[ovs-dev] [PATCH v2] Modify release document for OVN.

Thu Sep 26 19:24:57 UTC 2019

This is an RFC to discuss the modified release cycle of OVN compared to
OVS. The document is mostly unchanged, with two exceptions:

* The release cycle for OVN is modified to be 3 months instead of 6.
* The version numbering for OVN is modified to use the year and month of
  the release instead of other numbers.

Signed-off-by: Mark Michelson <mmichels at redhat.com>
---
v1 -> v2: Rebased
---
 Documentation/internals/release-process.rst | 60 ++++++++++++++---------------
 1 file changed, 30 insertions(+), 30 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Documentation/internals/release-process.rst b/Documentation/internals/release-process.rst
index 3396177b8..8af962b49 100644
--- a/Documentation/internals/release-process.rst
+++ b/Documentation/internals/release-process.rst
@@ -25,19 +25,19 @@
 OVN Release Process
 ===================
 
-This document describes the process ordinarily used for OVN
-development and release.  Exceptions are sometimes necessary, so all of the
-statements here should be taken as subject to change through rough consensus of
-OVN contributors, obtained through public discussion on, e.g., ovs-dev
-or the #openvswitch IRC channel.
+This document describes the process ordinarily used for OVN development and
+release.  Exceptions are sometimes necessary, so all of the statements here
+should be taken as subject to change through rough consensus of OVN
+contributors, obtained through public discussion on, e.g., ovs-dev or the
+#openvswitch IRC channel.
 
 Release Strategy
 ----------------
 
-OVN feature development takes place on the "master" branch.
-Ordinarily, new features are rebased against master and applied directly.  For
-features that take significant development, sometimes it is more appropriate to
-merge a separate branch into master; please discuss this on ovs-dev in advance.
+OVN feature development takes place on the "master" branch. Ordinarily, new
+features are rebased against master and applied directly.  For features that
+take significant development, sometimes it is more appropriate to merge a
+separate branch into master; please discuss this on ovs-dev in advance.
 
 The process of making a release has the following stages.  See `Release
 Scheduling`_ for the timing of each stage:
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ Scheduling`_ for the timing of each stage:
    Please propose and discuss exceptions on ovs-dev.
  
 2. Fork a release branch from master, named for the expected release number,
-   e.g. "branch-2.3" for the branch that will yield OVN 2.3.x.
+   e.g. "branch-2019.10" for the branch that will yield OVN 2019.10.x.
 
    Release branches are intended for testing and stabilization.  At this stage
    and in later stages, they should receive only bug fixes, not new features.
@@ -65,15 +65,15 @@ Scheduling`_ for the timing of each stage:
    and risk and discussed on ovs-dev before creating the branch.
 
 3. When committers come to rough consensus that the release is ready, they
-   release the .0 release on its branch, e.g. 2.3.0 for branch-2.3.  To make
-   the actual release, a committer pushes a signed tag named, e.g. v2.3.0, to
-   the OVN repository, makes a release tarball available on
+   release the .0 release on its branch, e.g. 2019.10.0 for branch-2019.10.  To
+   make the actual release, a committer pushes a signed tag named, e.g.
+   v2019.10.0, to the OVN repository, makes a release tarball available on
    openvswitch.org, and posts a release announcement to ovs-announce.
 
 4. As bug fixes accumulate, or after important bugs or vulnerabilities are
-   fixed, committers may make additional releases from a branch: 2.3.1, 2.3.2,
-   and so on.  The process is the same for these additional release as for a .0
-   release.
+   fixed, committers may make additional releases from a branch: 2019.10.1,
+   2019.10.2, and so on.  The process is the same for these additional release
+   as for a .0 release.
 
 At most two release branches are formally maintained at any given time: the
 latest release and the latest release designed as LTS.  An LTS release is one
@@ -97,33 +97,33 @@ titled "Prepare for x.y.0" and increments the version number to x.y.  This is
 the initial commit on branch-x.y.  The second is titled "Prepare for post-x.y.0
 (x.y.90)" and increments the version number to x.y.90.
 
-The version number on a release branch is x.y.z, where z is initially 0.
-Making a release requires two commits.  The first is titled *Set release dates
-for x.y.z.* and updates NEWS and debian/changelog to specify the release date
-of the new release.  This commit is the one made into a tarball and tagged.
-The second is titled *Prepare for x.y.(z+1).* and increments the version number
-and adds a blank item to NEWS with an unspecified date.
+The version number on a release branch is x.y.z, where x is the current year, y
+is the month of the release, and z is initially 0. Making a release requires two
+commits.  The first is titled *Set release dates for x.y.z.* and updates NEWS
+and debian/changelog to specify the release date of the new release.  This
+commit is the one made into a tarball and tagged. The second is titled *Prepare
+for x.y.(z+1).* and increments the version number and adds a blank item to NEWS
+with an unspecified date.
 
 Release Scheduling
 ------------------
 
-OVN makes releases at the following six-month cadence.  All dates are
+OVN makes releases at the following three-month cadence.  All dates are
 approximate:
 
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
-| Time (months) | Dates          | Stage                                |
+| Time (months) | Date           | Stage                                |
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
-| T             | Mar 1, Sep 1   | Begin x.y release cycle              |
+| T             | Jan 1, Apr 1   | Begin x.y release cycle              |
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
-| T + 4         | Jul 1, Jan 1   | "Soft freeze" master for x.y release |
+| T + 2         | Feb 1, May 1   | "Soft freeze" master for x.y release |
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
-| T + 4.5       | Jul 15, Jan 15 | Fork branch-x.y from master          |
+| T + 2.5       | Feb 8, May 8   | Fork branch-x.y from master          |
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
-| T + 5.5       | Aug 15, Feb 15 | Release version x.y.0                |
+| T + 2.75      | Feb 22, May 22 | Release version x.y.0                |
 +---------------+----------------+--------------------------------------+
 
 Contact
 -------
 
-Use dev at openvswitch.org to discuss the Open vSwitch and OVN
-development and release processes.
+Use dev at openvswitch.org to discuss the OVN development and release process.
-- 
2.14.5

