configkit/docs/release.md

ConfigKit Release Procedure

This is the maintainer runbook for ConfigKit's release policy. A release publishes the Go source under a new Git tag, with a matching release note committed in the repository. The tag is annotated: it includes the release note text and points to the released commit. Published tags and contents are immutable. There is no binary, container image, generated package, or separate registry publication.

A candidate is the committed revision you intend to release. The authoritative remote is the repository where ConfigKit publishes releases; its exact push URL is listed below. The consumer minimum is the oldest Go version supported for applications using ConfigKit.

Release identity and support

• Module: go.maximumdirect.net/configkit
• Primary branch: main
• Authoritative remote: origin
• Authoritative push URL: ssh://git@forge.maximumdirect.net:22222/base-layer/configkit.git
• Tags: stable Semantic Versions such as v0.5.0; no prereleases
• Minimum Go version: the first stable patch of the selected Go series, or a higher patch when required by a dependency or specific correctness fix, as recorded in go.mod; see the consumer minimum policy
• Release-gated targets: Linux amd64 and arm64
• Best-effort targets: macOS amd64 and arm64, under the platform support policy

Release validation runs the offline Go test suite once with the race detector, then a full vet pass and package compilation for both Linux targets with cgo disabled (CGO_ENABLED=0). macOS and CI are not release gates; do not wait for or poll CI.

The vanity module path is the name applications put in Go imports. Source/tag browser links and public Go retrieval use the Forge HTTPS repository independently of SSH publication.

1. Select Go and prepare the tool

Use a clean checkout with Git, Bash 3.2 or newer, and a native compiler for race tests. Choose the release type before selecting Go. For a minor or major release, select the newest stable Go series available in the development environment. For a patch release, retain the series recorded in go.mod and leave its consumer minimum unchanged. Follow the toolchain selection policy.

Choose the latest compatible patch installed locally in that Go series. Put its go executable first on PATH and ensure it meets the minimum in go.mod. The same go executable must build ReleaseKit and run its child validation commands. Set local toolchain selection and verify it:

export GOTOOLCHAIN=local
go version
go env GOVERSION
command -v go

Only when a minor or major release advances the consumer minimum to a newer Go series, derive that series' initial stable release from the selected executable:

selected_go=$(GOTOOLCHAIN=local go env GOVERSION)
selected_series=${selected_go#go}
selected_series=${selected_series%.*}
release_minimum="$selected_series.0"
go mod edit -go="$release_minimum"

If a dependency or identified correctness fix requires a higher patch minimum, use that required version instead and document the reason. When the series is unchanged, leave the minimum unchanged unless a minor or major release deliberately changes it under the consumer minimum policy. For example:

Release situation	Go used for validation	Consumer minimum
Patch release in the 1.26 series	Latest compatible patch installed locally, such as 1.26.8	Keep the existing go.mod minimum unchanged.
Minor/major release staying in 1.26	Latest compatible patch installed locally	Normally retain the minimum; any deliberate change follows the linked policy.
Minor/major release adopting a newer installed stable series	Latest compatible patch installed locally in that series	Normally declare that series' initial stable patch, or the higher patch required by a dependency or identified fix.

Using Go 1.26.8 for validation can therefore leave go 1.26.0 unchanged. Users need the declared minimum, while maintainers validate with their selected patch. There is no separate requirement to validate with Go 1.26.0.

Prepare dependencies whether or not the minimum changes:

go mod download

Build the ReleaseKit version recorded in go.mod into temporary storage outside the checkout. Ensure $TMPDIR names a system temporary location, not the repository. These commands never install another ReleaseKit version:

releasekit_tmp=$(mktemp -d "${TMPDIR:-/tmp}/configkit-releasekit.XXXXXX")
releasekit_bin="$releasekit_tmp/releasekit"
go build -o "$releasekit_bin" gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/ReleaseKit/cmd/releasekit
go list -m gitea.maximumdirect.net/eric/ReleaseKit
"$releasekit_bin" version

This repository selects ReleaseKit v0.4.2. Use the compiled program above for publication so its exit status and publication report reach you unchanged. go run maps a nonzero child exit status to 1. ReleaseKit's child Go commands use the go found on PATH with GOTOOLCHAIN=local; keep the selected executable first on PATH through the publication command.

Verify access to the authoritative remote without displaying credentials:

git ls-remote ssh://git@forge.maximumdirect.net:22222/base-layer/configkit.git HEAD refs/heads/main

Publication requires explicit authorization. Local implementation commits do not authorize a push or release.

2. Prepare and commit the candidate

Choose a stable version that has not been used locally or on the publication remote. Compare the candidate with the previous tag. Review public Go APIs and value ownership, YAML and resolution rules, diagnostic contracts, the minimum Go version, and platform support. Review maintained consumer examples and the migration guidance. Explain any consumer-minimum increase and required consumer action under the consumer minimum policy.

Create docs/releases/<version>.md. Its first line must be exactly # ConfigKit <version>, and it must end with the license and attribution footer:

[COPYRIGHT](https://forge.maximumdirect.net/base-layer/configkit/src/tag/VERSION/COPYRIGHT) | [LICENSE](https://forge.maximumdirect.net/base-layer/configkit/src/tag/VERSION/LICENSE) | [ATTRIBUTION](https://forge.maximumdirect.net/base-layer/configkit/src/tag/VERSION/docs/oss/attribution.md)

Replace VERSION with the full tag and confirm the three target files exist in the candidate. Retire completed roadmaps, preserve unfinished and deferred work, and repair affected links. Review the complete candidate for unintended files and credentials, then commit it on main. These are ordinary preparation tasks, not separate approval gates. Any go.mod change belongs in this candidate.

3. Push the candidate to main

Push only that committed candidate to the literal authoritative URL. This does not follow local tags:

git push --no-follow-tags ssh://git@forge.maximumdirect.net:22222/base-layer/configkit.git HEAD:refs/heads/main

ReleaseKit requires authoritative main to equal this candidate before it validates. A failure before this push means ReleaseKit publication has not started. If the push result is uncertain, inspect authoritative main and continue only when it is confirmed at the candidate. If validation later fails, no release tag is published; correct the issue in a new commit, push the new candidate to main, and invoke validation again.

4. Publish the committed candidate

Once publication is authorized and the candidate is on the publication remote's main, run the compiled ReleaseKit program once to validate and publish it:

"$releasekit_bin" publish vMAJOR.MINOR.PATCH

Replace the placeholder with the selected version. ReleaseKit checks the push URL Git will actually use, after URL rewrites, against expected_push_url. It verifies the candidate on main, and checks the release-note H1 for the product and version. It then runs the selected race-enabled standard suite once with test-time vet disabled, one full vet pass, and CGO-disabled package compilation for Linux amd64 and arm64. It publishes only the annotated tag for that candidate. Confirmed publication of the intended tag completes the release. The tag points to the captured commit and uses the complete checked-in note as its annotation message. Use the optional check command for diagnosis when useful. It validates without publishing and is not required before publish, which performs its own checks:

"$releasekit_bin" check vMAJOR.MINOR.PATCH

For publish, interpret the program's exit status as follows:

Status	Meaning	Next action
0	Publication succeeded.	The release is complete. Optional verification can follow.
1	A known publication failure or conflict was reported.	Read the report and correct the stated problem. Preserve any published tag.
2	The command, profile, or version is invalid.	Correct the command or configuration before trying again.
3	The tag push outcome is still unknown.	Follow the recovery procedure below before retrying or declaring success.

Keep both the program's exit status and its diagnostic report. Using go run would lose the distinction between its nonzero exit statuses.

The command does not push or repair main, wait for CI, or publish binaries or a hosted release page. A successful intended-tag publication does not require remote read-back or consumer retrieval; those checks remain optional.

5. Recover from a failed or uncertain tag push

The executable reports the publication state, phase, version, candidate commit, tag-object ID, effective endpoint, and error on standard error. After a failed tag push, it makes one bounded check of the exact publication remote to find out whether the tag arrived. Exit status 3 means the tag outcome remains unknown; do not blindly retry or move a tag.

An annotated tag is a Git object containing the release note and a pointer to the source commit. Its tag-object ID identifies that complete object. Checking only the commit ID would not establish that the intended tag object arrived.

For an uncertain result, use the exact endpoint (remote URL), candidate commit, version, and tag-object ID from the report. Copy the captured endpoint into the variable below using normal shell quoting. Check that Git still resolves it to itself, then query the authoritative refs once:

authoritative='COPY_CAPTURED_ENDPOINT'
release_version='vMAJOR.MINOR.PATCH'
test "$(git ls-remote --get-url -- "$authoritative")" = "$authoritative" &&
  git ls-remote --refs -- "$authoritative" refs/heads/main "refs/tags/$release_version"

A failed URL-equality check or remote query leaves the outcome unresolved. Correct transport configuration before continuing; a rewritten destination cannot establish absence at the captured endpoint.

Compare the main object ID with the reported candidate commit and the tag object ID with the reported tag-object ID. --refs returns the annotated tag object itself. A peeled commit is the source commit reached by following that tag; it is a different identity. If the tag object matches, the release is published. If the query fails, the result is conflicting, or the endpoint or candidate differs, stop and resolve the state before retrying. If the endpoint is reachable, the tag is confirmed absent, and main still equals the reported candidate, remove a retained local tag only after confirming it was not published or used by another channel; then rerun publish, which revalidates the candidate:

git tag -d "$release_version"
"$releasekit_bin" publish "$release_version"

A validation failure after the candidate reached main leaves an untagged candidate there. Correct it with a new commit rather than rewriting or rolling back main. A conflicting published tag must never be moved or reused. A defect in published source requires a corrected commit, a new semantically appropriate version, and a matching release note.

6. Optional consumer verification

When useful or requested, read back the remote tag or retrieve the exact version into a new module without a local replace directive. These checks are optional and non-gating. Do not poll CI or wait for module propagation. For direct-origin verification, use the exact published version in a temporary consumer module:

release_version=vMAJOR.MINOR.PATCH
consumer_dir=$(mktemp -d)
(
  cd "$consumer_dir"
  go mod init example.invalid/configkit-release-check
  GOWORK=off GOPROXY=direct go get "go.maximumdirect.net/configkit@$release_version"
  GOWORK=off go list -m -f '{{.Path}} {{.Version}}' go.maximumdirect.net/configkit
)

The output should show the exact module path and selected version. Report this optional check separately from publication success.