name	release
description	Create and publish releases for the Optique project. Use when releasing a new version, creating a patch release, or creating a major/minor release. Handles CHANGES.md updates, version bumping, tagging, and branch management.

Release skill

This skill automates the release process for the Optique project. There are two types of releases: patch releases and major/minor releases.

Prerequisites

Before starting any release:

Verify the remote repository name:
```
git remote -v
```
Use the correct remote name (usually origin or upstream) in all push commands.
Ensure you're on the correct branch and it's up to date.
Run tests to ensure everything passes:
```
mise test
mise check
```

Patch releases

Patch releases (e.g., 1.2.3) are for bug fixes and small improvements. They are created from X.Y-maintenance branches.

Step 1: Prepare the release

Check out the maintenance branch:
```
git checkout 1.2-maintenance
git pull
```
Update CHANGES.md: Find the section for the version being released and change "To be released." to "Released on {Month} {Day}, {Year}." using the current date in English. For example:
```
Version 1.2.3
-------------

Released on January 5, 2026.
```

Commit the changes:

git add CHANGES.md
git commit -m "Release 1.2.3"

Create the tag (without v prefix). Always use -m to provide a tag message to avoid opening an editor for GPG-signed tags:
```
git tag -m "Optique 1.2.3" 1.2.3
```

Step 2: Prepare next version

Add a new section at the top of CHANGES.md for the next patch version:

Version 1.2.4
-------------

To be released.


Version 1.2.3
-------------

Released on January 5, 2026.

Bump the version in packages/core/deno.json:

Change "version": "1.2.3" to "version": "1.2.4".
Run the version sync script:
```
mise check-versions --fix
```

Commit the version bump:

git add -A
git commit -m "Version bump

[ci skip]"

Step 3: Push

Push the tag and branch to the remote:

git push origin 1.2.3 1.2-maintenance

Step 4: Cascade merges

After creating a patch release, you must merge it forward to newer maintenance branches and eventually to main.

Check if a newer maintenance branch exists (e.g., 1.3-maintenance):
```
git branch -a | grep maintenance
```
If a newer maintenance branch exists:
1. Check out the newer branch and merge the tag:
```
git checkout 1.3-maintenance
git merge 1.2.3
```
2. Resolve any conflicts (commonly in CHANGES.md, deno.json, and package.json files).
3. Copy changelog entries: After resolving conflicts, copy the changelog entries from the merged tag's version into the current branch's unreleased version section. The entries should be:
  - Grouped by package (e.g., ### @optique/core, ### @optique/run)
  - Inserted above any existing entries in each package section
  - Issue/PR reference definitions (e.g., [#123]: ...) should not be duplicated if they already exist
  For example, if merging 1.2.3 into 1.3-maintenance where 1.3.2 is pending:
  
  Before (1.3-maintenance):
```
Version 1.3.2
-------------

To be released.

### @optique/run

 -  Added new logging features.  [[#125]]

[#125]: https://github.com/dahlia/optique/issues/125
```
  Merged tag 1.2.3 contains:
```
Version 1.2.3
-------------

Released on January 6, 2026.

### @optique/run

 -  Fixed a crash on startup.  [[#123]]

[#123]: https://github.com/dahlia/optique/issues/123
```
  After (1.3-maintenance):
```
Version 1.3.2
-------------

To be released.

### @optique/run

 -  Fixed a crash on startup.  [[#123]]
 -  Added new logging features.  [[#125]]

[#123]: https://github.com/dahlia/optique/issues/123
[#125]: https://github.com/dahlia/optique/issues/125
```
4. Run tests to verify:
```
mise test
mise check
```
5. Complete the merge commit (use default message).
6. Create a new patch release for this branch by repeating Steps 1-3 for version 1.3.x (e.g., 1.3.1).
7. Continue cascading to even newer maintenance branches if they exist.
If no newer maintenance branch exists, merge to main:
```
git checkout main
git merge 1.2.3  # or the last tag you created (e.g., 1.3.1)
```
Resolve conflicts, run tests, and push:
```
mise test
mise check
git push origin main
```
[!IMPORTANT] Do not copy changelog entries to main. The main branch tracks the next major/minor release, so patch release entries should not be duplicated there. Just resolve conflicts and keep the existing unreleased section as-is.

Major/minor releases

Major/minor releases (e.g., 1.3.0, 2.0.0) introduce new features or breaking changes. They are always created from the main branch with patch version 0.

Step 1: Prepare the release on main

Check out and update main:
```
git checkout main
git pull
```
Update CHANGES.md: Find the section for the version being released and change "To be released." to "Released on {Month} {Day}, {Year}." using the current date in English. For example:
```
Version 1.3.0
-------------

Released on January 5, 2026.
```

Commit the changes:

git add CHANGES.md
git commit -m "Release 1.3.0"

Create the tag (without v prefix). Always use -m to provide a tag message to avoid opening an editor for GPG-signed tags:
```
git tag -m "Optique 1.3.0" 1.3.0
```

Step 2: Prepare next version on main

Add a new section at the top of CHANGES.md for the next minor version:

Version 1.4.0
-------------

To be released.


Version 1.3.0
-------------

Released on January 5, 2026.

Bump the version in packages/core/deno.json:

Change "version": "1.3.0" to "version": "1.4.0".
Run the version sync script:
```
mise check-versions --fix
```

Commit the version bump:

git add -A
git commit -m "Version bump

[ci skip]"

Step 3: Push main and tag

git push origin 1.3.0 main

Step 4: Create maintenance branch

Create the maintenance branch from the release tag:
```
git branch 1.3-maintenance 1.3.0
```
Check out the maintenance branch:
```
git checkout 1.3-maintenance
```

Add a section for the first patch version in CHANGES.md:

Version 1.3.1
-------------

To be released.


Version 1.3.0
-------------

Released on January 5, 2026.

Bump the version in packages/core/deno.json:

Change "version": "1.3.0" to "version": "1.3.1".
Run the version sync script:
```
mise check-versions --fix
```

Commit the version bump:

git add -A
git commit -m "Version bump

[ci skip]"

Push the maintenance branch:
```
git push origin 1.3-maintenance
```

Version format reference

Patch releases: X.Y.Z where Z > 0 (e.g., 1.2.3, 1.2.4)
Minor releases: X.Y.0 (e.g., 1.3.0, 1.4.0)
Major releases: X.0.0 (e.g., 2.0.0, 3.0.0)
Maintenance branches: X.Y-maintenance (e.g., 1.2-maintenance)
Tags: No v prefix (e.g., 1.2.3, not v1.2.3)
Tag messages: Optique X.Y.Z format (use -m flag to avoid editor)

CHANGES.md format

Each version section follows this format:

Version X.Y.Z
-------------

Released on {Month} {Day}, {Year}.

### @optique/core

 -  Change description.  [[#123]]

### @optique/run

 -  Change description.

[#123]: https://github.com/dahlia/optique/issues/123

For unreleased versions:

Version X.Y.Z
-------------

To be released.

Checklist summary

Patch release checklist

Check out X.Y-maintenance branch
Update CHANGES.md release date
Commit with message "Release X.Y.Z"
Create tag X.Y.Z with -m "Optique X.Y.Z"
Add next version section to CHANGES.md
Bump version in packages/core/deno.json
Run mise check-versions --fix
Commit with message Version bump\n\n[ci skip]
Push tag and branch
Cascade merge to newer maintenance branches (if any):
- Merge tag into newer branch
- Copy changelog entries to unreleased version (above existing entries)
- Run tests and complete merge commit
- Create patch release for that branch
Merge to main (if no newer maintenance branches)

Major/minor release checklist

Check out main branch
Update CHANGES.md release date
Commit with message "Release X.Y.0"
Create tag X.Y.0 with -m "Optique X.Y.0"
Add next version section to CHANGES.md
Bump version in packages/core/deno.json
Run mise check-versions --fix
Commit with message Version bump\n\n[ci skip]
Push tag and main branch
Create X.Y-maintenance branch from tag
Check out maintenance branch
Add patch version section to CHANGES.md
Bump version to X.Y.1 in packages/core/deno.json
Run mise check-versions --fix
Commit with message Version bump\n\n[ci skip]
Push maintenance branch

release

Install Skill

SKILL.md

Release skill

Prerequisites

Patch releases

Step 1: Prepare the release

Step 2: Prepare next version

Step 3: Push

Step 4: Cascade merges

Major/minor releases

Step 1: Prepare the release on main

Step 2: Prepare next version on main

Step 3: Push main and tag

Step 4: Create maintenance branch

Version format reference

CHANGES.md format

Checklist summary

Patch release checklist

Major/minor release checklist