Release Workflow

Guide through the package/project release process.

Purpose

Manage releases for:

• R packages (CRAN submission)
• npm packages
• GitHub releases
• Internal versioning

Required Input

• Project type: R package, npm, general
• Release type: Major, minor, patch
• Current version: Or let me detect it
• Changes: What's new in this release

Process

Pre-Release Checklist

1. Version bump

   • Update version in DESCRIPTION/package.json
   • Update CHANGELOG/NEWS.md
   • Update any hardcoded versions

2. Quality checks

   • Run full test suite
   • Check code coverage
   • Run linters/style checks
   • Build documentation

3. Documentation

   • Update README if needed
   • Regenerate function docs
   • Check all examples work

4. Final verification

   • R CMD check (for R packages)
   • npm test (for npm packages)
   • Build succeeds

Release Steps

5. Commit changes

   • "Prepare for vX.Y.Z release"

6. Tag release

   • git tag vX.Y.Z

7. Push

   • git push && git push --tags

8. Create GitHub release

   • Use tag
   • Add release notes

9. Submit to repository (if applicable)

   • CRAN submission
   • npm publish

Output Format

## Release Checklist: v[X.Y.Z]

### Pre-Release
- [ ] Version bumped in [files]
- [ ] NEWS.md/CHANGELOG updated
- [ ] Tests passing
- [ ] R CMD check: 0 errors, 0 warnings, 0 notes
- [ ] Documentation updated
- [ ] Examples verified

### Release
- [ ] Changes committed
- [ ] Tag created: vX.Y.Z
- [ ] Pushed to remote
- [ ] GitHub release created
- [ ] [CRAN/npm] submission completed

### Post-Release
- [ ] Bump to development version (X.Y.Z.9000)
- [ ] Announce release (if applicable)

R Package Specifics

# Version bump
usethis::use_version("minor")

# Update NEWS
usethis::use_news_md()

# Final checks
devtools::check()
devtools::check_win_devel()
devtools::check_rhub()

# Submit to CRAN
devtools::release()

npm Package Specifics

# Version bump
npm version minor

# Publish
npm publish

MCP Integration

Uses these tools when available:

• r_check - Run R CMD check
• r_test - Run test suite
• r_coverage - Check coverage

Examples

Request: "Help me release v1.2.0 of my R package"

Request: "Create a patch release for a bug fix"

Request: "Guide me through CRAN submission checklist"

Request: "Prepare release notes from recent commits"

Semantic Versioning

• Major (1.0.0): Breaking changes
• Minor (0.1.0): New features, backward compatible
• Patch (0.0.1): Bug fixes, backward compatible

Tips

• Never skip the check phase
• Write clear, user-focused release notes
• Test installation from fresh environment
• Have a rollback plan