xtc/docs/RELEASING.md

Release preparation (0.1.0 development prototype)

Phase 9 makes source packaging, staged install/uninstall and repeatable builds testable. It does not turn the prototype into a production-qualified DAW. The version remains 0.1.0; no tag, external release or binary publication is created by make dist or make release.

Build and package

make release
make test-install
make test-recovery test-performance
make dist
make test-release

release builds optimized, warning-enabled C/C++ code, tests and the optional GUI in BUILD_DIR/release with no debug paths, a source-prefix map, deterministic ar metadata and FLTK include/define flags rather than distribution-specific LTO flags. It retains assertions so the test harness actually runs. dist creates BUILD_DIR/xtc-0.1.0.tar.gz using Python's standard library. It includes only Git indexed regular files (working-tree contents, including staged new files), plus a source manifest; stage intended files first and check git diff --cached. Untracked files, ignored build output and .git are excluded. Exported archives can reproduce themselves without Git using SOURCE_MANIFEST.json.

Archive order, permissions, ownership, gzip filename and timestamps are normalized. SOURCE_DATE_EPOCH defaults to 0; set an unsigned 32-bit epoch explicitly if desired. The archive does not claim to identify a commit: release from a clean checkout and record its commit/hash externally. Do not treat a dirty-tree archive as an attested release. No artifact is uploaded by these targets.

test-release unpacks the source into two different temporary paths, runs release in each, compares libxtc.a/xtc-check/optional xtc SHA-256 values, and repacks each export to compare archive bytes. This verifies reproducibility for the same host, compiler, flags and dependency versions. It does not promise bit-identical output across distributions, compilers or library updates. Compiler/debug/sanitizer build directories are intentionally separate; changing toolchain/flags in place requires a clean directory. Python release tests require version 3.12+.

Qualification record

Run normal core/GUI and live software JACK tests, no-JACK builds and ASan/UBSan. GUI leak tests retain the narrow fontconfig suppression; core tests do not. TSan recorder/publication tests complement lifecycle tests. Native API tests verify callback failures, cleanup and retirement; they cannot certify arbitrary extensions. See BUILD.md and tests/integration/README.md for commands.

Record versions, archive hashes, installation/consumer checks and measured timing. Use LICENSES.md for dependency/license review and PLUGIN_HOSTING.md for the external-hosting decision. Review RECOVERY.md for migration and process-crash semantics. Physical devices, power loss, sustained recording/performance, user acceptance on other distributions and binary redistribution are still separate qualification work. There is no DEB/RPM/AppImage, bundled runtime, autosave, external plugin host or stable shared-library extension ABI in this release.

Phase 20 local binary packaging and installed workflow

make test-package builds the release, stages installation only in a temporary DESTDIR, writes a normalized Linux binary/development archive, checks its SHA-256 sidecar and per-file manifest, relocatable pkg-config paths and headless commands. Same-host repeated packaging is byte-identical; dependency versions and toolchain still determine binary compatibility. make test-install now repeats installation to verify repair/upgrade of owned files while preserving an unrelated sentinel, then compiles both C99 and C++17 installed consumers that create MIDI, save/reopen and compare nonzero exact rendering. Removal remains exact and idempotent.

USER_MANUAL.md consolidates operation; KNOWN_LIMITATIONS.md lists qualification gaps; MAINTENANCE.md defines the release checklist, regression and compatibility policy. Build diagnostics make no server/plugin calls. There is no asynchronous crash uploader or signal-handler cleanup: inspect OS core/debugger evidence on the control side, preserving project/media recovery paths. No release is publicly published by these commands, and human/device/listening checks remain pending.

Phase 30 release workflow

Installation now shares one explicit file inventory with uninstallation. GNU-style exec_prefix, bindir, libdir, includedir, datarootdir, datadir, docdir, pkgconfigdir and the xtc-specific licensedir, examplesdir, desktopdir can be overridden alongside PREFIX/DESTDIR. Paths must be absolute POSIX paths; spaces are supported. Do not include DESTDIR in a directory variable: staging is applied separately and never embedded in pkg-config metadata. Staging refuses parent symlinks that escape DESTDIR. Use exactly the same variables for removal.

make BUILD_DIR=build/release-check all test gui
make BUILD_DIR=build/release-check test-install test-install-layout
make PREFIX=/usr DESTDIR=/tmp/xtc-stage libdir=/usr/lib64 install-gui
make PREFIX=/usr DESTDIR=/tmp/xtc-stage libdir=/usr/lib64 uninstall
make test-release test-package

Core install includes the static library, public headers, xtc-check, pkg-config metadata, Markdown documentation, all checked-in performance reports, license and share/xtc/examples (a media/plugin-free MIDI demo). GUI install adds the desktop entry and xtc. No desktop MIME association is claimed. Package archives keep their fixed /usr layout and relocatable pkg-config metadata; custom live layouts are tested separately. Existing owned file symlinks are replaced, not followed; installation is atomic per file, not a transaction over the entire prefix.

make dist now writes a .sha256 sidecar as well as the normalized source archive. Record that hash, the reviewed commit, version and build/dependency conditions with release logs. test-release verifies the hash, builds/tests two fresh source exports and compares artifacts and repacks. It validates exported tracked content, including staged work; it does not attest that the caller's Git tree is clean. For public release use a clean reviewed checkout and inspect git status first. RELEASE_NOTES.md supplies upgrade guidance and remaining qualification limits.