Repository visibility defaults may expose private projects unintentionally in Forgejo

Repository Visibility Defaults in Forgejo

Forgejo's repository visibility controls support private, limited, and public settings, with organization-level and global defaults configurable through the admin dashboard. However, the current implementation does not appear to enforce explicit visibility selection during repository creation, which may cause new repositories to inherit unintended visibility settings from templates or organizational defaults.

The concern centers on whether Forgejo provides a mechanism to require administrators to explicitly choose visibility during repository creation, or if templates and default settings can inadvertently expose repositories that should remain private. This is particularly relevant for self-hosted instances where privacy controls are a primary design goal.

Key areas to verify: the Admin > Settings > Repository visibility options, organization-level default repository settings, the repository creation flow for required visibility selection, and template repository inheritance behavior. The documentation does not clearly specify whether explicit visibility selection can be mandated.

1. Does Forgejo support configuring a requirement for explicit visibility selection during repository creation?

2. How do template repositories inherit or override visibility settings from their source?

3. What is the recommended approach to prevent accidental public exposure of private projects?