How to report a bug

Effective bug reports are the most likely to be fixed.

These guidelines explain how to write a good reports in Bugzilla.

Principles Preliminaries
 * Be precise
 * Be clear - explain it so others can reproduce the bug
 * One bug per report


 * 1) Reproduce your bug using a recent build of the software, to see whether it has already been fixed.


 * 1) Search Bugzilla, to see whether your bug has already been reported.

'''Reporting a New Bug '''

If you have reproduced the bug in a recent build and no-one else appears to have reported it, then:


 * 1) Choose "Enter a new bug"


 * 1) Select the product in which you've found the bug (MediaWiki)


 * 1) Fill out the form. Here is some help understanding it:

Component: In which sub-part of the software does it exist?

This field is required. Click the word "Component" to see a description of each component. If none seems appropriate, look for a "General" component.

Version:

This field is required. Select a version ( current is 1.18)

OS: On which operating system (OS) did you find it? (e.g. Linux, Windows, Mac OS X.)

If you know the bug happens on more than one type of operating system, choose All. If your OS isn't listed, choose Other.

Summary: How would you describe the bug, in approximately 60 or fewer characters?

A good summary should quickly and uniquely identify a bug report. It should explain the problem, not your suggested solution.


 * Good: "Selecting Gender is not functional"


 * Bad: "Software crashes"


 * Good: "Selecting Gender is not functional"

Description: The details of your problem report, including:


 * Overview: More detailed restatement of summary.

(example)   Selecting Gender from my Preferences menu is not functional

Steps to Reproduce: Minimized, easy-to-follow steps that will trigger the bug. Include any special setup steps.

(example)
 * 1) Select "My Preferences" menu


 * 1) Go to Gender and select female gender from box list


 * 1) Click 'Save' button

Actual Results: What the application did after performing the above steps.

(example)
 * There is no female gender before my user name

Expected Results: What the application should have done, were the bug not present.

(example)
 * My gender is before my user name

Additional Information: Any other useful information.

Attachment: You may attach a log file or screen shot. It will be useful

Double-check your report for errors and omissions, then press "Submit a bug". Your bug report will now be in the Bugzilla database.