Create Release

Create a new versioned release with proper tagging and GitHub Release.

Step 1: Determine Version

If version provided as argument ($ARGUMENTS), use it. Otherwise:

1. •Read current version from package.json (if exists)
2. •Ask user for new version number
3. •Follow Semantic Versioning:
   • •MAJOR (x.0.0): Breaking changes
   • •MINOR (0.x.0): New features, backward compatible
   • •PATCH (0.0.x): Bug fixes, backward compatible

Example: 1.2.3 → 1.3.0 for new feature

Step 2: Update CHANGELOG.md

1. •Read CHANGELOG.md
2. •Find ## [Unreleased] section
3. •Move all entries from [Unreleased] to new version section:

## [Unreleased]

### Added

### Changed

### Fixed

## [1.3.0] - 2024-03-15

### Added
- Feature 1
- Feature 2

### Fixed
- Bug fix 1

1. •Add current date (YYYY-MM-DD format)
2. •Leave [Unreleased] section empty for future changes

Step 3: Update package.json (if exists)

If package.json exists:

1. •Read current version
2. •Update to new version:
   json

   {
     "version": "1.3.0"
   }
   

3. •Save file

Step 4: Commit Changes

Stage and commit version bump:

git add CHANGELOG.md package.json
git commit -m "chore: release v1.3.0

Co-Authored-By: Claude Sonnet 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>"

Step 5: Create Git Tag

Create annotated tag with changelog:

git tag -a v1.3.0 -m "Release v1.3.0

[Copy the changelog entries for this version here]"

Step 6: Push Changes and Tag

git push && git push --tags

Confirm both succeed before proceeding.

Step 7: Create GitHub Release

Use gh CLI to create GitHub Release:

gh release create v1.3.0 \
  --title "v1.3.0" \
  --notes "$(cat <<'EOF'
## What's New

[Copy Added section from CHANGELOG]

## Bug Fixes

[Copy Fixed section from CHANGELOG]

## Changes

[Copy Changed section from CHANGELOG]

---

**Full Changelog**: https://github.com/OWNER/REPO/compare/v1.2.3...v1.3.0
EOF
)"

Options to consider:

• •--draft - Create as draft for review
• •--prerelease - Mark as pre-release (for beta, rc, etc.)
• •--latest - Mark as latest release (default)

Step 8: Verify Release

1. •Check GitHub Releases page
2. •Verify tag exists: git tag -l
3. •Confirm CHANGELOG.md updated correctly
4. •Confirm package.json version updated

Summary

Report to user:

• •Version released: v1.3.0
• •Changelog updated ✓
• •Git tag created ✓
• •GitHub Release published ✓
• •Link to release: [URL]

Next Steps

Suggest to user:

• •Announce the release
• •Update documentation if needed
• •Deploy to production if applicable

Error Handling

• •No unreleased changes: Warn user, ask if they want to proceed anyway
• •Git push fails: Report error, may need to pull first
• •Tag already exists: Error, ask user to choose different version
• •gh CLI not available: Provide manual instructions for creating release
• •Permission denied: User may need to authenticate with gh auth login

Version Naming Conventions

• •Release: v1.2.3
• •Pre-release: v1.2.3-beta.1, v1.2.3-rc.2
• •Major versions: v1.0.0, v2.0.0

Always prefix with v for git tags.