU Compliance: All work acknowledges EU funding and follows consortium agreements

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Document Conventions

Throughout these documents, you will see formatting conventions that highlight specific content:

• Best Practices: Recommended approaches and tips.
• Important: Critical information that requires attention.
• Checklists: Step-by-step procedures and reminders.
• Examples: Practical illustrations or templates.
• Cross-references: Links to related sections or external resources.

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Governance

These policies are maintained by the Technical Coordinator in collaboration with WP and group leads. To propose changes or ask questions:

1. Open an issue in the relevant GitHub repository (e.g. this one or a related policy doc).
2. Contact your WP or group lead for guidance.
3. Reach out to the Technical Coordinator.

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Contact and Support

For help with these GitHub policies and guidelines, you can:

• Join the WEBUILD Slack workspace: Use WeBuild Slack channels for real-time project discussions.
• Visit the WEBUILD OpenSocial Portal: portal.webuildconsortium.eu for news and resources.
• Email the Technical Coordinator: webuild-github-support@grnet.gr for questions about GitHub guidelines or to report issues.

Deliverable Information

This documentation forms the basis of Deliverable D4.2: Initial Source Code Repositories Setup and Contribution Guidelines for the WEBUILD project.

Deliverable Objectives:

• Establish structured, secure, and accessible repository environment
• Support collaborative development across project partners
• Streamline deployment across various environments (DEV, TEST, PROD)
• Define clear contribution and management guidelines

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Funding Acknowledgment

The WEBUILD project is co-funded by the European Union. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the granting authority.

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Version History

Version	Date	Changes	Author
1.0	October 2025	Initial version based on Project Management Handbook	WeBuild Technical Coordination
2.0	October 2025	Enhanced with content from 7 policy documents: GitHub Policies and Guidelines, Contribution Guidelines, Onboarding Procedures, Repository Management, Licensing Guidelines, Security and Compliance, and Branching and Workflow	WeBuild Technical Coordination
3.0	October 2025	Incorporated insights from best practices documents covering branching strategies, version control workflows, secrets management, repository management, and general GitHub best practices	WeBuild Technical Coordination
4.0	October 2025	Replaced ASCII diagrams with Mermaid diagrams and added additional visual diagrams for improved clarity and understanding	WeBuild Technical Coordination
4.1	November 2025	Updated to reflect actual WeBuild repository structure, licenses, and communication channels. Added automated DOCX conversion via GitHub Actions	WeBuild Technical Coordination
4.2	December 2025	General improvements, cleanup and quick start guide	WeBuild Technical Coordination

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Contact

For questions or support regarding these policies and guidelines, please contact your WP/Group lead or the Technical Coordinator through the consortium communication channels.

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Last Updated: December 2025 Next Review: March 2026