Bugs

If you think you found a bug, it is very important to report it. If the developers don’t know about what might be broken, they can’t fix it. So there you are at your computer trying to do something with GIMP and it freaks out at you. It can be a frightening experience at times.

First, Next, Third

First
Get out a piece of paper or open a text file and scribble down everything you can remember about what you were doing when it happened. Also write down the exact wording of any error messages you received. If relevant, take a screenshot.
Next
Go away and yell and scream and do whatever you need to do to relax again.
Third
Check if your bug has been reported already by searching if any report in the Current Issue Lists looks like it. If it has, you can still help. See the section: Enhancing Bug Reports. Otherwise you will need to report it.

Checking Existing Reports

Below are different links into GitLab which show you lists of open and closed bugs for GIMP itself, its user manual or its website. You can search manually, but these links are often a convenient start. With the help of the lists below you should be able to see if the bug you have found has already been reported.

If it has been reported, and you can give more information, please add a comment with the additional information!

GIMP bugs

GIMP Manual bugs

GIMP Website bugs

Reporting a Bug

If you already know GIMP’s bug reporting procedure, just:

Otherwise please read our tutorial: How To Report an Issue

ℹ️ Note that if you are looking for fixing the problem yourself, you might rather be interested by our tutorial on the 🧑‍💻 developer website, on how to submit your first patch.

Enhancing Bug Reports

If someone has already reported the bug you encounter:

  • Read the bug report and the comments carefully. Make sure every bit of information you know about the bug is in there. If your version is different or you had a slightly different experience with the bug, add a comment providing your information.

  • Check the status of the bug carefully. If developers are requesting some information and the original reporter doesn’t answer, see if you can provide the needed information.

  • Do not add a “me too” comment unless your comment provides additional information that might be helpful for debugging.

Note: if you are unsure the existing report really describes the same bug, it is better to create a new report, though it is a good idea to mention the report ID of this other bug which looks alike. Other contributors may be able to make sense of whether it is a duplicate or not. If so, they will simply close as duplicate.