Bugzilla

Bugzilla is an open-source, self-hosted bug tracker with custom workflows, typed fields and shared searches, for teams that need control over who sees each bug.

Bugzilla records software defects and change requests in a web application that each team installs on its own server, then follows every report through to resolution. The project went public on a mozilla.org server on 6 April 1998 and became open source on 26 August 1998. Since 2023 it has been managed by Zarro Boogs Corporation, a non-profit registered in Michigan. The Mozilla Foundation licenses the Bugzilla trademarks to it but does not own the project. Search sits at the center of the tool. Advanced Search builds structured queries through Custom Search, with negation and pronoun substitution, and Save and Share Searches puts a query in front of a whole group. Administrators shape each record with Custom Fields such as drop downs, dates and free text, and with Custom Workflow, which sets the statuses and the transitions allowed between them. Every bug carries Depends On and Blocks links, and Automatic Duplicate Bug Detection suggests matches while a report is filed. Reports and Charts draws tables and line, bar and pie charts, while Time Tracking, the Request System and Patch Viewer cover hours, requests to other users and attached patches. Organizations turn to Bugzilla when they outgrow simpler trackers and need workflow management, control over bug visibility, or custom fields. Group controls decide which users can see or edit which bugs, and Private Attachments and Comments hides material from anyone outside a chosen group. It suits teams with an administrator able to install and maintain a web application, since the project runs no hosted service. The project offers no commercial support of its own and lists independent consultants for teams that want outside help. Mozilla and others run Bugzilla in high-volume, high-complexity environments. Developers file and update bugs by email as well as in the browser, and scheduled reports send the results of a saved search to a group every day or week. The Extension Mechanism lets an installation add its own customizations, and Full Unicode Support with Localization lets one installation serve users in Japanese, Chinese and other languages. It fits engineering groups that keep their defect history on their own servers and want each bug's workflow, fields and visibility set by their own administrators.