# Reporting bugs

If you are confident that you have found a bug in LAMMPS, please follow
the steps outlined below:

> -   Check the [New features and bug
>     fixes](https://www.lammps.org/bug.html)\_ section of the [LAMMPS
>     WWW site](https://www.lammps.org)\_ or the [GitHub Releases
>     page](https://github.com/lammps/lammps/releases)\_ to see if the
>     bug has already been addressed in a patch release.
> -   Check that your issue can be reproduced with the latest
>     development version of LAMMPS.
> -   Check the manual carefully to verify that the unexpected behavior
>     you are observing is indeed in conflict with the documentation
> -   Check the [GitHub Issue
>     page](https://github.com/lammps/lammps/issues)\_ if your issue has
>     already been reported and if it is still open.
> -   Check the [GitHub Pull Requests
>     page](https://github.com/lammps/lammps/pulls)\_ to see if there is
>     already a fix for your bug pending.
> -   Check the [LAMMPS forum at MatSci](https://matsci.org/lammps/)\_
>     to see if the issue has been discussed before.

If none of these steps yields any useful information, please file a new
bug report on the [GitHub Issue
page](https://github.com/lammps/lammps/issues)\_. The website will offer
you to select a suitable template with explanations and then you should
replace those explanations with the information that you can provide to
reproduce your issue.

The most useful thing you can do to help us verify and fix a bug is to
isolate the problem. Run it on the smallest number of atoms and fewest
number of processors with the simplest input script that reproduces the
bug. Try to identify what command or combination of commands is causing
the problem and upload the complete input deck as a tar or zip archive.
Please avoid using binary restart files unless the issue requires it. In
the latter case you should also include an input deck to quickly
generate this restart from a data file or a simple additional input.
This input deck can be used with tools like a debugger or
[valgrind](https://valgrind.org)\_ to further [debug the
crash](Errors_debug).

You may also post a message in the [development category of the LAMMPS
forum at MatSci](https://matsci.org/c/lammps/lammps-development/)\_
describing the problem with the same kind of information. The forum can
provide a faster response, especially if the bug reported is actually
expected behavior or other LAMMPS users have come across it before.