Release & Branching Policy - Quarterly Releases

Bi-monthly Release Calendar for 2025

Month	Freeze Week	Merge Friday	Snapshot	Quarter	Tag
Jan	2024-12-27	2025-01-03	2025-01-10	Q1	25.1.1
	2025-01-10	2025-01-17	2025-01-24	Q3	25.1.3
Feb	2025-01-31	2025-02-07	2025-02-14	Q1	25.2.1
	2025-02-14	2025-02-21	2025-02-28	Q3	25.2.3
Mar	2025-02-28	2025-03-07	2025-03-14	Q1	25.3.1
	2025-03-14	2025-03-21	2025-03-28	Q3	25.3.3
Apr	2025-03-28	2025-04-04	2025-04-11	Q1	25.4.1
	2025-04-11	2025-04-18	2025-04-25	Q3	25.4.3
May	2025-04-25	2025-05-02	2025-05-09	Q1	25.5.1
	2025-05-09	2025-05-16	2025-05-23	Q3	25.5.3
Jun	2025-05-30	2025-06-06	2025-06-13	Q1	25.6.1
	2025-06-13	2025-06-20	2025-06-27	Q3	25.6.3
Jul	2025-06-27	2025-07-04	2025-07-11	Q1	25.7.1
	2025-07-11	2025-07-18	2025-07-25	Q3	25.7.3
Aug	2025-07-25	2025-08-01	2025-08-08	Q1	25.8.1
	2025-08-08	2025-08-15	2025-08-22	Q3	25.8.3
Sep	2025-08-29	2025-09-05	2025-09-12	Q1	25.9.1
	2025-09-12	2025-09-19	2025-09-26	Q3	25.9.3
Oct	2025-09-26	2025-10-03	2025-10-10	Q1	25.10.1
	2025-10-10	2025-10-17	2025-10-24	Q3	25.10.3
Nov	2025-10-31	2025-11-07	2025-11-14	Q1	25.11.1
	2025-11-14	2025-11-21	2025-11-28	Q3	25.11.3
Dec	2025-11-28	2025-12-05	2025-12-12	Q1	25.12.1
	2025-12-12	2025-12-19	2025-12-26	Q3	25.12.3

Three Key Points

Development - All development and PRs targetdev
Release Candidate - On Freeze Week, mergedev →rc (release-candidate). Only bug fixes and stabilization allowed inrc. dev remains open for new features.
Release - Mergerc →master twice per month (1st Quarter & 3rd Quarter of the Month)
Snapshot - Create snapshot releases from stablemaster branch

Note: The dev branch is always open for new features and development every week, regardless of the release cycle. Only the rc (release-candidate) branch is frozen for testing and bug fixes during release preparation.

Bi-monthly Release Schedule Flow

Week before 1st/3rd Friday (Freeze Week):
- 🔄 Merge latest dev → rc (release-candidate)
- 🚫 rc branch is frozen: Only bug fixes and stabilization allowed
- ✅ dev branch remains open: New features and PRs accepted
1st/3rd Friday:
- 🔄 Merge rc → master
- 📦 Snapshot release (when master is stable)
- 🔄 Preparation for next cycle/month
- ✅ dev branch remains open: New features and PRs accepted

1st & 3rd Quarter of the month Cycle

Week before 1st/3rd Friday (Freeze Week):

🔄 Merge dev → rc
🚫 rc freeze - Only bug fixes and stabilization in rc
✅ dev open - New features and PRs accepted

1st/3rd Friday:

🔄 Merge rc → master
📦 Snapshot release (when master is stable)
🔄 Preparation for next cycle/month

Summary

Quarter	Freeze Week	Merge Friday	Snapshot Friday	Dev Status	RC Status
1st Quarter	Week before 1st Fri	1st Friday	2nd Friday	✅ OPEN	🚫 FROZEN
3rd Quarter	Week before 3rd Fri	3rd Friday	4th Friday	✅ OPEN	🚫 FROZEN

Key Rules:

🚫Freeze weeks: Merge dev → rc. Only bug fixes to rc. dev remains open for new features.
✅Open weeks: All development welcomed in dev
📦Snapshots: Only whenmaster is stable
🔄4th Friday: Preparation for next cycle/month

Weekly Summary

Phase	Dev Branch Status	RC Branch Status	Allowed Changes	Description
Freeze Week (before 1st & 3rd Friday)	✅OPEN	🚫FROZEN	❌ No new features in `rc` ✅ Bug fixes in `rc` ✅ All dev in `dev`	Testing and validation
Merge Friday (1st & 3rd of month)	✅OPEN	🔄MERGING	🔄 Merge `rc` to master	Deploy stable code
Stabilization Week (after merge)	✅OPEN	✅OPEN	✅ All development in `dev` 🔧 Critical hotfixes in `rc`	Monitor master & develop
Snapshot Release	✅OPEN	📦RELEASE	📦 Create release	When `master` is stable

Monthly Timeline

Period	Dev Status	RC Status	Master Status	Activity	Focus
Week before 1st Friday	✅OPEN	🚫FROZEN	🔧 Previous fixes	Testing & validation	🧪 Prepare for merge
1st Friday	✅OPEN	🔄MERGING	📥 Receives new code	Merge `rc` → `master`	🔄 Deploy
Week after 1st Friday	✅OPEN	✅OPEN	🔧 Hotfixes only	Active development	🚀 New features to dev
2nd Friday	✅OPEN	✅OPEN	📦SNAPSHOT	Release when stable	📦 Release
Week before 2nd-to-last Friday	✅OPEN	🚫FROZEN	🔧 Minor fixes only	Testing & validation	🧪 Prepare for merge
2nd-to-last Friday	✅OPEN	🔄MERGING	📥 Receives new code	Merge `rc` → `master`	🔄 Deploy
Week after 2nd-to-last Friday	✅OPEN	✅OPEN	🔧 Hotfixes only	Active development	🚀 New features to dev
Last Friday	✅OPEN	✅OPEN	📦SNAPSHOT	Release when stable	📦 Release

Freeze periods: ~2 weeks per month (handles variable month lengths)

Versioning YY.M.Q

We use year.month.quarter format (YY.M.Q) instead of traditional semantic versioning for several reasons:

Release-cycle aligned: Matches our bi-monthly release schedule perfectly
Time-based clarity: Instantly shows when a release was made
Predictable progression: Always .1 then .3 each month
No arbitrary numbers: No confusion about what constitutes "major" vs "minor"
User-friendly: Easy to understand - 25.7.1 = "July 2025, 1st Quarter of the Month"

Pull Requests

All pull requests should be made againstdev branch
Pull requests should be reviewed and approved by at least one other developer before merging
Pull requests can be created anytime, but should be merged todev branch before releasing onmaster branch
Pull requests should not be merged directly intomaster branch
Pull requests should be merged within the release window formaster branch

FLOWCHART

Here are some visuals to help you understand the flowchart better.

Development Flow

graph TD
    A[Normal Development<br/>✅ All PRs to dev] --> B{Week Before<br/>1st/3rd Friday?}
    B -->|Yes| C[🔄 DEV → RC<br/>rc frozen<br/>🧪 Testing Phase]
    B -->|No| A
    
    C --> D[🔄 MERGE DAY<br/>1st/3rd Friday<br/>rc → master]
    D --> E[✅ DEV & RC REOPEN<br/>New features to dev]
    E --> F[📦 SNAPSHOT RELEASE<br/>2nd/4th Friday<br/>When master stable]
    F --> G[🔄 Prep Next Cycle]
    G --> A
    
    style A fill:#a9b1d6,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style C fill:#ebbcba,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style D fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style E fill:#a9b1d6,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style F fill:#c79bf0,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style G fill:#ebbcba,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737

Branch Flow

graph LR
    subgraph "Dev Branch"
        DEV[dev branch] --> RC[🔄 MERGE<br/>to rc]
        RC --> FROZEN[🚫 rc FROZEN<br/>fixes only]
        FROZEN --> MERGE[🔄 MERGING<br/>rc to master]
        MERGE --> OPEN[✅ OPEN<br/>all dev]
        OPEN --> RC
    end
    
    subgraph "RC Branch"
        RC2[rc branch] --> FROZEN2[🚫 FROZEN<br/>fixes only]
        FROZEN2 --> MERGE2[🔄 MERGING<br/>to master]
        MERGE2 --> OPEN2[✅ OPEN<br/>accepts new dev]
        OPEN2 --> RC2
    end
    
    subgraph "Master Branch"
        MASTER[master branch] --> PREV[🔧 Previous fixes]
        PREV --> RECEIVE[📥 RECEIVES<br/>new code]
        RECEIVE --> RELEASE[📦 RELEASE<br/>when stable]
        RELEASE --> PREV
    end
    
    MERGE -.-> RECEIVE
    MERGE2 -.-> RECEIVE
    
    style DEV fill:#252737,stroke:#a9b1d6,stroke-width:2px,color:#a9b1d6
    style RC fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style FROZEN fill:#ebbcba,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style MERGE fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style OPEN fill:#a9b1d6,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style RC2 fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style FROZEN2 fill:#ebbcba,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style MERGE2 fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style OPEN2 fill:#a9b1d6,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style MASTER fill:#252737,stroke:#a9b1d6,stroke-width:2px,color:#a9b1d6
    style PREV fill:#c79bf0,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style RECEIVE fill:#a9b1dc,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737
    style RELEASE fill:#a9b1d6,stroke:#252737,stroke-width:2px,color:#252737

Bi-monthly Release Schedule

gantt
    title Monthly Release Schedule
    dateFormat  X
    axisFormat %a %d

    section Week 1
    ✅ Dev Open                :devopen1, 1, 7d
    🔄 Dev → RC                :devrc1, 2, 1d
    🚫 RC Freeze & Testing     :rctest1, 3, 5d

    section Week 2
    ✅ Dev Open                :devopen2, 8, 7d
    🔄 RC → Master (Friday)    :rcmaster1, 9, 1d
    🧪 Master Testing          :mastertest1, 10, 3d
    📦 Snapshot (Friday)       :release1, 14, 1d

    section Week 3
    ✅ Dev Open                :devopen3, 15, 7d
    🔄 Dev → RC                :devrc2, 16, 1d
    🚫 RC Freeze & Testing     :rctest2, 17, 5d

    section Week 4
    ✅ Dev Open                :devopen4, 22, 7d
    🔄 RC → Master (Friday)    :rcmaster2, 23, 1d
    🧪 Master Testing          :mastertest2, 24, 3d
    📦 Snapshot (Friday)       :release2, 1, 1d

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Release & Branching Policy - Quarterly Releases

Bi-monthly Release Calendar for 2025

Three Key Points

Bi-monthly Release Schedule Flow

1st & 3rd Quarter of the month Cycle

Summary

Weekly Summary

Monthly Timeline

Versioning YY.M.Q

Pull Requests

FLOWCHART

Development Flow

Branch Flow

Bi-monthly Release Schedule

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File metadata and controls

Release & Branching Policy - Quarterly Releases

Bi-monthly Release Calendar for 2025

Three Key Points

Bi-monthly Release Schedule Flow

1st & 3rd Quarter of the month Cycle

Summary

Weekly Summary

Monthly Timeline

Versioning YY.M.Q

Pull Requests

FLOWCHART

Development Flow

Branch Flow

Bi-monthly Release Schedule