PointReleaseProcess

Revision 12 as of 2008-07-16 16:38:25

Clear message

This is an incomplete DRAFT.

To be carried out by: nominated stable release manager, with support from the [https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-sru stable release updates] and [https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-release release] teams

Goals:

  • Refresh hardware support in LTS releases for carefully-selected hardware
  • Roll up accumulated stable updates into updated images to reduce download requirements for new deployments
  • Maintain stability of existing installations

Between Release minus 6 months and Release minus 2 months:

  1. Discuss candidates for new or improved hardware support with affected parties. Some sources for this work should be:
    • the Canonical support team (via Steve George)
    • customers
    • the Ubuntu kernel team
    • the Ubuntu QA team
  2. Establish a hit-list of bugs to fix in the point release using a milestone. Milestoning bugs is not a committment to including the changes in the point release; they may be deferred after further information becomes available.
  3. In concert with affected developers, triage the hit-list for feasibility.

Release minus 2 months:

  1. Process stable release updates [:StableReleaseUpdates:as normal]. For hardware-enabling fixes, the package should be tested on the affected hardware prior to submitting to sign-off for -proposed.

  2. Discuss the possibility of a Canonical press release for the point release with Gerry Carr.
  3. Liaise with IS, QA, and certification to arrange for testing resources.

Release minus 1 month:

  1. In coordination with QA, verify that all candidate bugs are fixed.
  2. Upload a new base-files package to -proposed to bump the lsb_release description ([http://changelogs.ubuntu.com/changelogs/pool/main/b/base-files/base-files_3.1.9ubuntu7.2/changelog example for 6.06.2]). Do not change the DISTRIB_RELEASE value, which is used programmatically by third-party software.

  3. If the kernel or associated modules have been changed, upload debian-installer after all the binaries are in place. If the ABI changed, make sure to take account of this throughout debian-installer/build/config/ and in the installer seed for all flavours being built.

  4. Change cdimage/bin/make-web-indices, cdimage/bin/publish-release, and debian-cd/CONF.sh to use the new release version number.

  5. Change cdimage/bin/run-germinate and debian-cd/CONF.sh to build from -proposed temporarily. If live CDs need to be built, also modify cdimage/bin/buildlive.

  6. Build CD images (which will be published and smoke-test in some convenient environment to check for obvious failures.

Release minus 3 weeks:

  1. Contact IS, QA, and/or certification as appropriate to request testing for hardware recertification.
  2. Iterate CD images as needed based on testing feedback, in coordination with the kernel team.

Release minus 6 days:

  1. Once testing is verified to be complete, move packages to -updates.
  2. Notify Scott James Remnant to perform a ReadaheadListUpdate

Release:

  • release images as final, and move the previous images to old-releases.ubuntu.com:

    • Prepublish images:

      DIST=dapper ARCHES="i386 amd64 sparc powerpc" for-project ubuntu publish-release ubuntu-server/daily 20080110.1 server poolonly (similar for alternates, desktops, etc.)

    • TODO much more detail here
  • Create a snapshot of the archive:

    lp_archive@drescher:~$ point-release-snapshot dapper dapper.2-security-updates-snapshot

    which will create a hardlink farm in ~lp_archive/point-releases/.

  • File a bug on [https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-website/+bugs ubuntu-website] to have https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UbuntuHashes updated.

TODO:

  • Anything else?
  • Standard criteria for adding -updates tag to bugs