Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO)

paiOS uses the Developer Certificate of Origin (DCO) to ensure that all contributions are properly licensed.

Why DCO?

Instead of a complex legal agreement (CLA), we use the DCO because:

• It is easy: No legal review or paperwork is needed.
• It is a standard: Used by major projects like the Linux kernel and Git.
• Transparency: It maintains clear ownership while keeping the contribution process fast.

How to Sign Off

Every commit must include a Signed-off-by line in the commit message. By adding this line, you certify that you have the right to submit the work under the project’s license.

Format

Signed-off-by: Your Name <your.email@example.com>

Setup Methods

1. IDE Setup (Recommended & Easiest Way)

VS Code / Cursor:

1. Open Settings (Ctrl+, or Cmd+,)
2. Search for: git.alwaysSignOff
3. Enable the checkbox

This automatically adds the sign-off to all your commits. For more information, see the official VS Code Git documentation.

2. CLI Method

For terminal users, use the -s flag when committing:

git commit -s -m "Your commit message"

Optional: Create a Git alias to make this easier:

git config alias.cs 'commit -s'

Then you can use git cs instead of git commit -s for signed commits.

DCO Enforcement

• DCO Bot Active: We have enabled the DCO bot to automatically verify that every commit in a Pull Request includes a valid sign-off. PRs with unsigned commits will be blocked from merging.
• No Exceptions: All commits, including documentation-only changes, require a sign-off. If a PR has unsigned commits, they must be amended before it can be merged.