howto-release-django.txt

=====================
How is Django Formed?
=====================

This document explains how to release Django. If you're unluky enough to
be driving a release, you should follow these instructions to get the
package out.

**Please, keep these instructions up-to-date if you make changes!** The point
here is to be descriptive, not proscriptive, so feel free to streamline or
otherwise make changes, but **update this document accordingly!**

Overview
========

There are three types of releases that you might need to make

* Security releases, disclosing and fixing a vulnerability. This'll
  generally involve two or three simultaneous releases -- e.g.
  1.5.X, 1.6.X, and, depending on timing, perhaps a 1.7 alpha/beta/rc.

* Regular version releases, either a final release (e.g. 1.5) or a
  bugfix update (e.g. 1.5.1).

* Pre-releases, e.g. 1.6 beta or something.

In general the steps are about the same reguardless, but there are a few
differences noted. The short version is:

#. If this is a security release, pre-notify the security distribution list
   at least one week before the actual release.

#. Proofread (and create if needed) the release notes, looking for
   organiztion, writing errors, deprecation timelines, etc. Draft a blog post
   and email announcement.

#. Update version numbers and create the release package(s)!

#. Upload the package(s) to the the ``djangoproject.com`` server and creating
   some redirects for download/checksum links.

#. Unless this is a pre-release, add the new version(s) to PyPI.

#. Update the home page and download page to link to the new version(s).

#. Post the blog entry and send out the email announcements.

#. Update version numbers post-release.

There's a lot of details, so please read on.

Prerequisites
=============

You'll need a few things hooked up to make this work:

* A GPG key. *FIXME: sort out exactly whose keys are acceptable for a
  release.*

* Access to Django's record on PyPI.

* Access to the ``djangoproject.com`` server to upload files and trigger a
  deploy.

* Access to the admin on ``djangoproject.com``.

* Access to post to ``django-announe``.

* If this is a security release, access to the pre-notification distribution
  list.

If this is your first release, you'll need to corrdinate with James and Jacob
to get all these things ready to go.

Pre-release tasks
=================

A few items need to be taken care of before even beginning the release process.
This stuff starts about a week before the release; most of it can be done
any time leading up to the actual release:

#. If this is a security release, send out pre-notification **one week**
   before the release. We maintain a list of who gets these pre-notifcation
   emails at *FIXME WHERE?*. This email should be signed by the key you'll use
   for the release, and should include patches for each issue being fixed.

#. As the release aproaches, watch Trac to make sure no release blockers
   are left for the upcoming release.

#. Check with the other committers to make sure they don't have any
   un-committed changes for the release.

#. Proofread the release notes, including looking at the online
   version to catch any broken links or reST errors, and make sure the
   release notes contain the correct date.

#. Double-check that the release notes mention deprecation timelines
   for any APIs noted as deprecated, and that they mention any changes
   in Python version support.

#. Double-check that the release notes index has a link to the notes
   for the new release; this will be in ``docs/releases/index.txt``.

Preparing for release
=====================

Next, everything needs to be made ready for actually rolling the
release. The following things should be done a few days to a few hours
before release:

#. Update the djangoproject home page and download page templates to
   reflect the new release. There are two templates to change:
   ``flatpages/download.html`` and ``homepage.html``; here's
   `one example commit for the 1.4.5 / 1.3.7 releases`__

   __ https://github.com/django/djangoproject.com/commit/772edbc6ac5a2b8e718606b3338f2bcc429fb9b6

#. Write the announcement blog post for the release. You can enter it into
   the admin at any time and mark it as inactive. Here's a few examples:
   `example security release accouncement`__, `example regular release
   announcement`__, `example pre-release announcement`__.

   __ https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2013/feb/19/security/
   __ https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2012/mar/23/14/
   __ https://www.djangoproject.com/weblog/2012/nov/27/15-beta-1/

#. Create redirects in the admin for the new downloads. For each release,
   we create two redirects that look like::

        /download/<version>/tarball/ -> /m/releases/<version>/Django-<version>.tar.gz
        /download/<version>/checksum/ -> /m/pgp/Django-<version>.checksum.txt

Actually rolling the release
============================

OK, this is the fun part, where we actually push out a release!

#. Check Jenkins is green for the version(s) you're putting out. You probably
   shouldn't issue a release until it's green.

#. A release always begins from a release branch, so you
   should ``git pull`` to make sure you're up-to-date and then
   ``git checkout stable/<release>`` (e.g. checkout ``stable/1.5.x`` to issue
   a release in the 1.5 series.)

#. If this is a security release, merge the apropriate patches from
   ``django-private``. *FIXME: actual commands here - make sure to --ff-
   only right?*. Make sure the commit messages explain that the commit
   is a security fix and that an announcement will follow (`example
   security commit`__)

   __ https://github.com/django/django/commit/3ef4bbf495cc6c061789132e3d50a8231a89406b

#. Update version numbers for the release. This has to happen in three
   places: ``django/__init__.py``, ``docs/conf.py``, and ``setup.py``.
   Please see `notes on setting the VERSION tuple`_ below for details
   on ``VERSION``. Here's `an example commit updating version numbers`__

   __ https://github.com/django/django/commit/18d920ea4839fb54f9d2a5dcb555b6a5666ee469

   Make sure the ``download_url`` in ``setup.py`` is the actual URL you'll
   use for the new release package, not the redirect URL (some tools can't
   properly follow redirects).

#. If this is a pre-release package, update the "Development Status" trove
   classifier in ``setup.py`` to reflect this. Otherwise, make sure the
   classifier is set to ``Development Status :: 5 - Production/Stable``.

#. Tag the release by running ``git tag`` *FIXME actual commands*.

#. ``git push`` your work.

#. Make sure you have an absolutely clean tree by running ``git clean -dfx``.

#. Run ``python setup.py sdist`` to generate the release package.

#. Generate the MD5 and SHA1 hashes of the release package. *FIXME
   actual commands for doign this?*

#. Create a "checksums" file containing the hashes and release information.
   You can start with `a previous checksums file`__ and replace the
   dates, keys, links, and checksums. *FIXME: make a template file.*

   __ https://www.djangoproject.com/m/pgp/Django-1.5b1.checksum.txt

#. Sign the checksum file using the release key (``gpg
   --clearsign``), then verify the signature (``gpg --verify``). *FIXME:
   full, actual commands here*.

If you're issuing multiple releases, repeat these steps for each release.

Making the release(s) available to the public
=============================================

Now you're ready to actually put the release out there. To do this:

#. Upload the release package(s) to the djangoproject server; releases go
   in ``/home/www/djangoproject.com/src/media/releases``, under a
   directory for the appropriate version number (e.g.
   ``/home/www/djangoproject.com/src/media/releases/1.5`` for a ``1.5.X``
   release.).

#. Upload the checksum file(s); these go in
   ``/home/www/djangoproject.com/src/media/pgp``.

#. Test that the release packages install correctly using ``easy_install``
   and ``pip``. Here's how I do it (which requires `virtualenvwrapper`__):

        $ mktmpenv
        $ easy_install http://www.djangoproject.com/download/<version>/tarball/
        $ deactivate
        $ mktmpenv
        $ pip install http://www.djangoproject.com/download/<version>/tarball/
        $ deactivate

   This just tests that the tarballs are available (i.e. redirects are up) and
   that they install correctly, but it'll catch silly mistakes. *XXX FIXME:
   buildout too?*

   __ https://pypi.python.org/pypi/virtualenvwrapper

#. Ask a few people on IRC to verify the checksums by visiting the chucksums
   file (e.g. https://www.djangoproject.com/m/pgp/Django-1.5b1.checksum.txt)
   and following the instructions in it.

#. If this is a security or regular release, register the new package with
   PyPI by uploading the ``PGK-INFO`` file generated in the release package
   *FIXME: be more specific about where this is and how to upload it.*
   Don't do this for pre-releases.

#. Deploy the template changes you made a while back by running `fab deploy`
   from the ``djangoproject.com`` repo.

#. Update the ``/download/`` flat page in the djangoproject.com
   admin. For alpha/beta/RC releases, we add a temporary third section
   to that page listing the preview package; otherwise, just update
   the "Get the latest official version" section.

#. Make up the blog post announcing the release live.

#. Post the release announcement to the django-announce,
   django-developers and django-users mailing lists. This should
   include links to both the announcement blog post and the release
   notes. *FIXME: make some templates with example text*.

Post-release
============

You're almost done! All that's left to do now is:

#. Update the ``VERSION`` tuple in ``django/__init__.py`` again,
   incrementing to whatever the next expected release will be. For
   example, after releasing 1.2.1, update ``VERSION`` to report "1.2.2
   pre-alpha".

Notes on setting the VERSION tuple
==================================

Django's version reporting is controlled by the ``VERSION`` tuple in
``django/__init__.py``. This is a five-element tuple, whose elements
are:

#. Major version.
#. Minor version.
#. Micro version.
#. Status -- can be one of "alpha", "beta", "rc" or "final".
#. Series number, for alpha/beta/RC packages which run in sequence
   (allowing, for example, "beta 1", "beta 2", etc.).

For a final release, the status is always "final" and the series
number is always 0. A series number of 0 with an "alpha" status will
be reported as "pre-alpha".

Some examples:

* ``(1, 2, 1, 'final', 0)`` --> "1.2.1"

* ``(1, 3, 0, 'alpha', 0)`` --> "1.3 pre-alpha"

* ``(1, 3, 0, 'beta', 2)`` --> "1.3 beta 2"