incubator.apache.org

Apache Incubator mentors are the assigned liaisons between a podling (an incoming project) and the rest of the Apache Software Foundation. Each podling gets mentors whose job is to help it operate inside ASF structures — connecting it with teams such as the Incubator PMC and Infrastructure — and to guide its community as it grows toward becoming a top-level project (TLP). If you are joining or evaluating a podling, treat mentors as your first point of contact for process and infrastructure questions, not as a substitute for reading the Incubation Policy.

The mentor role in one view

Why the liaison role matters

A new podling has to work with several parts of the ASF at once: the Incubator PMC for policy and reporting, Infrastructure for the tools a project runs on, and the broader foundation for legal and release matters. Mentors reduce the friction of finding the right channel. For example, if a podling needs to understand how its website, source control, or release distribution should be handled, the mentor is the person who can point it to the relevant ASF team and guidance rather than leaving the podling to guess.

What mentors do not replace

Mentors guide; they do not run the podling for you. The Incubator's published material expects podlings to read the cookbook and the Incubation Policy themselves, and to submit a proposal to join. Community building, release management, and graduation preparation remain podling work — the mentor's value is in direction, introductions, and keeping the podling aligned with Apache governance and the Apache Way.

How to use mentors effectively

1. Before proposing: read the cookbook to confirm the ASF is a good fit, and review the Incubation Policy so you know the rules of participation.
2. At proposal time: submit your project proposal to join the Incubator; mentors are assigned to the podling once it is accepted.
3. During incubation: route questions about ASF teams and processes through your mentors, and use their guidance when preparing for graduation or, if needed, retirement.
4. Check progress signals: the Incubator reports monthly to the Board, so keep your podling's status and community activity visible and current.

Where to go next

The Incubator site's Useful Resources section collects presentations on applying to and graduating from the Incubator, and the podling guides cover community building, branding, code import, IP clearance, websites, source control, and release management. Start with the cookbook and Incubation Policy, then use your mentors to navigate the rest.

The Apache Incubator is the entry point into the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) for projects that want to join it. It provides services to incoming projects, called "podlings," helping them adopt the Apache style of governance and operation and guiding them to the resources they need to become top-level ASF projects (TLPs). Each podling is assigned mentors who act as liaisons between the podling and ASF teams such as the Incubator PMC and the Infrastructure team.

What the Incubator actually does

The Incubator's stated responsibilities are:

• Welcoming new podlings into the ASF.
• Guiding podlings to govern and grow their communities according to the Apache Way, the ASF's philosophy and guidelines for collaborative development.
• Reporting monthly to the board on podling progress.
• Recommending to the ASF Board which podlings should graduate and become top-level projects.
• Retiring podlings when needed.
• Accepting intellectual property (IP) donations.

In short, it is both a gatekeeper and a coach: it evaluates incoming projects and IP, and it actively develops the community practices a project needs to operate as an ASF project.

Podlings, mentors, and TLPs

Three roles explain most of how the Incubator works:

The mentor relationship is the practical core of the model. Rather than leaving a new community to figure out ASF processes alone, the Incubator connects it to people who can route questions and requests to the right ASF teams.

How a project gets started

The site lays out three starting steps:

1. Read the cookbook. It helps potential podlings decide whether the ASF is a good fit and walks through the steps required to become a podling.
2. Review the Incubation Policy. This outlines the rules for participation.
3. Submit a proposal for your project to join the Incubator.

The site also points to presentations offering advice on applying to — and ultimately graduating from — the Incubator.

Who this is for

The Incubator is relevant if you maintain a project that wants to join the ASF and operate under the Apache Way, or if you are donating IP to the ASF. If you are simply looking to use Apache software, you don't need the Incubator — it serves projects and their communities, not end users. A useful first check is the cookbook's fit assessment: it is designed to help you decide whether the ASF is the right home before you invest in a proposal.

Where to go next

The site organizes its material into policies (including the Incubation Policy and IP clearance), proposal guidance, podling guides (community building, branding, publicity, code import, name search, websites, source control, release management, graduation, retirement, and transferring resources out of the Incubator), a current podling list, and role-specific guides for mentors, the Incubator chair, and PMCs. Start with the cookbook and policy; use the podling guides once your proposal is accepted.

A podling is an incoming project that has been accepted into the Apache Incubator, the ASF body that helps projects adopt Apache-style governance and operation. A podling is not yet a top-level project (TLP): it works toward graduating as one, and the Incubator recommends that graduation to the ASF Board. The term applies only while a project is inside the Incubator — once it graduates, it becomes a TLP.

Where podlings sit in the ASF structure

The Incubator provides services to projects seeking to enter the Apache Software Foundation. It helps those incoming projects adopt the Apache Way — the ASF's philosophy and guidelines for collaborative development — and guides them to the services and resources they need to become TLPs.

Each podling is assigned mentors. Mentors act as liaisons between the podling and various ASF teams, such as the Incubator PMC and the Infrastructure team, to facilitate the podling's operations and ongoing growth.

What the Incubator does with podlings

The Incubator's stated responsibilities frame the podling lifecycle:

• Welcoming new podlings to become part of the ASF.
• Guiding podlings to govern and grow their communities according to the Apache Way.
• Reporting monthly to the board on the progress of podlings.
• Recommending to the ASF Board podlings that should graduate and become top-level projects.
• Retiring podlings when needed.
• Accepting IP donations.

So a podling is simultaneously being onboarded, guided, monitored (through monthly board reports), and evaluated for graduation — or, if it does not progress, retirement.

Podling vs. top-level project

The distinction is about stage, not permanence: the Incubator's own description of its role is to guide podlings so they can become TLPs.

How a project becomes a podling

The Incubator's Getting Started guidance lists three steps:

1. Read the cookbook. It helps potential podlings decide whether the ASF is a good fit and walks through the steps required to become an ASF podling.
2. Review the Incubation Policy. This outlines the rules for participation.
3. Submit a proposal for your project to join the Incubator.

A proposal is therefore the entry point: a project is not a podling until it has been accepted through that process. The site also maintains a list of Current Podlings, which is the practical place to see what is in the Incubator at any given time.

What podlings have to work with

The Incubator publishes guides aimed at podlings and their committees, including:

• Podling Guides and a Cookbook
• Roles and Responsibilities, including Committers and the Podling Project Management Committee
• A Guide to Successful Community Building
• Incubator Branding Guide, Podling Publicity/Media Guidelines, and a Podling Press Kit
• Initial Code Import, Podling Name Search Guide, and Podling IP Clearance
• Podling Websites, Podling Source Control, and Release Management (including a Release Distribution guide)
• A Guide to Successful Graduation and a Guide to Retirement
• Transferring Resources out of the Incubator

The presence of both graduation and retirement guides reflects the two documented outcomes of incubation. For advice on applying to — and ultimately graduating from — the Incubator, the site also points to presentations, including a keynote on The Apache Incubator.

Practical takeaways

• If you are evaluating a project that lives at an incubator.apache.org address or is described as "in the Incubator," treat it as a podling: it is still maturing its governance and community under mentor guidance.
• If you are proposing a project, start with the cookbook and the Incubation Policy before drafting a proposal, and expect to adopt the Apache Way rather than only host code.
• If you are following a podling's progress, the Incubator's monthly board reports and the Clutch Report are the documented tracking artifacts.

The Apache Incubator is the entry path into the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) for projects that want to join. It helps incoming projects, called "podlings," adopt the Apache style of governance and operation and guides them toward becoming top-level ASF projects (TLPs). Its formal responsibilities are welcoming new podlings, guiding their communities under the Apache Way, reporting monthly to the ASF Board, recommending graduation (or retiring podlings when needed), and accepting intellectual property donations. This overview is for anyone evaluating whether the Incubator fits their project or trying to understand how the ASF onboards new work.

The five core responsibilities

The Incubator's own site lists these duties:

How the Incubator carries this out

The Incubator assigns mentors to every podling. Mentors act as liaisons between the podling and ASF teams such as the Incubator PMC and the Infrastructure team, facilitating the podling's operations and ongoing growth. In other words, the responsibilities above are not abstract: a named mentor is the podling's day-to-day connection to the rest of the Foundation.

What this means if you are considering joining

The responsibilities map directly onto what a prospective podling must do:

1. Read the cookbook — it helps you decide whether the ASF is a good fit and walks through the steps to become a podling.
2. Review the Incubation Policy — it outlines the rules for participation.
3. Submit a proposal for your project to join the Incubator.

Expect the process to be about community and governance as much as code: the Incubator's job is to see that your project can govern and grow itself the Apache way before it graduates.

Where to go next

The Incubator site also publishes guidance on proposal creation, IP clearance, branding, release management, successful graduation, and retirement, plus a list of current podlings and the Clutch report. If your question is "is the ASF right for us?" start with the cookbook; if it is "what are we signing up for?" the responsibilities table above is the short answer.

The Apache Incubator is the entry path for projects that want to join the Apache Software Foundation (ASF). Incoming projects are called "podlings." To get started, follow the three steps the Incubator itself lists: read the cookbook to judge whether the ASF fits your project, review the Incubation Policy for the rules of participation, and submit a project proposal to join the Incubator. Each podling is assigned mentors who act as liaisons to ASF teams such as the Incubator PMC and the Infrastructure team.

What the Incubator does

The Incubator provides services to projects seeking to enter the ASF. It helps podlings adopt the Apache style of governance and operation and guides them toward becoming top-level ASF projects (TLPs). Its stated responsibilities are:

• Welcoming new podlings into the ASF
• Guiding podlings to govern and grow their communities according to the Apache Way, the ASF's philosophy and guidelines for collaborative development
• Reporting monthly to the board on podling progress
• Recommending to the ASF Board podlings that should graduate and become top-level projects
• Retiring podlings when needed
• Accepting IP donations

Step 1: Read the cookbook

The cookbook helps potential podlings decide whether the ASF is a good fit for them and walks through the steps required to become an ASF podling. Treat this as a go/no-go check before investing effort in a proposal: if the cookbook's criteria don't match how your project is organized and how its community works, the Incubator is likely not the right home.

Step 2: Review the Incubation Policy

The Incubation Policy outlines the rules for participation. Read it before drafting a proposal so that your plan for governance, community building, and releases matches what the Incubator expects.

Step 3: Submit a proposal

Submit a proposal for your project to join the Incubator. The site's resource list points to a "Guide To Proposal Creation" and related material under Proposals, alongside podling guides covering roles and responsibilities, initial code import, name search, IP clearance, websites, source control, and release management. Use these when assembling the proposal and planning the first months as a podling.

Resources to use along the way

The site also lists presentations with advice on applying to and graduating from the Incubator, including a keynote on The Apache Way, plus FAQs and a Training section.

What to expect after acceptance

Once a project becomes a podling, the Incubator delegates mentors to it. Mentors serve as liaisons between the podling and ASF teams, including the Incubator PMC and Infrastructure, to facilitate operations and ongoing growth. The Incubator reports monthly to the board on podling progress and recommends podlings for graduation to top-level status when they are ready; it can also retire podlings when needed.

Common sticking points

• Skipping the fit check. The cookbook exists to help you decide whether the ASF is a good fit before you propose; use it first.
• Proposing before reading the policy. The Incubation Policy defines the rules of participation, so align the proposal with it.
• Overlooking the operational guides. Code import, name search, IP clearance, and release distribution each have their own guidance; plan for them rather than discovering them mid-incubation.