Developer Documentation

Source Code Repository Access
OpenSimulator uses git as its source code repository. Checkout

git clone git://opensimulator.org/git/opensim

See Source Code Repository for more details.

See Using Git for more Details on installing and using GIT with OpenSimulator.org

You can also browse the source code for OpenSimulator using a web browser.

opensim-libs git repository contains the source code to some of the 3rd party libraries built and included in OpenSimulator.

libOpenMetaverse contains the source code of libOpenMetaverse for versions >= 0.9.1.0

See Also:

OpenSimulator git commits RSS feed

OpenSimulator Project Metrics can be found on the Synopsys Black Duck Open Hub website.

Submitting Patches
Please review Submitting code to OpenSim

Feature Proposals
Larger changes may require feature proposals depending on whether they introduce or significantly change existing functionality. Please use your judgement to determine whether this is required.

For more details please see the Feature Proposals page.

Developer Documentation
Please be aware that some of this documentation may be out of date. If this appears to be the case then please ask for more information on the mailing lists or IRC channels (details are on the Main Page). If you can't find what you want here you might want to try looking in the User Documentation.

General

 * Organization - Guidelines about core developers and how one becomes a member.
 * Development Team — OpenSimulator is brought to you by...
 * Release Cycle — How to create an OpenSimulator release.
 * Branches — Overview of how we use repository branches and tags.
 * Automated Release Building - How releases are built
 * Hacking OpenSim for fun and profit — A starters guide for programming OpenSimulator.
 * Coding standards — Coding conventions for developers.
 * Patch Policies — Because coding standards don't tell the whole story.
 * Codebase overview - Very broad overview of the codebase.
 * Monodevelop — How to use the monodevelop IDE for editing C# solutions.
 * Debugging - Information about debugging OpenSimulator.
 * Performance — Information about performance in OpenSimulator, including studies on where the bottlenecks are.
 * Glossary - A glossary of terms used in OpenSimulator.
 * Research Papers - A list of research papers about OpenSimulator

Development

 * Mantis Bug Tracking — Mantis is the issue tracking tool of OpenSimulator.
 * Continuous Integration — OpenSimulator's Jenkins installation builds the source base after each commit and runs the regression tests.

Testing

 * Testing - General testing information.
 * Automated Testing - Writing Automated tests for OpenSimulator.
 * Prim Linking Testing - Test cases for in world link/unlinking of prims.
 * pCampBot - A facility for stress-testing a simulator.

Architecture

 * OpenSim: Introduction and Definitions — A work in progress describing the high level components of OpenSimulator
 * Technical Reference — A technical description of the simulator operation.
 * Grid Architecture Diagram
 * Plugins — The types of plugins used in OpenSimulator.
 * Region module basics - The basics of how to create a region module, and where example code can be found in the OpenSimulator source tree.
 * Hypergrid Implementation - details on the internal implementation of the Hypergrid system in OpenSimulator. For more general details also see the Hypergrid page.

Services

 * Connectors — A description of OpenSimulator's connector architecture, used for linking region code with services (asset, inventory, etc.) in both local (standalone) and distributed (grid) configurations.
 * Services - A description of the grid and simulator services used by OpenSimulator.

Communication

 * LLUDP ClientStack - Information on the LLUDP client stack used by OpenSimulator to send and receive UDP packets from viewers implementing the Linden Labs virtual environment protocol.
 * LLUDP Dissector - Lua code for a wireshark protocol dissector that can parse the message_template.msg file and use it to decode all the message fields from the LLUDP protocol
 * Communication Protocols - Introduction to the various communication protocols used by OpenSimulator. This includes viewer to OpenSimulator TCP and UDP protocols (e.g. login, agent update message exchange, asset fetch, etc.), inter-region protocols and grid service protocols.  It also details methods by which arbitary UDP and TCP messages can be sent back and forth between clients/modified viewers and OpenSimulator region modules.
 * Agent Domain / Service - Details about the GridForge hosted Agent Domain/Service code (legacy doc since this LL inspired work has long been abandoned).

Database

 * Database Documentation — Information on the database schemas used in OpenSimulator
 * MonoSqlite — How the database model currently works.
 * LSL:PrimitiveParams — Notes on converting SL Edit GUI values and LSL PrimitiveParams to OpenSimulator PrimitiveBaseShape fields

Formats

 * OpenSim Archives - Opensim Region Archive (OAR) file format.
 * Inventory Archives - OpenSimulator Inventory Archive (IAR) file format
 * Asset Formats - OpenSimulator asset formats. This includes serialized object formats and appearance formats.

Integration

 * AuthIntegration - How to integrate external authentication systems (such as web frontends) with OpenSimulator's authentication system.
 * ClothingManipulation - How to set clothing on avatars using external ROBUST service calls.
 * UserManipulation - How to create users in OpenSimulator via external calls through ROBUST (only available when running in grid configuration).
 * RemoteAdmin - How to use the remote admin plug-in. Some functions (e.g. user creation) are only available when running in standalone configuration.
 * RegionIntegration - Integrating a region and the things within it (scene objects, etc.) with external sources of data and webpages.
 * RestConsole - Description how to use the REST remote console
 * REST - Information about the REST interface to assets, inventory, etc.
 * Webinterface - Integrating the external face of OpenSimulator with the web.
 * Services - Contains general information on the default OpenSimulator services (asset, inventory, etc.) and more detailed information of HTTP interfaces for some services.
 * Known Web Interfaces within OpenSim - The set of CAPS, XMLRPC, or REST entry points in the project.

Inventory

 * User Inventory Architecture - A general page that aims to detail the user inventory mechanisms in OpenSimulator.

Map

 * Map - Mapping overview
 * Warp3DImageModule — This is an improved map image module.

Permissions

 * Permissions (Server) — Permissions system as implemented on the region server.
 * OpenSim: Permissions — Notes on how object permissions are handled on the client.

Physics

 * PhysicsEngines — Options for physics engines in OpenSimulator.
 * Physics Engine Interface — what methods and such exist in a Physics module

Regions/Scenes

 * Overview of How Regions Work
 * OpenSim: Permissions — Notes on object permissions & definition of the ObjectFlags variable.
 * OpenSim Load Balancing and Region Splitting - Instructions for using load balancing and region splitting features.
 * Universal Time in OpenSim - How time zones are handled in OpenSimulator grid/regions

Scripting

 * Scripting Documentation — How to use scripts and what limitations apply.
 * LSL Status — A list of LSL-functions that are available in OpenSimulator.
 * OSSL — Some information about the OpenSimulator Scripting Language, and how to implement an OSSL function
 * OSSL Script Library/ModSendCommand - A mechanism for in-world scripts to use a generic modSendCommand and the link_message event to communicate with region modules.
 * OSSL_Script_Library/ModInvoke - A mechanism for region modules to make new functions available to in-world scripts without patching the OpenSimulator runtime.
 * ScriptEngines — Information about script engines (chiefly XEngine).
 * Scripts Performance - Factors that affect script performance, and how to measure them

Search

 * OpenSim.Region.DataSnapshot - Shiny new data gathering/search system
 * ImageService - Shiny new region module for serving search-related images

Sound

 * Sound Protocol - Technical information about the sound protocols (e.g. UDP messages between viewer and server).

Statistics

 * Stats Manager - Information about the main statistics monitor used in OpenSimulator and how to add/remove extra stats from modules.
 * Web Statistics Module - The web statistics module documentation and counter wish list.

Threading

 * Threading — Information on the way that threads are used in OpenSimulator.

Users

 * Appearance Troubleshooting - Also contains useful information about avatar behave and the relevant message exchanges between the viewer and the simulator.
 * Attachment Protocols - Information on the attachment protocols used by viewers and OpenSimulator.
 * Name Binding - Some information on how OpenSimulator (and Second Life) binds user UUIDs to names (e.g. 25bf6e60-91c0-4d28-8349-ba254cd4388e -> Jane Doe).
 * Userlevel — Explanation of permissions granted via "God Mode"/Admin Status.

Discussing Documentation
A good first point of contact is the #opensim-dev IRC channel. The OpenSimulator developers also hold office hours once a week in-world on Tuesdays. There is also a development mailing list when development discussion takes place.

More About the Dev Infrastructure
See the Infrastructure page for more details on the software infrastructure that supports OpenSimulator development.

Next Gen OpenSim
Development ideas and discussion related a a future "next gen" OpenSim


 * Next Gen

Recent Git Commits
http://opensimulator.org/viewgit?a=rss-log&p=opensim|max=8|title=none