Development: Making a Release

Quick guide to how we make releases.

Creating a new branch

1. Update the translation template file:

   $ make translations_update
   $ git commit -m "Update translation template file" po/tigervnc.pot

2. Create the release branch:

   $ git branch 1.2-branch master

3. Check out the master branch:

   $ git checkout master

4. Update the version number in these files:

   • CMakeLists.txt
   • java/CMakeLists.txt
   • unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

   If the release is 1.2.0 then the master branch should have 1.2.80 as the version number.

5. Commit the version change:

   $ git commit -m "Change development version to 1.2.80" \
   CMakeLists.txt java/CMakeLists.txt unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

6. Push the master branch to GitHub:

   $ git push --dry-run git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git master
   
   (check that everything looks sane)
   
   $ git push git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git master

Beta

1. Check out the release branch:

   $ git checkout 1.2-branch

2. Update the version number in these files:

   • CMakeLists.txt
   • java/CMakeLists.txt
   • unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

3. Commit the version change:

   $ git commit -m "TigerVNC 1.1.90 (1.2.0 beta)" \
   CMakeLists.txt java/CMakeLists.txt unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

4. Tag the beta:

   $ git tag -a -m "TigerVNC 1.1.90 (1.2.0 beta)" v1.1.90 1.2-branch

5. Push everything to GitHub:

   $ git push --dry-run git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git v1.1.90 1.2-branch
   
   (check that everything looks sane)
   
   $ git push git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git v1.1.90 1.2-branch

6. Create a build (only Brian can do this right now)

7. Create a release entry on SourceForge. Use the beta folder.

8. Fill out the GitHub release using this template as a base:

   A beta of TigerVNC 1.2.0 is now available. Lots of changes have been made since
   the last release, but the highlights are:
   
     - Something
     - Something else
     - Something more
   
   
   Binaries are available from SourceForge:
   
   https://sourceforge.net/projects/tigervnc/files/beta/1.2beta
   
   Regards
   The TigerVNC Developers

9. Use the same template as above and send an annoucement to the tigervnc-announce mailing list.

10. Inform the translation project that a new release needs translation.

Proper release

This follows the same steps as the beta, except for these changes:

• Don't inform the translation project about the new release.

• Use the simple "TigerVNC 1.2.0" as the version commit and tag message.

• Update the HTML version of the man pages on the main web page. You can generate them using groff:

  $ groff -mandoc -Thtml -P-l Xvnc.man > Xvnc.html

• Use the stable folder on SourceForge.

Bug fix releases

No beta is done for bug fix releases, and commits should be added to the already existing release branch (e.g. 1.14-branch when creating bug fix release 1.14.1). See instructions below:

1. Check out the release branch:

   $ git checkout 1.14-branch

2. Cherry-pick the commits that should be included in the new release. Remember to use git cherry-pick -x to get a reference to the original commit.

   • A tip is to push a small number of commits at a time, to simplify troubleshooting if the GitHub checks do not pass.

3. Update the version number in these files:

   • CMakeLists.txt
   • java/CMakeLists.txt
   • unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

4. Commit the version change:

   $ git commit -m "TigerVNC 1.14.1" \
   CMakeLists.txt java/CMakeLists.txt unix/xserver/hw/vnc/xvnc.c

5. Tag the beta:

   $ git tag -a -m "TigerVNC 1.14.1" v1.14.1 1.14-branch

6. Push everything to GitHub:

   $ git push --dry-run git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git v1.14.1 1.14-branch
   
   (check that everything looks sane)
   
   $ git push git@github.com:TigerVNC/tigervnc.git v1.14.1 1.14-branch

7. Create a build (only Brian can do this right now)

8. Create a release entry on SourceForge. Use the stable folder.

9. Update the HTML version of the man pages on the main web page. You can generate them using groff:

   $ groff -mandoc -Thtml -P-l Xvnc.man > Xvnc.html

10. Fill out the GitHub release using this template as a base:

    The bugfix release TigerVNC 1.14.1 is now available. This release fixes a number
    of regressions, the most prominent being:
    
      - Something
      - Something else
      - Something more
    
    
    Binaries are available from SourceForge:
    
    https://sourceforge.net/projects/tigervnc/files/stable/1.14.1
    
    Regards
    The TigerVNC Developers

11. Use the same template as above and send an announcement to the tigervnc-announce mailing list.