# Contributing

cfzt is built to keep Cloudflare Zero Trust setup deterministic and predictable.

If you want to contribute - keep it simple and aligned with that goal.

Before submitting a PR that touches tunnel lifecycle, Docker port detection, the manifest, or Windows service management, run through [docs/manual-testing.md](docs/manual-testing.md) - those scenarios need a live Docker daemon and Cloudflare account, so they aren't covered by CI.

## Getting started

* Fork the repo
* Clone it
* Make your changes
* Open a PR

## What makes a good contribution

* Removes complexity, not adds it
* Keeps behavior deterministic
* Avoids hidden state and magic
* Works in both local and CI environments

If your change makes the system harder to reason about - it will likely be rejected.

## Code style

No strict rules, but:

* Keep it readable
* Prefer explicit over clever
* Avoid unnecessary abstractions
* Small, focused changes > big rewrites

## Issues

If something is broken or unclear:

* Describe what you did
* What you expected
* What actually happened

Logs and configs help. Screenshots don’t.

## Pull Requests

Before opening a PR:

* Make sure it builds
* Keep changes scoped
* Explain *why* the change is needed

PRs without context are hard to review.

## Discussions

Use Discussions for:

* ideas
* architecture questions
* trade-offs

Issues are for bugs. Discussions are for thinking.

## Final note

This is not a framework.

It’s a tool to make a messy process predictable.

Keep it that way.