CODEWITHSUNDEEP
perlmodulecpan
smith
smith

Reputation: 3262

How can I update someone else's module on CPAN?

I downloaded some module from CPAN and added to it extra functionality. Could I post the newest module on the CPAN? If yes, how should I do this? Is it possible at all? Should I contact the person who wrote the original module? Could someone help about the procedure to update this specific module?

Upvotes: 14

Views: 745

Answers (3)

brian d foy
brian d foy

Reputation: 132802

You won't be able to upload and index a module as the same name unless you are a co-maintainer. Uploading it as a different name isn't very productive for the community as there are now two (or more) slightly different versions.

  • Contact the author
  • Submit your patches to the RT queue for the module (or the issue tracker it specifies in its docs)
  • If it's on Github, fork the project, make the change, and submit a pull request

If the author is unresponsive (which means no response, not a negative response), we have ways to pass on maintainership of abandoned modules. We take this process very slowly because we want to give the original author or current maintainer every chance to respond. Some people might be swamped at work, on holiday, and so on. However, most situations turn out very well.

You can upload anything that you like to PAUSE, but if you are not some sort of maintainer, PAUSE won't index it. It will still show up in your CPAN account and people can still download it through the CPAN website, but the CPAN clients won't see it (since they work according to the index). Some of the search sites will show it as an "Unauthorized release".

Upvotes: 20

DavidO
DavidO

Reputation: 13942

It would be unhelpful to blindly upload a module that you've added functionality to under the same name as the module that it's based on (it happens sometimes and often creates a mess). But you do have options that would be helpful:

First, you could contact the module's author or maintainer, emailing a diff or patch showing what you would like to see added. Be sure to supply relevant documentation as well, and explain your rationale.

It could be that the module author will accept the patch and apply it to an update of the module himself. Or it could be that by way of prevention of creeping featurism, the author/maintainer rejects the upgraded functionality, and that leads you to a second option.

The second option is to get your own PAUSE account, and either subclass or otherwise extend the module. But be sure to give it your own new module name, full documentation, and probably an explanation within the documentation that this is an extension of xyz module with the following additional functionality... If you're extending Math::BigInt, you might call it Math::BigInt::Frobcinate (just an example).

When you do attempt to make contact with the module author, please be patient. Sometimes it takes awhile to let things run their proper course.

Upvotes: 15

toolic
toolic

Reputation: 62037

I recommend that you attempt to contact the author.

Additionally, you can upload your module changes as a patch via rt.cpan.org; there should be a link from the module's website on CPAN. Refer to the CPAN FAQ: How do I report/fix a bug in a module/script? This tracking system is used for requests such as yours, not just for reporting bugs.

Upvotes: 10

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