NetBSD Problem Reports

Bug and problem reports are essential to making NetBSD a robust, reliable system. We rely on them to inform us of bugs or other deficiencies in the operating system.

We use the GNATS bug tracking system to make sure that no problem report "falls through the cracks." The send-pr(1) program on your NetBSD system is the primary user interface for submitting bug reports to GNATS.

There are two ways to view problem reports from the GNATS database:

It is generally a good idea to search or browse the GNATS database for a problem you're having before you report it yourself. Someone else might have reported it already (and there might already be a solution or workaround in the database).

The best way to submit a problem report is with the send-pr(1) program on your NetBSD system. It provides a form with several fields for you to fill out with your favorite text editor (you might also want to read some advice about what to put in the PR). Once the form is completed, send-pr(1) e-mails the report to the our GNATS server.

When the report reaches the server, it is automatically checked for syntax errors, assigned a new PR number, and cataloged in the GNATS database. Once in the database, the person responsible for the category that the report was submitted to is notified, and a copy of the report is sent to netbsd-bugs mailing list.

In addition, a confirmation of the problem report, including the assigned PR number, is sent back to you. This number can be used to retrieve the PR later. This is sometimes useful because the problem report may contain extensive information on the state of tracking the bug and possible solutions.

To add additional text to a PR that has already been submitted, just send e-mail to <gnats-bugs@NetBSD.org>, with a subject line containing the PR category and number; for example

Subject: Re: kern/5514

The message will automatically be appended to the GNATS database entry, and will automatically be carbon-copied to the person listed as being "responsible" for handling the PR. Note that if you do not carbon-copy other interested parties yourself (including the original submitter of the PR), they will not receive a copy of your mail.

If you cannot send bug reports with send-pr(1) (e.g. because your NetBSD system is not able to send Internet e-mail), you can fill out our send-pr form using your web browser instead.