# EasyCLA and Co-Author Compliance Guide

This guide outlines the steps to ensure contributions using the "co-author" feature comply with EasyCLA.

**Ensuring Contributor Compliance**

1. **Verify CLA Signature:**
   * Every contributor, individual or organizational representative, must have a signed EasyCLA.
   * Use EasyCLA's dashboard or attempt a contribution to check the signature status. EasyCLA will provide instructions if a signature is missing.
2. **Co-authors check:**
   * Co-author checks are **disabled by default**. They can be enabled at the GitHub organization level.
   * Co-author checks can be enabled or disabled for:
     * A specific repository,
     * Repositories matching a pattern (regular expression),
     * All repositories in a GitHub organization.
   * **Priority/order matters:** Exact repository match takes precedence, followed by pattern match, and finally the organization-wide setting (wildcard).
   * For example, you can enable co-author checks for the entire organization, but disable them for a specific repository, or enable them only for repositories matching a certain pattern.
   * Enabling or disabling co-author checks can be configured by submitting a support ticket.
   * If co-author checks are enabled, EasyCLA will verify that all co-authors have signed the CLA.
3. **Adding Co-Authors Correctly:**
   * When using the "co-author" trailer in commit messages, include the following syntax for each co-author:

     ```
     Co-authored-by: [Full Name] <[email@example.com]>
     ```
   * Example:

     ```
     Implement new feature for API

     -Refactored data models
     -Created unit tests for edge cases

     Co-authored-by: Alice Johnson <alice@example.com>
     Co-Authored-by: Bob Williams <bob@example.com>
     Co-Authored-By: Lukasz Gryglicki <2469783+lukaszgryglicki@users.noreply.github.com>
     co-authored-by: Justyna Gryglicka <justynagryglicka@users.noreply.github.com>
     co-Authored-By: lukaszgryglicki2 <non-existing@domain.com>
     ```

<figure><img src="https://3411187760-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M2DCN9UgoRgMEkgnLyP-887967055%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-bc0f04f12aca90cc6808469d86b8dcfe7a293471%2Fimage.png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://3411187760-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M2DCN9UgoRgMEkgnLyP-887967055%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-449d66ce7958baeaaede046e167ddd8ab5937f54%2Fco-author-agreement-missing.png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption><p>Example of a co-author failure showing SIGNED AGREEMENT MISSING</p></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://3411187760-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M2DCN9UgoRgMEkgnLyP-887967055%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-410107bcc5e5b52f8e6fe3efa7377a0fd98e1e8d%2Fco-author-unknown-commit-author.png?alt=media" alt=""><figcaption><p>Example of a co-author failure showing UNKNOWN COMMIT AUTHOR</p></figcaption></figure>

**EasyCLA Integration with Co-Authors**

* If co-author checks are enabled, EasyCLA validates each co-author against a signed CLA using the identifier that can be resolved from the co-author trailer.
* Ensure all co-authors are registered and have a signed CLA.
* If a co-author is resolved but is not authorized under a signed CLA, EasyCLA can show **SIGNED AGREEMENT MISSING**.
* If a co-author cannot be resolved to a GitHub user, EasyCLA can show **UNKNOWN COMMIT AUTHOR**.
* Depending on the pull request, both badges can appear in the same EasyCLA comment.

{% hint style="info" %}
Use one of the supported `Co-authored-by:` formats below. A non-public email can only be matched if that email was previously used for another CLA as a main commit author. Otherwise EasyCLA may not be able to find the co-author.
{% endhint %}

**Supported `Co-authored-by:` formats include:**

1. `Anything <id+login@users.noreply.github.com>` - it will locate your GitHub user by `id` part.
2. `Anything <login@users.noreply.github.com>` - it will locate your GitHub user by `login` part.
3. `Anything <public-email>` - it will locate your GitHub user by `public-email` part. Note that this email must be made public on GitHub.
4. `Anything <other-email>` - it will locate your GitHub user by `other-email` part but only if that email was used before for any other CLA as a main commit author.
5. `login <any-valid-email>` - it will locate your GitHub user by `login` part. Note that `login` part must be at least 3 characters long.

If any co-author cannot be found, EasyCLA will add a comment on the pull request explaining how to correctly specify commit co-authors.

EasyCLA currently instructs contributors as follows: Alternatively, if the co-author should not be included, remove the `Co-authored-by:` line from the commit message.

After updating your commit message(s) by doing `git commit --amend` and then `git push [--force]`, request re-running the CLA check by commenting on the pull request:

```
/easycla
```

**Tips for Successful Integration**

1. **Consistency:** Ensure email addresses in co-author tags match those used for signing the CLA.
2. **Training:** Educate contributors on signing the CLA and including accurate information in co-author trailers.

For automation users that should bypass CLA checks altogether, see [Allowlisting Bots to Skip CLA](https://docs.linuxfoundation.org/lfx/easycla/v2-current/allowing_bots_to_skip_cla).

**Additional Resources**

* [GitHub Documentation](https://docs.github.com/en/pull-requests/committing-changes-to-your-project/creating-and-editing-commits/creating-a-commit-with-multiple-authors)
* You can set the email address used to author commits on GitHub.com and your computer. For more information see, [Setting your commits email addresses](https://docs.github.com/en/account-and-profile/setting-up-and-managing-your-personal-account-on-github/managing-email-preferences/setting-your-commit-email-address)


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