wiki:ReleaseCycle

Version 2 (modified by ph3-der-loewe, 13 years ago) (diff)

typo

Release Cycle for RoarAudio Main Package

This document is a draft description the release cycle for the RoarAudio Main Package. The other packages are updated in a much less strict fashion.

NOTE: Everything is counted starting from zero not one.

The package has a most outer cycle with so called major releases. Those releases consists only of a major and minor version number. For example: 0.3, 0.7, 1.3. There should roughly one major release per year. If a major release is out support for the second last major release is terminated. For example if 0.4 is released support for 0.2 is terminated.

Between two major releases there are so called minor releases. Those have version numbers containing 'beta' or 'rc' like this: 0.4beta6, 0.8rc3. The order is as following: beta releases for a major release, rc releases for the major release and finally the major release. Fir example: ..., 0.8beta0, 0.8beta1, 0.8rc0, 0.8, ... Those minor release should be released about once every month. The last two should be rc releases but don't have to.

Before any release is done there will be pre-releases. Pre-releases have 'pr' in the version number like this: 0.7beta8-pr4. A pre-release is announced as every other release. Everyone can object the release and the cycle is halted and the situation examined: The release manager will decide if the problem needs to be fixed before or after the release or can not be fixed at all (willnotfix/unreproducible/invalid). The objection can officially be done by sending a mail to the mailing list or filing a bug to the bug tracker for the specific release (former is preferred) within two days (48 hours). If there is a valid objection the problem can be fixed and another pre-release is done or if the problem is very bad the release cycle can be terminated. The release manager will decide this.

Two days after a objection-free pre-release the release manager is free to release the pre-release as release. Only very minor changes are allowed to do between those releases. This includes: Updating version number (removing -prX suffix), updating list of tested systems, typos in README file.

The pre-release cycle exists so package maintainers and other users can test the release before the release and can report back problems with for example packaging for distribution.