A software forge is a platform for the collaborative writing, sharing, and maintenance of source code.
Although it is primarily used for software development, a forge can also be used for writing documentation, reports or presentations (in particular via LaTeX or Markdown), as well as for creating websites.

This is a web environment consisting of a set of tools, derived in particular from software engineering, to facilitate the development of source code, especially when the writing is collaborative or distributed.

For example, a forge integrates the following services, which are essential for implementing good development practices: 

  • version management system, the most widely used being git;
  • online authoring;
  • discussion list (and/or forum) manager;
  • bug-tracking tool;
  • task management;
  • documentation manager (often based on the wiki principle);
  • quality control …

At the doctoral college level, there are training courses to help you learn how to use a forge like gitlab (in french).

Other resources are available on the web, for example:

Available forges

The Grenoble Alpes site offers all members of the academic research community a forge service based on GitLab (accessible via UGA login or external account).

You can read the documentation here (in french).

If you need any help, please contact support : sos-gitlab-gricad@univ-grenoble-alpes

Some research organisations also offer their own software forge:

  • INRIA: INRIA authentication required or create an external account via an INRIA staff member.
  • CNRS: CNRS authentication required.
  • TGIR Huma-Num: HumanId account required.

The French Committee for Open Science published a report about research forges in France.