RTK is an agnostic software release tool for managing versions on changelog (keep-a-changelog), multi-format files (JSON, Makefile, text, TOML, YAML), and also for tagging source code of a Git repo.
This involves updating the version number on various manifest files, updating the version number and datestamp on a changelog file, tagging the code with the release version name, updating the manifest files again with the next pre-release version, and then updating the changelog file again with the unreleased version. And you have to do this for various technologies, e.g. with a node.js project you need to update the package.json file, with an Ansible project you need to update YAML metadata file, and so on so forth with other tech stacks.
Enter RTK, which allows you to configure the manifest and changelog files in a .rtk.json
file, and it will take care of the updating of the version numbers, the committing of the changes with relevant message, and the tagging of the code with the version name, all via a convenient CLI command rtk release
.
RTK comes with a default set of steps, but it's also open for extension by implementing custom release scheme.
The default release scheme involves the following steps:
- Replace pre-release version on resource paths with its release version
- Commit the release version changes to SCM
- Add release tag using its version value
- Replace release version on resource paths with the next pre-release version
- Commit the next pre-release version changes to SCM
npm install -g rtk
Cut off a release using default RTK release scheme:
rtk release
By default, the release version will increment minor value, and the next pre-release version will increment patch value.
This default is based on the idea that most release involves additions and changes (which often mean minor value increment), more than removals (which could mean backward incompatible major value increment) and fixes (which often mean patch value increment).
However, in order to honour the possibility of fixes, the next pre-release version will increment patch value.
The increment types can be customised, e.g. to cut off a release with major release and minor post-release increment types:
rtk release --release-increment-type major --post-release-increment-type minor
Do a release dry run without modifying resource files and making any SCM changes:
rtk release --dry-run
Cut off a release with major release and minor post-release increment types:
rtk release --release-increment-type major --post-release-increment-type minor
Resources can be configured in .rtk.json file. This configuration file defines which other files to manage when cutting off a release.
Example json
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "package.json",
"type": "json",
"params": {
"property": "version"
}
}
]
}
Example json
resource configuration with an array sub-property:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "package.json",
"type": "json",
"params": {
"property": "versions[1].minor"
}
}
]
}
Example yaml
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "playbook.yaml",
"type": "yaml",
"params": {
"property": "version"
}
}
]
}
Example yaml
resource configuration with an array sub-property:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "playbook.yaml",
"type": "yaml",
"params": {
"property": "versions[1].minor"
}
}
]
}
Example keep-a-changelog
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "CHANGELOG.md",
"type": "keep-a-changelog"
}
]
}
Example toml
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "pyproject.toml",
"type": "toml",
"params": {
"property": "version"
}
}
]
}
Example makefile
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "Makefile",
"type": "makefile",
"params": {
"variable": "version"
}
}
]
}
Example text
resource configuration:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "somefile.txt",
"type": "text",
"params": {
"regex": "(\\d+)\\.(\\d+)\\.(\\d+)(?:-([0-9A-Za-z-]+(?:\\.[0-9A-Za-z-]+)*))?"
}
}
]
}
It is also possible to force the release and post-release values instead of using the version scheme generated value: Note: because release and post-release values are specified at resource level, the SCM tag will still use the version scheme generated value
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "package.json",
"type": "json",
"params": {
"property": "version",
"release_value": "1.2.3",
"post_release_value": "master"
}
}
]
}
If you want to format the tag instead of using the version number as the tag, you can configure tagFormat
property:
{
"tagFormat": "v{version}",
"resources": [...]
}
The above example will set the tag v1.2.3
for version 1.2.3
.
If you want to format the resource's release value, you can configure format
property:
{
"resources": [
{
"path": "Makefile",
"type": "makefile",
"params": {
"variable": "version",
"release_format": "v{version}"
}
}
]
}
From 0.x, 1.x, 2.x to 3.x:
Modify configuration which uses array sub-property syntax to use square brackets, e.g.:
- from
versions.1.minor
toversions[1].minor
- from
a.b.0.d.e
toa.b[0].d.e
- from
jobs.build.steps.0.with.ref
tojobs.build.steps[0].with.ref
Failing to update the syntax will result in the following error:
file:///path/to/lib/node_modules/rtk/node_modules/dot-prop/index.js:176
throw new Error('Cannot use string index');
^
Error: Cannot use string index
at assertNotStringIndex (file:///path/to/lib/node_modules/rtk/node_modules/dot-prop/index.js:176:9)
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