Open Source Contributions to Dagu
· Tech
This post complements my other writing on Dagu, including partial success in DAG systems and using the SSH executor. Where those posts explain how Dagu works, this one documents what I’ve contributed upstream.
Introduction
I started contributing to Dagu in early 2024. Dagu is a self-contained workflow orchestration engine — DAG-based, YAML-defined, and shipped as a single Go binary with a built-in web UI. It sits in a familiar space: lighter than Airflow, more capable than Cron, and practical for teams that want orchestration without standing up a heavy control plane.
The largest piece of work was co-authoring Dagu’s queue management system, shipped in v1.17.0 and credited in the official changelog under Queue functionality implementation. Since then I’ve landed 20 merged pull requests, with 16 GitHub release credits across 8 release pages — often co-authored with maintainer Yota Hamada.
This post is a map of that work: what shipped, where it was credited, and what’s still in flight.
At a Glance
| Metric |
Value |
| Merged pull requests |
20 (+ co-authored core queue system) |
| GitHub releases crediting you |
16 across 8 release pages |
Commits on main |
21 |
| Lines added |
~4,700 |
| Lines removed |
~1,200 |
| Files touched |
133 |
| Primary stacks |
Go, React/TypeScript, OpenAPI, Helm/Kubernetes |
By area
| Area |
PRs |
Approx. lines added |
| Runtime & executors |
5 |
~2,200 |
| API & backend services |
5 |
~1,000 |
| UI / frontend |
5 |
~350 |
| Infrastructure & DevOps |
3 |
~730 |
| Core configuration |
2 |
~400 |
Activity was sparse in 2024, then accelerated through 2025 — with a major queue merge in May 2025, a busy November 2025 (API, jq executor, timeouts, DAG runs UI), and February–May 2026 (Helm chart, scheduler capacity fixes, schema param defaults).
About Dagu
Dagu runs workflows defined as directed acyclic graphs in YAML. A single binary handles scheduling, execution, and the web UI — no external database required. It supports local, queue-based, and distributed execution, with 18+ built-in step executors: shell, Docker, HTTP, SSH, jq, SQL, sub-DAGs, and more.
Stack: Go 1.26 · React 19 · TypeScript · Chi (REST) · gRPC · OpenAPI · Helm · Tailwind CSS
If you’re new to the project, the docs are a good starting point.
Featured Contributions
Queue Management System — v1.17.0 · Co-authored #940
Original implementation: #690 (issue #535)
Merged to main: May 24, 2025 · Released in: v1.17.0 (June 18, 2025)
Co-authored the core queue system that lets Dagu run workflows with controlled concurrency — one of the project’s major v1.17.0 features. The official changelog credits @kriyanshii under Queue functionality implementation.
What it introduced:
dagu enqueue / dagu dequeue CLI commands- File-based persistent queue with priority and standard queues
Queued workflow status and scheduler queue worker- Queue management UI (enqueue/dequeue from the Web UI)
- Enqueue API for programmatic queueing
Foundational load-control primitive — queues, concurrency limits, and distributed workers all build on it. Original prototype ~847 lines across 21 files; shipped via #940 with ~5,200 lines across 115 files. Co-authored with Yota Hamada (integration & merge).
Production-Ready Helm Chart for Kubernetes — #1613 · v2.0.2
Complete Helm chart for deploying Dagu on Kubernetes — configurable values, service definitions, and deployment templates. First-class K8s install path: 16 files, ~683 lines added.
Scheduler Global Queue Capacity on Retry — #1676 · v2.0.2
Retries now respect global queue capacity limits, preventing overflow when failed runs are re-queued. 13 files, ~497 lines. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Enqueue DAGRun from Spec API — #1375 · v1.24.0
REST endpoint to enqueue a DAG run from a YAML spec, without a pre-existing on-disk DAG file. 5 files, ~648 lines. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
jq Executor raw-output Option — #1392 · v1.24.2
raw-output option for unquoted string output, matching jq -r behavior. 3 files, ~634 lines including tests. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Step-Level timeoutSec — #1412 · v1.24.8
Per-step timeout configuration, independent of DAG-level timeouts. 15 files, ~440 lines. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Custom Exit Codes on Retry — #902 · v1.16.8
Define which exit codes trigger a step retry — retry on transient failures, not expected ones. 7 files, ~624 lines.
Lock Parameters and Run ID — #1176 · v1.20.0
DAG-level config to lock parameters and run IDs during re-runs or scheduled executions. 12 files, ~383 lines. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Clear Queue Functionality — #1299 · v1.22.10
REST API plus UI controls on /queues for draining stuck queue entries. 4 files, ~262 lines. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Running/Failed Steps on DAG Runs Page — #1420 · v1.24.11
Inline running and failed step names on the DAG runs list — faster triage without drilling into details. 4 files, ~177 lines.
Queue Override on Enqueue — #1240 · v1.22.3
Override the target queue when enqueuing a DAG run, via CLI flag and API request body. 15 files, ~118 lines.
--from-run-id CLI Flag — Co-authored #1378 · v1.24.0
--from-run-id on the start command — new runs inherit context from a previous DAG run history entry. Co-authored with Yota Hamada.
Disable Step Retry While DAG Is Running — #1447 · v1.26.2
Disabled per-step retry controls in the Web UI during active execution — avoids conflicting retry actions mid-run. 1 file, ~10 lines.
Fix Dequeue Queue Name in Runtime — #1481 · v1.26.4
Fixed the runtime Dequeue command builder to pass the queue name as a positional argument. API-initiated dequeue was failing because the CLI expected dagu dequeue <queue-name> but the name was omitted. 2 files, ~23 lines.
Fix Empty Schema Params for Eval Defaults — #2173 · v2.7.2
Start/Enqueue modal now omits empty parameter values from the request payload, so eval-backed defaults (e.g. ${NOW}) resolve correctly instead of being overridden by blank strings. 2 files, ~20 lines.
All Merged Pull Requests
| # |
Title |
Date |
Release |
+Lines |
Area |
| — |
Queue management system (co-authored #940) |
2025-05 |
v1.17.0 |
~5,200 |
Core / Scheduler |
| 558 |
Configurable DAG status display |
2024-04 |
v1.13.0 |
16 |
UI / Core |
| 765 |
Improved parameter handling |
2025-01 |
— |
14 |
Core |
| 805 |
Headless mode support |
2025-02 |
v1.16.1 |
42 |
CLI / Infra |
| 899 |
DAG graph zoom in/out |
2025-04 |
v1.16.8 |
84 |
UI |
| 904 |
Makefile build-ui target |
2025-04 |
v1.16.8 |
6 |
DevOps |
| 902 |
Custom exit codes on retry |
2025-04 |
v1.16.8 |
624 |
Runtime |
| 1126 |
Remove hardcoded paginator limit |
2025-07 |
— |
4 |
API |
| 1176 |
Lock parameters and run ID |
2025-08 |
v1.20.0 |
383 |
Core / API |
| 1240 |
Queue override on enqueue (CLI + API) |
2025-09 |
v1.22.3 |
118 |
API / CLI |
| 1299 |
Clear queue functionality |
2025-10 |
v1.22.10 |
262 |
API / UI |
| 1375 |
Enqueue DAGRun from spec API |
2025-11 |
v1.24.0 |
648 |
API |
| 1378 |
--from-run-id CLI flag (co-authored) |
2025-11 |
v1.24.0 |
— |
CLI |
| 1383 |
Fix DAG zoom-out rendering |
2025-11 |
v1.24.0 |
26 |
UI |
| 1392 |
jq executor raw-output option |
2025-11 |
v1.24.2 |
634 |
Runtime |
| 1412 |
Step-level timeoutSec |
2025-11 |
v1.24.8 |
440 |
Runtime |
| 1420 |
Running/failed steps on DAG runs page |
2025-11 |
v1.24.11 |
177 |
UI |
| 1447 |
Disable step retry while DAG is running |
2025-12 |
v1.26.2 |
10 |
UI |
| 1481 |
Fix queue name in dequeue command |
2025-12 |
v1.26.4 |
23 |
Runtime |
| 1613 |
Production-ready Helm chart |
2026-02 |
v2.0.2 |
683 |
Infra |
| 1676 |
Scheduler queue capacity on retry |
2026-02 |
v2.0.2 |
497 |
Scheduler |
| 2173 |
Fix empty schema params for eval defaults |
2026-05 |
v2.7.2 |
20 |
UI |
GitHub Release Credits
Mentions of @kriyanshii across dagucloud/dagu releases (16 releases on 8 pages):
Note: v1.17.0 stable credits the queue system in the docs changelog but not in the GitHub release body. #765 and #1126 are merged but not called out in any GitHub release notes.
Community & Issue Credits
Credited in release notes without direct code PR authorship:
| Item |
Type |
Release |
| #1494 Tag-wise search for DAG runs |
Feature request (shipped in #1576) |
v2.0.2 |
| #1460 Singleton enqueue flag |
Feature request |
v1.26.4 |
| #1437 Queued DAGs not starting |
Bug report |
v1.26.2 |
| v2.0.0 development cycle |
Feedback & ideas (special thanks) |
v2.0.2 |
What This Work Touches
- Backend (Go): Queue scheduler, REST API design, executor plugins, runtime engine, OpenAPI codegen
- Frontend (React/TypeScript): Queue management UI, DAG visualization, run monitoring, form/schema handling
- DevOps: Helm charts, Kubernetes manifests, Makefile tooling, headless/CLI modes
- Testing: Executor test suites, API integration patterns, race-detection CI compatibility
- Open source process: Issue-driven development, PR review cycles, co-authored features with maintainers
Still in Progress
| Issue |
Description |
| #1265 |
Warning for explicit dependencies in chain-mode DAGs |
| #1347 |
Start fresh DAGRun with a different run ID from history |
| — |
Status-wise search enhancements on DAG runs page |
Links