Reporting a Community Problem

In the Ubuntu project we strive to maintain a healthy, productive and fun community. With this in mind, we have a set of processes and facilities to help our community work together to do great work and enjoy the community. Sometimes we have problems in our community and we like to hear them so we can try and resolve them. Problems in the Ubuntu Community are called 'bugs' and we use a tool called Launchpad to track these bugs and work together towards solutions.

Please note, you should not use these instructions for filing technical problems and defects, to do this click here

How to report a problem

Problems in the Ubuntu community are reported and tracked in a website called Launchpad. You will need to have an account in Launchpad to report the problem. It is free and quick to register - just click here.

Step 1: Chose the right place to report the problem

We first need to ensure the right team in the Ubuntu project know about your problem:

• If your problem relates to general community governance or the Community Council then note down communitycouncil

• If your problem relates to technical policies or the Technical Board then note down techboard

• For all other issues you don't need to note anything down.

Make a note of the team name, we will use in just a moment.

Step 2: Report the problem

You can now provide us with some details of the problem. This involves three simple steps:

1. Middle click (or press both mouse buttons together) on this link.

2. You will be first asked for a Summary. Here type in a short and descriptive single-line summary of the problem.

3. You are next ask if your problem already exists in the system and a list of possible existing problems will be shown. You can click the arrows to show more details about each problem.

   • If one of the problems describes your problem, click the Yes this is the bug I'm trying to report button.

   • If the problem you are reporting is not in the system click the No, I need to report a new bug button.

4. On next page do the following:

   • Type in some details about the problem in the Further Information box. Try to be as detailed in your description as possible.

   • Click the Extra Options link and in the Assign to box write in the team name you wrote down above. If you didn't write down a team, or you don't know it, don't worry, just leave this box blank.

   • Finally click the Submit bug report button.

When your problem has been filed, you will receive an email with a link to the problem in Launchpad, and you can view that link to see the latest details about the problem.

What's next?

After you have filed your problem a discussion will occur in the bug report to work towards a solution. You may be asked some follow-up questions, so we recommend you check in on the bug report, or use the Subscribe button on the bug report page.

Reporting private problems and conflict

If you have a private, sensitive or conflict related incident in the community, you should get in touch with the Community Council via email at community-council AT lists DOT ubuntu DOT com.