Methodology · published
How tool status is derived
Metrics as of , from the GitHub or GitLab API of each repository. Refreshed monthly.
Every listed tool has one of four statuses: active, slow, inactive or archived. The status comes from two API fields: the host's archived flag and the date of the last commit. Days are counted up to the tool's fetch date.
The four statuses
Active: the last commit is within 90 days of the fetch date. Slow: the last commit is 91 to 365 days before the fetch date. Inactive: there is no commit in the 365 days before the fetch date, and the repository is not archived. Archived: the repository is marked archived on its host.
The archived flag is checked first. When the flag is not set, the number of days since the last commit decides between active, slow and inactive. The rules are published on the methodology page (status).
Days are counted from the fetch date
The count runs from the last commit to the tool's fetch date, not to the date the site was built. The last commit is the committer date of the newest commit on the default branch, as the API returns it. The difference is counted in whole days, rounded down.
A tool keeps the status from its last fetch until the next fetch. A page built weeks after a fetch still shows the status as of that fetch. The fetch date is shown next to the tool's metrics, so the status can be read against it (metrics).
Archived and inactive are different
Archived means the repository's archived flag is set on GitHub or GitLab. FreeQATools reads that flag from the API and does not infer it from activity. A long gap between commits never makes a tool archived.
Inactive means the repository is not archived and has no commit in the 365 days before the fetch date. Inactive tools are not moved to the archived page. Inactive has its own badge colour, distinct from the archived badge.
Where statuses appear
Each tool page shows a status badge with the rule text beside it. The rule text is generated from the same constants that compute the status. The tools page can be filtered by status.
Only archived tools appear on the archived page, with the date the archived flag was read and suggested alternatives. A status describes commit activity and the archived flag; it is not a judgment of quality. Status is also recorded in each monthly snapshot (updates).