If you like VictoriaMetrics and want to contribute, then it would be great:
- Joining VictoriaMetrics community Slack ([Slack inviter](https://slack.victoriametrics.com/) and [Slack channel](https://victoriametrics.slack.com/))
and helping other community members there.
- Filing issues, feature requests and questions [at VictoriaMetrics GitHub](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues).
- Improving [VictoriaMetrics docs](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/). The docs' sources are located [here](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/tree/master/docs).
- Spreading the word about VictoriaMetrics via various channels:
- conference talks
- blogposts, articles and [case studies](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/blob/master/docs/CaseStudies.md)
- comments at Hacker News, Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit, Facebook, etc.
- experience sharing with colleagues.
- Convincing your management to sign [Enterprise contract](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/enterprise/) with VictoriaMetrics.
Before sending a pull request to [VictoriaMetrics repository](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/) please make sure it **conforms all** the following checks:
- The pull request contains clear description of the change, with links to the related GitHub issues and [docs](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/), if needed.
- Commit messages contain concise yet clear descriptions. Include links to related GitHub issues in commit messages, if such issues exist.
- All the commits are signed and include `Signed-off-by` line. Use `git commit -s` to include `Signed-off-by` your commits.
- If the change modifies the existing logic, make sure it doesn't break existing user setups after the upgrade.
- Please investigate git commit history for the code you change in order to make sure your change doesn't break historical conventions in the modified code.
- The change must be described in **clear user-readable** form at [docs/CHANGELOG.md](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/blob/master/docs/CHANGELOG.md),
since it is read by **VictoriaMetrics users** who may not know implementation details of VictoriaMetrics products. The change description must **clearly** answer the following questions:
- Do not close the original issue before the change is released. In some cases Github can automatically close the issue once PR is merged. Re-open the issue in such case.
- If the change introduces a new feature, this feature must be documented in **user-readable** form at the appropriate parts of [VictoriaMetrics docs](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/).
* FEATURE: [vmagent](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/vmagent/): add support for [VictoriaMetrics remote write protocol](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/vmagent/#victoriametrics-remote-write-protocol) when [sending / receiving data to / from Kafka](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/vmagent/#kafka-integration). This protocol allows saving egress network bandwidth costs when sending data from `vmagent` to `Kafka` located in another datacenter or availability zone. See [this feature request](https://github.com/VictoriaMetrics/VictoriaMetrics/issues/1225).
* BUGFIX: [stream aggregation](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/stream-aggregation/): suppress `series after dedup` error message in logs when `-remoteWrite.streamAggr.dedupInterval` command-line flag is set at [vmagent](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/vmgent.html) or when `-streamAggr.dedupInterval` command-line flag is set at [single-node VictoriaMetrics](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/).
- Minimize the number of moving parts in the distributed system.
- Avoid automated decisions, which may hurt cluster availability, consistency, performance or debuggability.
Adhering `KISS` principle simplifies the resulting code and architecture, so it can be reviewed, understood and debugged by wider audience.
Due to `KISS`, [cluster version of VictoriaMetrics](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/cluster-victoriametrics/) has no the following "features" popular in distributed computing world:
- Fragile gossip protocols. See [failed attempt in Thanos](https://github.com/improbable-eng/thanos/blob/030bc345c12c446962225221795f4973848caab5/docs/proposals/completed/201809_gossip-removal.md).
- Complex replication schemes, which may go nuts in unforeseen edge cases. See [replication docs](https://docs.victoriametrics.com/cluster-victoriametrics/#replication-and-data-safety) for details.
