Workstation/Third party software Workstation Guidelines

Extra Technical requirements Fedora Workstation

These technical requirements only apply to the Fedora Workstation. Other editions or spins are free to adopt them if they wish, but they are not meant to be Fedora wide. Below you find a list of technical requirement definitions, but we have an in-depth tutorial available here [1].

Definition of Desktop application

A GUI application is an application meant to run on a graphical desktop with a launcher in the GNOME Shell. Some desktop applications may not fit this description, such as a desktop-centric command line tool, but they should follow the generic third party applications rule for the moment.

Keywords, metadata

The Fedora Workstation Working Group will publish further guidelines for setting keywords and metadata, beyond the formal requirements of the Appstream and desktop file specifications. The goal of the metadata is to help AppStream compliant software managers, such as GNOME Software, properly inform Fedora users about the software they're installing. This feature helps users make decisions in accordance with their own values and goals, and those of Fedora. It also helps ensure users are aware of whom to contact with questions or support in case of problems.

Appstream Data - Applies to Desktop Applications

All applications available must come with metadata conforming to the Freedesktop Appstream standard. Details can be found here.

Desktop file - Applies to Desktop Applications

All applications must ship with a .desktop file. This is the file that determines how the application is presented in the Fedora Desktop shell. The latest specification is found here.

Guide for third Party developers

This guide is for third party developers who want to make their software available in a Fedora edition.

Principles

While the inclusion process is one of procurement, meaning the process isn't a total free for all, we want it to be as objective and transparent as possible. The requirements on third party software providers must be easy to understand and applied in a fair and balanced manner.

Before you submit an application, please review the technical requirements for third party applications, libraries, and tools for Fedora. Also read any specific extra requirements for the Fedora edition you are targeting.

The submission process is edition-based. Acceptance into Fedora Workstation, for instance, does not guarantee your software will be as easily available in another Fedora Edition or in a Fedora Spin. It is up to each working group or special interest groups how to make available any software in their system.

Submitting the application for consideration

Once your third party application conforms with the rules for inclusion, for Desktop applications you can submit it for consideration by filing a ticket in the Fedora Pagure ticket system. Below you find a list of items you want to include in your proposal for adding this to Fedora Workstation.

Template for submitting proposal for adding application:

Name of application:

Description of Application:

Type of repository: RPM or Flatpak

URL for repository:

License for application submitted: Name + URL or description

Is packager application owner or developer?

If not owner or developer do you have permission to package this either through license terms or directly from owner?

Is there a group of people maintaining this repository?

If you are a single person behind repository what are you contingency plan in case you are unavailable or lose interest or have an accident?

How do we contact you in case there are problems?

.

This article will be updated with links to other working groups to review your submission as quickly as possible.

Maintaining your repository

You should notify the Fedora project as soon as possible if at any point you decide to stop maintaining your repository.

If the contents of your repository change, either in terms of licensing or the software offered, please notify Fedora immediately so that we can review the changes. Fedora may define and provide an agreement in order for third party software providers to be listed.

The Fedora Project will also establish review procedures to ensure users are not provided dead or deprecated repositories. Each WG that owns a third party repository list must regularly review those repositories regularly to resolve any issues.