Found a bug? Something to improve? As with all software, there may be times when CiviCRM doesn't work the way you expect it to. The good news, is that if you can help document the issue, there is a community of folks who might be able to help. It takes a few minutes, but it's the most efficient way to get something fixed or improved.
Before reporting the issue, please search for similar reports on the CiviCRM Stack Exchange, on the CiviCRM Gitlab issue tracker or on the CiviCRM GitHub (more developer-oriented, used for tracking the actual changes to the code). On Gitlab or Github, the issue maybe have been closed already (more on that later), so make sure to search also in closed issues.
- Are you using the latest version of CiviCRM? If not, it may have been fixed in a more recent version than you're using.
- Can you reproduce the problem on the CiviCRM sandbox site? Sandboxes run the very latest development version of CiviCRM. They are updated and reset on a daily basis. Keep note of the steps to reproduce the issue, such as any settings that may need to be changed. It might look easy, but being able to reproduce the issue is often half of the challenge.
- If you cannot reproduce the bug on a sandbox, there might be a few reasons:
- There might be a combination of settings that need to be changed for the bug to happen. Keep digging, comparing differences between your CiviCRM installation and the sandbox.
- Your installation might be using extensions that alter the normal CiviCRM behaviour. You can try disabling them on your installation, or if possible, enable them on the sandbox.
- The bug may have been fixed between the latest stable and the latest development version (known as "master").
- If you can reproduce the bug on the sandbox, you might be on to something. You should report it in the CiviCRM Gitlab issue tracker. However, if you think it is a security bug, please follow the different procedure for reporting it at https://civicrm.org/security.
- You will need to create an account on this website, which will work on the Issue Tracker as well. There may be a validation delay until your account is enabled. The Issue Tracker can be found at https://lab.civicrm.org/explore. CiviCRM core issues are found under Development, but there are also other spaces such as for Extensions.
- Under the Issues menu, click "List", then "New Issue".
- Fill in all the fields with as much detail as possible, your CiviCRM version, your CMS (or Standalone), and mention if you were able to reproduce it on a CiviCRM sandbox. Clearly state 1) what you did, 2) what you expected to happen, 3) what actually happened. Make your instructions so clear that someone else could reproduce what you did exactly. Copy and paste any error codes or forum posts related to your bug.
- You will be notified periodically via email on the status of your bug as it is reviewed, worked on, and hopefully fixed.
Congratulations on finding and reporting a bug! As members of the CiviCRM community, we all collaborate to contribute to the solution. Depending on your skills and/or resources, you can submit a patch to fix the bug, hire someone else to submit a patch.
The user and admin guide also has more advice on writing good bug reports.
Prioritization of Issues
Please note that the CiviCRM community works hard to tackle all sorts of issues in a timely manner. That said, we are often under-resourced, so we prioritize issues based on how critical they are. Just because you submit an issue does not guarantee that it will be fixed promptly. If something is truly critical for you, consider using the Paid Issue Queue to help prioritize a fix.
