diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
deleted file mode 100644
index f848536..0000000
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,414 +0,0 @@
-How to Submit Patches for Open vSwitch
-======================================
-
-Send changes to Open vSwitch as patches to dev@openvswitch.org.
-One patch per email, please.  More details are included below.
-
-If you are using Git, then `git format-patch` takes care of most of
-the mechanics described below for you.
-
-Before You Start
-----------------
-
-Before you send patches at all, make sure that each patch makes sense.
-In particular:
-
-  - A given patch should not break anything, even if later
-    patches fix the problems that it causes.  The source tree
-    should still build and work after each patch is applied.
-    (This enables `git bisect` to work best.)
-
-  - A patch should make one logical change.  Don't make
-    multiple, logically unconnected changes to disparate
-    subsystems in a single patch.
-
-  - A patch that adds or removes user-visible features should
-    also update the appropriate user documentation or manpages.
-    Check "Feature Deprecation Guidelines" section in this document
-    if you intend to remove user-visible feature.
-
-Testing is also important:
-
-  - A patch that modifies existing code should be tested with `make
-    check` before submission.  Please see INSTALL.rst, under
-    "Self-Tests", for more information.
-
-  - A patch that adds or deletes files should also be tested with
-    `make distcheck` before submission.
-
-  - A patch that modifies Linux kernel code should be at least
-    build-tested on various Linux kernel versions before
-    submission.  I suggest versions 3.10 and whatever
-    the current latest release version is at the time.
-
-  - A patch that modifies the ofproto or vswitchd code should be
-    tested in at least simple cases before submission.
-
-  - A patch that modifies xenserver code should be tested on
-    XenServer before submission.
-
-If you are using GitHub, then you may utilize the travis-ci.org CI build
-system by linking your GitHub repository to it. This will run some of
-the above tests automatically when you push changes to your repository.
-See the "Continuous Integration with Travis-CI" in the [INSTALL.rst] file
-for details on how to set it up.
-
-Email Subject
--------------
-
-The subject line of your email should be in the following format:
-`[PATCH <n>/<m>] <area>: <summary>`
-
-  - `[PATCH <n>/<m>]` indicates that this is the nth of a series
-    of m patches.  It helps reviewers to read patches in the
-    correct order.  You may omit this prefix if you are sending
-    only one patch.
-
-  - `<area>:` indicates the area of the Open vSwitch to which the
-    change applies (often the name of a source file or a
-    directory).  You may omit it if the change crosses multiple
-    distinct pieces of code.
-
-  - `<summary>` briefly describes the change.
-
-The subject, minus the `[PATCH <n>/<m>]` prefix, becomes the first line
-of the commit's change log message.
-
-Description
------------
-
-The body of the email should start with a more thorough description of
-the change.  This becomes the body of the commit message, following
-the subject.  There is no need to duplicate the summary given in the
-subject.
-
-Please limit lines in the description to 79 characters in width.
-
-The description should include:
-
-  - The rationale for the change.
-
-  - Design description and rationale (but this might be better
-    added as code comments).
-
-  - Testing that you performed (or testing that should be done
-    but you could not for whatever reason).
-
-  - Tags (see below).
-
-There is no need to describe what the patch actually changed, if the
-reader can see it for himself.
-
-If the patch refers to a commit already in the Open vSwitch
-repository, please include both the commit number and the subject of
-the patch, e.g. 'commit 632d136c (vswitch: Remove restriction on
-datapath names.)'.
-
-If you, the person sending the patch, did not write the patch
-yourself, then the very first line of the body should take the form
-`From: <author name> <author email>`, followed by a blank line.  This
-will automatically cause the named author to be credited with
-authorship in the repository.
-
-Tags
-----
-
-The description ends with a series of tags, written one to a line as
-the last paragraph of the email.  Each tag indicates some property of
-the patch in an easily machine-parseable manner.
-
-Examples of common tags follow.
-
-    Signed-off-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>
-
-        Informally, this indicates that Author Name is the author or
-        submitter of a patch and has the authority to submit it under
-        the terms of the license.  The formal meaning is to agree to
-        the Developer's Certificate of Origin (see below).
-
-        If the author and submitter are different, each must sign off.
-        If the patch has more than one author, all must sign off.
-
-        Signed-off-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>
-        Signed-off-by: Submitter Name <submitter.name@email.address...>
-
-    Co-authored-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>
-
-        Git can only record a single person as the author of a given
-        patch.  In the rare event that a patch has multiple authors,
-        one must be given the credit in Git and the others must be
-        credited via Co-authored-by: tags.  (All co-authors must also
-        sign off.)
-
-    Acked-by: Reviewer Name <reviewer.name@email.address...>
-
-        Reviewers will often give an Acked-by: tag to code of which
-        they approve.  It is polite for the submitter to add the tag
-        before posting the next version of the patch or applying the
-        patch to the repository.  Quality reviewing is hard work, so
-        this gives a small amount of credit to the reviewer.
-
-        Not all reviewers give Acked-by: tags when they provide
-        positive reviews.  It's customary only to add tags from
-        reviewers who actually provide them explicitly.
-
-    Tested-by: Tester Name <reviewer.name@email.address...>
-
-        When someone tests a patch, it is customary to add a
-        Tested-by: tag indicating that.  It's rare for a tester to
-        actually provide the tag; usually the patch submitter makes
-        the tag himself in response to an email indicating successful
-        testing results.
-
-    Tested-at: <URL>
-
-        When a test report is publicly available, this provides a way
-        to reference it.  Typical <URL>s would be build logs from
-        autobuilders or references to mailing list archives.
-
-        Some autobuilders only retain their logs for a limited amount
-        of time.  It is less useful to cite these because they may be
-        dead links for a developer reading the commit message months
-        or years later.
-
-    Reported-by: Reporter Name <reporter.name@email.address...>
-
-        When a patch fixes a bug reported by some person, please
-        credit the reporter in the commit log in this fashion.  Please
-        also add the reporter's name and email address to the list of
-        people who provided helpful bug reports in the AUTHORS file at
-        the top of the source tree.
-
-        Fairly often, the reporter of a bug also tests the fix.
-        Occasionally one sees a combined "Reported-and-tested-by:" tag
-        used to indicate this.  It is also acceptable, and more
-        common, to include both tags separately.
-
-        (If a bug report is received privately, it might not always be
-        appropriate to publicly credit the reporter.  If in doubt,
-        please ask the reporter.)
-
-    Requested-by: Requester Name <requester.name@email.address...>
-    Suggested-by: Suggester Name <suggester.name@email.address...>
-
-        When a patch implements a request or a suggestion made by some
-        person, please credit that person in the commit log in this
-        fashion.  For a helpful suggestion, please also add the
-        person's name and email address to the list of people who
-        provided suggestions in the AUTHORS file at the top of the
-        source tree.
-
-        (If a suggestion or a request is received privately, it might
-        not always be appropriate to publicly give credit.  If in
-        doubt, please ask.)
-
-    CC: Person <name@email>
-
-        This is a way to tag a patch for the attention of a person
-        when no more specific tag is appropriate.  One use is to
-        request a review from a particular person.  It doesn't make
-        sense to include the same person in CC and another tag, so
-        e.g. if someone who is CCed later provides an Acked-by, add
-        the Acked-by and remove the CC at the same time.
-
-    Reported-at: <URL>
-
-        If a patch fixes or is otherwise related to a bug reported in
-        a public bug tracker, please include a reference to the bug in
-        the form of a URL to the specific bug, e.g.:
-
-        Reported-at: https://bugs.debian.org/743635
-
-        This is also an appropriate way to refer to bug report emails
-        in public email archives, e.g.:
-
-        Reported-at: http://openvswitch.org/pipermail/dev/2014-June/040952.html
-
-    Submitted-at: <URL>
-
-        If a patch was submitted somewhere other than the Open vSwitch
-        development mailing list, such as a GitHub pull request, this header can
-        be used to reference the source.
-
-        Submitted-at: https://github.com/openvswitch/ovs/pull/92
-
-    VMware-BZ: #1234567
-    ONF-JIRA: EXT-12345
-
-        If a patch fixes or is otherwise related to a bug reported in
-        a private bug tracker, you may include some tracking ID for
-        the bug for your own reference.  Please include some
-        identifier to make the origin clear, e.g. "VMware-BZ" refers
-        to VMware's internal Bugzilla instance and "ONF-JIRA" refers
-        to the Open Networking Foundation's JIRA bug tracker.
-
-    Bug #1234567.
-    Issue: 1234567
-
-        These are obsolete forms of VMware-BZ: that can still be seen
-        in old change log entries.  (They are obsolete because they do
-        not tell the reader what bug tracker is referred to.)
-
-    Fixes: 63bc9fb1c69f (“packets: Reorder CS_* flags to remove gap.”)
-
-        If you would like to record which commit introduced a bug being fixed,
-        you may do that with a “Fixes” header.  This assists in determining
-        which OVS releases have the bug, so the patch can be applied to all
-        affected versions.  The easiest way to generate the header in the
-        proper format is with this git command.  This command also CCs the
-        author of the commit being fixed, which makes sense unless the
-        author also made the fix or is already named in another tag:
-
-        git log -1 --pretty=format:"CC: %an <%ae>%nFixes: %h (\"%s\")" --abbrev=12 COMMIT_REF
-
-    Vulnerability: CVE-2016-2074
-
-        Specifies that the patch fixes or is otherwise related to a
-        security vulnerability with the given CVE identifier.  Other
-        identifiers in public vulnerability databases are also
-        suitable.
-
-        If the vulnerability was reported publicly, then it is also
-        appropriate to cite the URL to the report in a Reported-at
-        tag.  Use a Reported-by tag to acknowledge the reporters.
-
-Developer's Certificate of Origin
----------------------------------
-
-To help track the author of a patch as well as the submission chain,
-and be clear that the developer has authority to submit a patch for
-inclusion in openvswitch please sign off your work.  The sign off
-certifies the following:
-
-    Developer's Certificate of Origin 1.1
-
-    By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
-
-    (a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
-        have the right to submit it under the open source license
-        indicated in the file; or
-
-    (b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
-        of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
-        license and I have the right under that license to submit that
-        work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
-        by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
-        permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
-        in the file; or
-
-    (c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
-        person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
-        it.
-
-    (d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
-        are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
-        personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
-        maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
-        this project or the open source license(s) involved.
-
-Feature Deprecation Guidelines
-------------------------------
-
-Open vSwitch is intended to be user friendly.  This means that under
-normal circumstances we don't abruptly remove features from OVS that
-some users might still be using.  Otherwise, if we would, then we would
-possibly break our user setup when they upgrade and would receive bug
-reports.
-
-Typical process to deprecate a feature in Open vSwitch is to:
-
-    (a) Mention deprecation of a feature in the NEWS file.  Also, mention
-        expected release or absolute time when this feature would be removed
-        from OVS altogether.  Don't use relative time (e.g. "in 6 months")
-        because that is not clearly interpretable.
-
-    (b) If Open vSwitch is configured to use deprecated feature it should print
-        a warning message to the log files clearly indicating that feature is
-        deprecated and that use of it should be avoided.
-
-    (c) If this feature is mentioned in man pages, then add "Deprecated" keyword
-        to it.
-
-Also, if there is alternative feature to the one that is about to be marked
-as deprecated, then mention it in (a), (b) and (c) as well.
-
-Remember to followup and actually remove the feature from OVS codebase
-once deprecation grace period has expired and users had opportunity to
-use at least one OVS release that would have informed them about feature
-deprecation!
-
-Comments
---------
-
-If you want to include any comments in your email that should not be
-part of the commit's change log message, put them after the
-description, separated by a line that contains just `---`.  It may be
-helpful to include a diffstat here for changes that touch multiple
-files.
-
-Patch
------
-
-The patch should be in the body of the email following the description,
-separated by a blank line.
-
-Patches should be in `diff -up` format.  We recommend that you use Git
-to produce your patches, in which case you should use the `-M -C`
-options to `git diff` (or other Git tools) if your patch renames or
-copies files.  Quilt (http://savannah.nongnu.org/projects/quilt) might
-be useful if you do not want to use Git.
-
-Patches should be inline in the email message.  Some email clients
-corrupt white space or wrap lines in patches.  There are hints on how
-to configure many email clients to avoid this problem at:
-        http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=blob_plain;f=Documentation/email-clients.txt
-If you cannot convince your email client not to mangle patches, then
-sending the patch as an attachment is a second choice.
-
-Please follow the style used in the code that you are modifying.  The
-[CodingStyle] file describes the coding style used in most of Open
-vSwitch. Use Linux kernel coding style for Linux kernel code.
-
-If your code is non-datapath code, you may use the
-`utilities/checkpatch.py` utility as a quick check for certain commonly
-occuring mistakes (improper leading/trailing whitespace, missing signoffs,
-some improper formatted patch files).  For linux datapath code, it is
-a good idea to use the linux script `checkpatch.pl`.
-
-Example
--------
-
-```
-From fa29a1c2c17682879e79a21bb0cdd5bbe67fa7c0 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
-From: Jesse Gross <jesse@nicira.com>
-Date: Thu, 8 Dec 2011 13:17:24 -0800
-Subject: [PATCH] datapath: Alphabetize include/net/ipv6.h compat header.
-
-Signed-off-by: Jesse Gross <jesse@nicira.com>
----
- datapath/linux/Modules.mk |    2 +-
- 1 files changed, 1 insertions(+), 1 deletions(-)
-
-diff --git a/datapath/linux/Modules.mk b/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
-index fdd952e..f6cb88e 100644
---- a/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
-+++ b/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
-@@ -56,11 +56,11 @@ openvswitch_headers += \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/dst.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/genetlink.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/ip.h \
-+	linux/compat/include/net/ipv6.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/net_namespace.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/netlink.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/protocol.h \
- 	linux/compat/include/net/route.h \
--	linux/compat/include/net/ipv6.h \
- 	linux/compat/genetlink.inc
- 
- both_modules += brcompat
--- 
-1.7.7.3
-```
-
-[INSTALL.rst]:INSTALL.rst
-[CodingStyle]: CodingStyle.rst
diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.rst b/CONTRIBUTING.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..867562e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,444 @@
+..
+      Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may
+      not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain
+      a copy of the License at
+
+          http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+      Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+      distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT
+      WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the
+      License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations
+      under the License.
+
+      Convention for heading levels in Open vSwitch documentation:
+
+      =======  Heading 0 (reserved for the title in a document)
+      -------  Heading 1
+      ~~~~~~~  Heading 2
+      +++++++  Heading 3
+      '''''''  Heading 4
+
+      Avoid deeper levels because they do not render well.
+
+============================
+Contributing to Open vSwitch
+============================
+
+Send changes to Open vSwitch as patches to dev@openvswitch.org.  One patch per
+email.  More details are included below.
+
+If you are using Git, then `git format-patch` takes care of most of the
+mechanics described below for you.
+
+Before You Start
+----------------
+
+Before you send patches at all, make sure that each patch makes sense.  In
+particular:
+
+- A given patch should not break anything, even if later patches fix the
+  problems that it causes.  The source tree should still build and work after
+  each patch is applied.  (This enables `git bisect` to work best.)
+
+- A patch should make one logical change.  Don't make multiple, logically
+  unconnected changes to disparate subsystems in a single patch.
+
+- A patch that adds or removes user-visible features should also update the
+  appropriate user documentation or manpages.  Check "Feature Deprecation
+  Guidelines" section in this document if you intend to remove user-visible
+  feature.
+
+Testing is also important:
+
+- A patch that modifies existing code should be tested with ``make
+  check`` before submission.  Please see the `install guide <INSTALL.rst>`__,
+  under "Self-Tests", for more information.
+
+- A patch that adds or deletes files should also be tested with ``make
+  distcheck`` before submission.
+
+- A patch that modifies Linux kernel code should be at least build-tested on
+  various Linux kernel versions before submission.  I suggest versions 3.10 and
+  whatever the current latest release version is at the time.
+
+- A patch that modifies the ofproto or vswitchd code should be tested in at
+  least simple cases before submission.
+
+- A patch that modifies xenserver code should be tested on XenServer before
+  submission.
+
+If you are using GitHub, then you may utilize the travis-ci.org CI build system
+by linking your GitHub repository to it. This will run some of the above tests
+automatically when you push changes to your repository.  See the "Continuous
+Integration with Travis-CI" in the `install guide <INSTALL.rst>`__ for details
+on how to set it up.
+
+Email Subject
+-------------
+
+The subject line of your email should be in the following format:
+
+    [PATCH <n>/<m>] <area>: <summary>
+
+Where:
+
+``[PATCH <n>/<m>]``:
+  indicates that this is the nth of a series of m patches.  It helps reviewers
+  to read patches in the correct order.  You may omit this prefix if you are
+  sending only one patch.
+
+``<area>``:
+  indicates the area of the Open vSwitch to which the change applies (often the
+  name of a source file or a directory).  You may omit it if the change crosses
+  multiple distinct pieces of code.
+
+``<summary>``:
+  briefly describes the change.
+
+The subject, minus the ``[PATCH <n>/<m>]`` prefix, becomes the first line of
+the commit's change log message.
+
+Description
+-----------
+
+The body of the email should start with a more thorough description of the
+change.  This becomes the body of the commit message, following the subject.
+There is no need to duplicate the summary given in the subject.
+
+Please limit lines in the description to 79 characters in width.
+
+The description should include:
+
+- The rationale for the change.
+
+- Design description and rationale (but this might be better added as code
+  comments).
+
+- Testing that you performed (or testing that should be done but you could not
+  for whatever reason).
+
+- Tags (see below).
+
+There is no need to describe what the patch actually changed, if the reader can
+see it for himself.
+
+If the patch refers to a commit already in the Open vSwitch repository, please
+include both the commit number and the subject of the patch, e.g. 'commit
+632d136c (vswitch: Remove restriction on datapath names.)'.
+
+If you, the person sending the patch, did not write the patch yourself, then
+the very first line of the body should take the form ``From: <author name>
+<author email>``, followed by a blank line.  This will automatically cause the
+named author to be credited with authorship in the repository.
+
+Tags
+----
+
+The description ends with a series of tags, written one to a line as the last
+paragraph of the email.  Each tag indicates some property of the patch in an
+easily machine-parseable manner.
+
+Examples of common tags follow.
+
+``Signed-off-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>``
+
+  Informally, this indicates that Author Name is the author or submitter of a
+  patch and has the authority to submit it under the terms of the license.  The
+  formal meaning is to agree to the Developer's Certificate of Origin (see
+  below).
+
+  If the author and submitter are different, each must sign off.  If the patch
+  has more than one author, all must sign off.
+
+  ::
+
+      Signed-off-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>
+      Signed-off-by: Submitter Name <submitter.name@email.address...>
+
+``Co-authored-by: Author Name <author.name@email.address...>``
+
+  Git can only record a single person as the author of a given patch.  In the
+  rare event that a patch has multiple authors, one must be given the credit in
+  Git and the others must be credited via Co-authored-by: tags.  (All
+  co-authors must also sign off.)
+
+``Acked-by: Reviewer Name <reviewer.name@email.address...>``
+
+  Reviewers will often give an ``Acked-by:`` tag to code of which they approve.
+  It is polite for the submitter to add the tag before posting the next version
+  of the patch or applying the patch to the repository.  Quality reviewing is
+  hard work, so this gives a small amount of credit to the reviewer.
+
+  Not all reviewers give ``Acked-by:`` tags when they provide positive reviews.
+  It's customary only to add tags from reviewers who actually provide them
+  explicitly.
+
+``Tested-by: Tester Name <reviewer.name@email.address...>``
+
+  When someone tests a patch, it is customary to add a Tested-by: tag
+  indicating that.  It's rare for a tester to actually provide the tag; usually
+  the patch submitter makes the tag himself in response to an email indicating
+  successful testing results.
+
+``Tested-at: <URL>``
+
+  When a test report is publicly available, this provides a way to reference
+  it.  Typical <URL>s would be build logs from autobuilders or references to
+  mailing list archives.
+
+  Some autobuilders only retain their logs for a limited amount of time.  It is
+  less useful to cite these because they may be dead links for a developer
+  reading the commit message months or years later.
+
+``Reported-by: Reporter Name <reporter.name@email.address...>``
+
+  When a patch fixes a bug reported by some person, please credit the reporter
+  in the commit log in this fashion.  Please also add the reporter's name and
+  email address to the list of people who provided helpful bug reports in the
+  AUTHORS file at the top of the source tree.
+
+  Fairly often, the reporter of a bug also tests the fix.  Occasionally one
+  sees a combined "Reported-and-tested-by:" tag used to indicate this.  It is
+  also acceptable, and more common, to include both tags separately.
+
+  (If a bug report is received privately, it might not always be appropriate to
+  publicly credit the reporter.  If in doubt, please ask the reporter.)
+
+``Requested-by: Requester Name <requester.name@email.address...>``
+
+  When a patch implements a request or a suggestion made by some
+  person, please credit that person in the commit log in this
+  fashion.  For a helpful suggestion, please also add the
+  person's name and email address to the list of people who
+  provided suggestions in the AUTHORS file at the top of the
+  source tree.
+
+  (If a suggestion or a request is received privately, it might
+  not always be appropriate to publicly give credit.  If in
+  doubt, please ask.)
+
+``Suggested-by: Suggester Name <suggester.name@email.address...>``
+
+  See ``Requested-by:``.
+
+``CC: Person <name@email>``
+
+  This is a way to tag a patch for the attention of a person
+  when no more specific tag is appropriate.  One use is to
+  request a review from a particular person.  It doesn't make
+  sense to include the same person in CC and another tag, so
+  e.g. if someone who is CCed later provides an Acked-by, add
+  the Acked-by and remove the CC at the same time.
+
+``Reported-at: <URL>``
+
+  If a patch fixes or is otherwise related to a bug reported in
+  a public bug tracker, please include a reference to the bug in
+  the form of a URL to the specific bug, e.g.:
+
+  ::
+
+      Reported-at: https://bugs.debian.org/743635
+
+  This is also an appropriate way to refer to bug report emails
+  in public email archives, e.g.:
+
+  ::
+
+      Reported-at: http://openvswitch.org/pipermail/dev/2014-June/040952.html
+
+``Submitted-at: <URL>``
+
+  If a patch was submitted somewhere other than the Open vSwitch
+  development mailing list, such as a GitHub pull request, this header can
+  be used to reference the source.
+
+  ::
+
+      Submitted-at: https://github.com/openvswitch/ovs/pull/92
+
+``VMware-BZ: #1234567``
+
+  If a patch fixes or is otherwise related to a bug reported in
+  a private bug tracker, you may include some tracking ID for
+  the bug for your own reference.  Please include some
+  identifier to make the origin clear, e.g. "VMware-BZ" refers
+  to VMware's internal Bugzilla instance and "ONF-JIRA" refers
+  to the Open Networking Foundation's JIRA bug tracker.
+
+``ONF-JIRA: EXT-12345``
+
+  See ``VMware-BZ:``.
+
+``Bug #1234567.``
+
+  These are obsolete forms of VMware-BZ: that can still be seen
+  in old change log entries.  (They are obsolete because they do
+  not tell the reader what bug tracker is referred to.)
+
+``Issue: 1234567``
+
+  See ``Bug:``.
+
+``Fixes: 63bc9fb1c69f (“packets: Reorder CS_* flags to remove gap.”)``
+
+  If you would like to record which commit introduced a bug being fixed,
+  you may do that with a “Fixes” header.  This assists in determining
+  which OVS releases have the bug, so the patch can be applied to all
+  affected versions.  The easiest way to generate the header in the
+  proper format is with this git command.  This command also CCs the
+  author of the commit being fixed, which makes sense unless the
+  author also made the fix or is already named in another tag:
+
+  ::
+
+      $ git log -1 --pretty=format:"CC: %an <%ae>%nFixes: %h (\"%s\")" \
+        --abbrev=12 COMMIT_REF
+
+``Vulnerability: CVE-2016-2074``
+
+  Specifies that the patch fixes or is otherwise related to a
+  security vulnerability with the given CVE identifier.  Other
+  identifiers in public vulnerability databases are also
+  suitable.
+
+  If the vulnerability was reported publicly, then it is also
+  appropriate to cite the URL to the report in a Reported-at
+  tag.  Use a Reported-by tag to acknowledge the reporters.
+
+Developer's Certificate of Origin
+---------------------------------
+
+To help track the author of a patch as well as the submission chain, and be
+clear that the developer has authority to submit a patch for inclusion in
+openvswitch please sign off your work.  The sign off certifies the following:
+
+::
+
+    Developer's Certificate of Origin 1.1
+
+    By making a contribution to this project, I certify that:
+
+    (a) The contribution was created in whole or in part by me and I
+        have the right to submit it under the open source license
+        indicated in the file; or
+
+    (b) The contribution is based upon previous work that, to the best
+        of my knowledge, is covered under an appropriate open source
+        license and I have the right under that license to submit that
+        work with modifications, whether created in whole or in part
+        by me, under the same open source license (unless I am
+        permitted to submit under a different license), as indicated
+        in the file; or
+
+    (c) The contribution was provided directly to me by some other
+        person who certified (a), (b) or (c) and I have not modified
+        it.
+
+    (d) I understand and agree that this project and the contribution
+        are public and that a record of the contribution (including all
+        personal information I submit with it, including my sign-off) is
+        maintained indefinitely and may be redistributed consistent with
+        this project or the open source license(s) involved.
+
+Feature Deprecation Guidelines
+------------------------------
+
+Open vSwitch is intended to be user friendly.  This means that under normal
+circumstances we don't abruptly remove features from OVS that some users might
+still be using.  Otherwise, if we would, then we would possibly break our user
+setup when they upgrade and would receive bug reports.
+
+Typical process to deprecate a feature in Open vSwitch is to:
+
+(a) Mention deprecation of a feature in the NEWS file.  Also, mention expected
+    release or absolute time when this feature would be removed from OVS
+    altogether.  Don't use relative time (e.g. "in 6 months") because that is
+    not clearly interpretable.
+
+(b) If Open vSwitch is configured to use deprecated feature it should print
+    a warning message to the log files clearly indicating that feature is
+    deprecated and that use of it should be avoided.
+
+(c) If this feature is mentioned in man pages, then add "Deprecated" keyword
+    to it.
+
+Also, if there is alternative feature to the one that is about to be marked as
+deprecated, then mention it in (a), (b) and (c) as well.
+
+Remember to follow-up and actually remove the feature from OVS codebase once
+deprecation grace period has expired and users had opportunity to use at least
+one OVS release that would have informed them about feature deprecation!
+
+Comments
+--------
+
+If you want to include any comments in your email that should not be part of
+the commit's change log message, put them after the description, separated by a
+line that contains just `---`.  It may be helpful to include a diffstat here
+for changes that touch multiple files.
+
+Patch
+-----
+
+The patch should be in the body of the email following the description,
+separated by a blank line.
+
+Patches should be in ``diff -up`` format.  We recommend that you use Git to
+produce your patches, in which case you should use the ``-M -C`` options to
+``git diff`` (or other Git tools) if your patch renames or copies files.
+`Quilt <http://savannah.nongnu.org/projects/quilt>`__ might be useful if you do
+not want to use Git.
+
+Patches should be inline in the email message.  Some email clients corrupt
+white space or wrap lines in patches.  There are hints on how to configure many
+email clients to avoid this problem on `kernel.org
+<http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=blob_plain;f=Documentation/email-clients.txt>`__.
+If you cannot convince your email client not to mangle patches, then sending
+the patch as an attachment is a second choice.
+
+Please follow the style used in the code that you are modifying.  The
+`CodingStyle <CodingStyle.rst>`__ file describes the coding style used in most
+of Open vSwitch. Use Linux kernel coding style for Linux kernel code.
+
+If your code is non-datapath code, you may use the ``utilities/checkpatch.py``
+utility as a quick check for certain commonly occuring mistakes (improper
+leading/trailing whitespace, missing signoffs, some improper formatted patch
+files).  For linux datapath code, it is a good idea to use the linux script
+``checkpatch.pl``.
+
+Example
+-------
+
+::
+
+    From fa29a1c2c17682879e79a21bb0cdd5bbe67fa7c0 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
+    From: Jesse Gross <jesse@nicira.com>
+    Date: Thu, 8 Dec 2011 13:17:24 -0800
+    Subject: [PATCH] datapath: Alphabetize include/net/ipv6.h compat header.
+
+    Signed-off-by: Jesse Gross <jesse@nicira.com>
+    ---
+     datapath/linux/Modules.mk |    2 +-
+     1 files changed, 1 insertions(+), 1 deletions(-)
+
+    diff --git a/datapath/linux/Modules.mk b/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
+    index fdd952e..f6cb88e 100644
+    --- a/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
+    +++ b/datapath/linux/Modules.mk
+    @@ -56,11 +56,11 @@ openvswitch_headers += \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/dst.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/genetlink.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/ip.h \
+    +	linux/compat/include/net/ipv6.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/net_namespace.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/netlink.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/protocol.h \
+     	linux/compat/include/net/route.h \
+    -	linux/compat/include/net/ipv6.h \
+     	linux/compat/genetlink.inc
+
+     both_modules += brcompat
+    -- 
+    1.7.7.3
diff --git a/Documentation/committer-responsibilities.md b/Documentation/committer-responsibilities.md
index 9e93c4e..40ffb51 100644
--- a/Documentation/committer-responsibilities.md
+++ b/Documentation/committer-responsibilities.md
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ Prerequisites
 -------------
 
 Be familiar with [CodingStyle.md](../CodingStyle.md) and
-[CONTRIBUTING.md](../CONTRIBUTING.md).
+[CONTRIBUTING.rst](../CONTRIBUTING.rst).
 
 Review
 ------
@@ -70,7 +70,7 @@ the use of "Signed-off-by:" to a new developer, explain not just how but
 why, since the intended meaning of "Signed-off-by:" is more important
 than the syntax. As part of your explanation, quote or provide a URL
 to the Developer's Certificate of Origin in
-[CONTRIBUTING.md](../CONTRIBUTING.md).
+[CONTRIBUTING.rst](../CONTRIBUTING.rst).
 
 Use Reported-by: and Tested-by: tags in commit messages to indicate
 the source of a bug report.
diff --git a/Makefile.am b/Makefile.am
index c1eba48..ba10ee8 100644
--- a/Makefile.am
+++ b/Makefile.am
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ PYCOV_CLEAN_FILES = build-aux/check-structs,cover
 # A list of Markdown- or reStructuredText-formatted documentation that will
 # automatically be included in the "make dist-docs" output.
 docs = \
-	CONTRIBUTING.md \
+	CONTRIBUTING.rst \
 	CodingStyle.rst \
 	DESIGN.md \
 	FAQ.md \
diff --git a/OPENFLOW-1.1+.md b/OPENFLOW-1.1+.md
index e4c004f..c57b295 100644
--- a/OPENFLOW-1.1+.md
+++ b/OPENFLOW-1.1+.md
@@ -304,7 +304,7 @@ Please consider the following:
   * Coding style (see the [CodingStyle] file at the top of the
     source tree).
 
-  * The patch submission guidelines (see [CONTRIBUTING.md]).  I
+  * The patch submission guidelines (see [CONTRIBUTING.rst]).  I
     recommend using "git send-email", which automatically follows a
     lot of those guidelines.
 
diff --git a/SECURITY.rst b/SECURITY.rst
index 31155a5..922c2ba 100644
--- a/SECURITY.rst
+++ b/SECURITY.rst
@@ -178,7 +178,7 @@ sections for the document include:
 
     * Patch: If a patch or patches are available, and it is practical
       to include them in the email, put them at the end.  Format them
-      as described in CONTRIBUTING.md, that is, as output by "git
+      as described in CONTRIBUTING.rst, that is, as output by "git
       format-patch".
 
       The patch subjects should include the version for which they are
