feat: replace fetch-external.sh with version-pinned sync system by klutchell · Pull Request #3274 · balena-io/docs

klutchell · 2026-01-20T19:55:21Z

Add external-docs.json manifest and sync-external.js to replace shell scripts:

Fetch and transform external content with pinned versions
Support versioned sources (CLI, SDK, Python SDK) with auto-detected releases
Mark versions as latest/supported/deprecated based on release dates
Generate dictionary files for version switcher UI
Support local source extractions (masterclass partials)
Add --repo flag for Renovate to sync by repository

External docs are now committed to git at pinned versions rather than
fetched at build time from master branches. Renovate will create PRs
when upstream repos release new versions.

Removed: fetch-external.sh, build-masterclass.sh, extract-markdown.sh,
versioning.js, github-parser.js, line-by-line dependency

See: https://balena.fibery.io/Work/Improvement/replace-fetch-external.sh-with-version-pinned-sync-system-3663

Signed-off-by: Kyle Harding <kyle@balena.io>

flowzone-app · 2026-01-22T14:53:08Z

Website deployed to CF Pages, 👀 preview link https://e8861108.balenacloud-docs.pages.dev

Add external-docs.json manifest and sync-external.js to replace shell scripts: - Fetch and transform external content with pinned versions - Support versioned sources (CLI, SDK, Python SDK) with auto-detected releases - Mark versions as latest/supported/deprecated based on release dates - Generate dictionary files for version switcher UI - Support local source extractions (masterclass partials) - Add --repo flag for Renovate to sync by repository External docs are now committed to git at pinned versions rather than fetched at build time from master branches. Renovate will create PRs when upstream repos release new versions. Removed: fetch-external.sh, build-masterclass.sh, extract-markdown.sh, versioning.js, github-parser.js, line-by-line dependency Change-type: minor Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.5 <noreply@anthropic.com> Signed-off-by: Kyle Harding <kyle@balena.io>

Add static documentation files synced via sync-external.js: - Version dictionaries for CLI, Node SDK, and Python SDK - Masterclass debugging content - Reference docs (supervisor API, diagnostics, base images, etc.) - Versioned SDK/CLI documentation snapshots Update .gitignore to track these files instead of ignoring them, keeping only truly dynamic content (project lists, device assets) in the ignore list. Change-type: minor Signed-off-by: Kyle Harding <kyle@balena.io>

Signed-off-by: Kyle Harding <kyle@balena.io>

github-advanced-security AI found potential problems Jan 20, 2026

View reviewed changes

Comment thread tools/sync-external.js Fixed

klutchell force-pushed the kyle/sync-external branch 2 times, most recently from a011d13 to df611d8 Compare January 20, 2026 20:49

Use shared workflow for link-checker and update pinned actions

7f4277b

Signed-off-by: Kyle Harding <kyle@balena.io>

klutchell force-pushed the kyle/sync-external branch from 32adc1c to 6a7cdce Compare January 21, 2026 15:16

drskullster reviewed Jan 22, 2026

View reviewed changes

Comment thread .github/workflows/link-checker.yml

Comment thread tools/sync-external.js Outdated

Comment thread tools/sync-external.js Outdated

Comment thread tools/sync-external.js

Comment thread CONTRIBUTING.md

klutchell force-pushed the kyle/sync-external branch from 2482f45 to 13f0057 Compare January 22, 2026 14:48

klutchell marked this pull request as ready for review January 22, 2026 14:51

flowzone-app Bot enabled auto-merge January 22, 2026 14:53

klutchell force-pushed the kyle/sync-external branch 2 times, most recently from 8cde6ab to 1789079 Compare January 22, 2026 15:03

klutchell requested a review from drskullster January 22, 2026 15:04