graphzep/CONTRIBUTING.md

GraphZep: A temporal knowledge graph memory system for AI agents based on the Zep paper

# Contributing to GraphZep

We're thrilled you're interested in contributing to GraphZep! As firm believers in the power of open source collaboration, we're committed to building not just a tool, but a vibrant community where developers of all experience levels can make meaningful contributions.

When I first joined this project, I was overwhelmed trying to figure out where to start. Someone eventually pointed me to a random "good first issue," but I later discovered there were multiple ways I could have contributed that would have better matched my skills and interests.

We've restructured our contribution paths to solve this problem:

# Four Ways to Get Involved

### Pick Up Existing Issues

Our developers regularly tag issues with "help wanted" and "good first issue." These are pre-vetted tasks with clear scope and someone ready to help you if you get stuck.

### Create Your Own Tickets

See something that needs fixing? Have an idea for an improvement? You don't need permission to identify problems. The people closest to the pain are often best positioned to describe the solution.

For **feature requests**, tell us the story of what you're trying to accomplish. What are you working on? What's getting in your way? What would make your life easier? Submit these through our [GitHub issue tracker](https://github.com/aexy-io/graphzep/issues) with a "Feature Request" label.

For **bug reports**, we need enough context to reproduce the problem. Use the [GitHub issue tracker](https://github.com/aexy-io/graphzep/issues) and include:

- A clear title that summarizes the specific problem
- What you were trying to do when you encountered the bug
- What you expected to happen
- What actually happened
- A code sample or test case that demonstrates the issue

### Share Your Use Cases

Sometimes the most valuable contribution isn't code. If you're using our project in an interesting way, add it to the [examples](https://github.com/aexy-io/graphzep/tree/main/examples) folder. This helps others discover new possibilities and counts as a meaningful contribution. We regularly feature compelling examples in our blog posts and videos - your work might be showcased to the broader community!

### Help Others in Discord

Join our [Discord server](https://discord.com/invite/W8Kw6bsgXQ) community and pitch in at the helpdesk. Answering questions and helping troubleshoot issues is an incredibly valuable contribution that benefits everyone. The knowledge you share today saves someone hours of frustration tomorrow.

## What happens next?

### Notes for Large Changes
> Please keep the changes as concise as possible. For major architectural changes (>500 LOC), we would expect a GitHub issue (RFC) discussing the technical design and justification. Otherwise, we will tag it with rfc-required and might not go through the PR.

Once you've found an issue tagged with "good first issue" or "help wanted," or prepared an example to share, here's how to turn that into a contribution:

1. Share your approach in the issue discussion before diving deep into code. This helps ensure your solution adheres to the architecture of GraphZep from the start and saves you from potential rework.

2. Fork the repo, make your changes in a branch, and submit a PR. We've included more detailed technical instructions below; be open to feedback during review.

## Setup

1. Fork the repository on GitHub.
2. Clone your fork locally:
   ```
   git clone https://github.com/aexy-io/graphzep
   cd graphzep
   ```
3. Set up your development environment:

   - Ensure you have Node.js 20+ installed.
   - Install project dependencies:
     ```
     npm install
     ```
   - To run integration tests, set the appropriate environment variables

     ```
     export OPENAI_API_KEY=...
     export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=...

     # For Neo4j
     export NEO4J_URI=bolt://localhost:7687
     export NEO4J_USER=neo4j
     export NEO4J_PASSWORD=...
     ```

## Making Changes

1. Create a new branch for your changes:
   ```
   git checkout -b your-branch-name
   ```
2. Make your changes in the codebase.
3. Write or update tests as necessary.
4. Run the tests to ensure they pass:
   ```
   npm test
   ```
5. Format your code:
   ```
   npm run format
   ```
6. Run linting checks:
   ```
   npm run lint
   ```

## Submitting Changes

1. Commit your changes:
   ```
   git commit -m "Your detailed commit message"
   ```
2. Push to your fork:
   ```
   git push origin your-branch-name
   ```
3. Submit a pull request through the GitHub website to https://github.com/aexy-io/graphzep.

## Pull Request Guidelines

- Provide a clear title and description of your changes.
- Include any relevant issue numbers in the PR description.
- Ensure all tests pass and there are no linting errors.
- Update documentation if you're changing functionality.

## Code Style and Quality

We use several tools to maintain code quality:

- ESLint for linting
- Prettier for formatting
- TypeScript for static type checking
- Node.js test runner for testing

Before submitting a pull request, please run:

```
npm run check
```

This command will format your code, run linting checks, and execute tests.

## Third-Party Integrations

When contributing integrations for third-party services (LLM providers, embedding services, databases, etc.), please follow these patterns:

### Optional Dependencies

All third-party integrations must be optional dependencies to keep the core library lightweight. Follow this pattern:

1. **Add to `pyproject.toml`**: Define your dependency as an optional extra AND include it in the dev extra:
   ```toml
   [project.optional-dependencies]
   your-service = ["your-package>=1.0.0"]
   dev = [
       # ... existing dev dependencies
       "your-package>=1.0.0",  # Include all optional extras here
       # ... other dependencies
   ]
   ```

2. **Use TYPE_CHECKING pattern**: In your integration module, import dependencies conditionally:
   ```python
   from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
   
   if TYPE_CHECKING:
       import your_package
       from your_package import SomeType
   else:
       try:
           import your_package
           from your_package import SomeType
       except ImportError:
           raise ImportError(
               'your-package is required for YourServiceClient. '
               'Install it with: npm install graphzep'
           ) from None
   ```

3. **Benefits of this pattern**:
   - Fast startup times (no import overhead during type checking)
   - Clear error messages with installation instructions
   - Proper type hints for development
   - Consistent user experience

4. **Do NOT**:
   - Add optional imports to `__init__.py` files
   - Use direct imports without error handling
   - Include optional dependencies in the main `dependencies` list

### Integration Structure

- Place LLM clients in `src/llm/`
- Place embedding clients in `src/embedders/`
- Place database drivers in `src/drivers/`
- Follow existing naming conventions (e.g., `your_service_client.py`)

### Testing

- Add comprehensive tests in the appropriate `tests/` subdirectory
- Mark integration tests with `_int` suffix if they require external services
- Include both unit tests and integration tests where applicable

# Questions?

Stuck on a contribution or have a half-formed idea? Feel free to open a github issue for the same.

Thank you for contributing to GraphZep!