Checking out the source code

This section is primarily designed for the core OME developers who want to check out the main code base using Git. If you need guidance in installing, configuring and using Git, see the Using Git page.

Code locations

OME code is stored in multiple git repositories, each of which is available from several locations.

OMERO

The main repository, known as ome.git, is available from:

Bio-Formats

The Bio-Formats repository is available from:

Other repositories

Each member of the GitHub openmicroscopy organization, as well as anyone else who has clicked the “Fork” button, will have their own repository. These are listed here:

Cloning the source code

Most OME development is currently happening on GitHub, therefore it is highly suggested that you become familiar with how it works, if not create an account for yourself.

Note

There is extensive guidance on the Using Git page and the following examples assume you have set up your account using “gh” for your personal repositories and “origin” as the official repositories as described there.

Start by cloning the official repository for the project you want to work with e.g.:

git clone https://github.com/ome/openmicroscopy.git

Since the openmicroscopy (OMERO) repository now makes use of submodules, you first need to initialize all the submodules:

cd openmicroscopy
git submodule update --init

Alternatively, with version 1.6.5 of Git and later, you can pass the --recursive option to git clone and initialize all submodules:

git clone --recursive https://github.com/ome/openmicroscopy.git

Note

The use of submodules does not apply to Bio-Formats, which has all code and documentation within a single repository at https://github.com/ome/bioformats.git

The natural workflow when using GitHub is not just to download someone else’s repository, but also to create a personal working copy. Go to the repository page at https://github.com/ome/openmicroscopy or https://github.com/ome/bioformats and click on “Fork”. This will create a copy of the repository in your own personal space e.g.:

https://github.com/YOURNAME/bioformats

which can be added to your local repository as another remote:

git remote add gh git@github.com:YOURNAME/bioformats.git

Note

For the SSH transport to work, you will need to follow some of the instructions under https://github.com/account/ssh

Depending on which repository you cloned first, either origin/develop or gh/develop will be the “develop” branch of your own fork of openmicroscopy/openmicroscopy or openmicroscopy/bioformats. The example below assumes that “gh” is your own personal GitHub repository, and “origin” is the official openmicroscopy repository.

You may even want to remove the “develop” branch from your fork since all branching should happen from the official develop branch. If you’d prefer to keep a copy of “develop” in “gh”, that is fine, but you may then need to keep your develop up-to-date with the official develop:

git checkout develop
git reset --hard origin/develop   # Warning: This will delete any unsaved changes and commits to develop!
git push -f gh develop            # Warning: This will replace gh/develop with the official version remotely.