Contributing to Tau

Thank you for your interest in contributing to Tau! We welcome contributions of all kinds — code, documentation, bug reports, feature requests, and more.

Getting Started

Development Setup

See our Contributing Guide for detailed instructions on:

• Prerequisites (Node.js 24+, pnpm, Docker)
• Installing dependencies
• Setting up the database
• Running development servers
• Database commands
• Linting rules and conventions

Quick Start

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/taucad/tau.git
cd tau

# Install dependencies
pnpm install

# Start the database
pnpm db:up

# Copy environment files
cp apps/ui/.env.example apps/ui/.env.local
cp apps/api/.env.example apps/api/.env.local

# Start development servers
pnpm dev

Ways to Contribute

Report Bugs

Found a bug? Open an issue with:

• Clear description of the problem
• Steps to reproduce
• Expected vs actual behavior
• Screenshots or screen recordings if applicable

Suggest Features

Have an idea? Start a discussion or open an issue describing:

• The problem you're trying to solve
• Your proposed solution
• Any alternatives you've considered

Submit Code

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Make your changes
4. Run tests and linting (pnpm nx affected -t test,lint,typecheck)
5. Commit with clear messages
6. Push and open a Pull Request

Add a CAD Kernel

Want to integrate a new CAD engine? See our Kernel Integration Guide for step-by-step instructions on adding support for new kernels.

Improve Documentation

Documentation improvements are always welcome! You can:

• Fix typos or unclear explanations
• Add examples and tutorials
• Translate documentation
• Improve API documentation

Community Guidelines

Code of Conduct

Please read our Code of Conduct before participating. We're committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive environment.

Security

Found a security vulnerability? Please review our Security Policy and report it responsibly to security@tau.new.

Resources

Current Limitations

Some areas where contributions are especially welcome:

OpenSCAD Kernel

• Only STL export is currently implemented; STEP export is planned
• Error messages could be improved with better parsing

Zoo (KCL) Kernel

• Requires internet connection for Zoo API access
• API token required for full functionality

General

• Accessibility improvements
• Mobile experience optimization
• Additional export formats
• Performance optimizations

Thank you for helping make Tau better! 🙏