Best practices for open source development with companies

An issue of concern can be the development of code for an open package, for which the main version is managed by TU Delft, while collaborating with a company.

A method of good practice has been found to be the following:

• Develop dedicated code at a closed repository at the company (this allows for the use of confidential information etc)
• Create an open repository at the company and create a cleaned up pull request that needs to be reviewed by a company specialist (this will prevent the inadvertent disclosure of sensitive information, and places the responsibility of this check at the company)
• Create a pull request from the open repository at the company to the open repository at TU Delft that needs to be reviewed by a TU Delft specialist (this allows TU Delft to manage the integrity of the main version, and places the responsibility for this at TU Delft)

This approach also allows for varying development speeds. The open repository of the company can temporarily be ahead of the open version hosted by TU Delft, or vice versa. Regular communication is key to make sure that different versions don't diverge too much.