DRAFT OpenJPA Release Policy DRAFT

Release Numbering

The release number consists of three digits separated by decimal points, followed by an optional status e.g. 2.1.6-beta2. The first digit is the major release number; the second is the minor release number; the third is the patch number. The optional status is an indicator of the release status, e.g. -alpha2, -rc1, etc.

Backward Compatibility

Backward compatibility means that user programs compiled against e.g. 2.1.5 will execute when run with e.g. 2.1.6. There is no guarantee that the reverse is true, i.e. that user programs compiled against 2.1.6 will run against 2.1.5.

Major Release

Major releases have the minor and patch numbers set to 0. Major releases contain functionality changes compared to earlier major releases and may break backward compatibility if necessary. Once a major release is issued, a branch is created for maintenance, dropping the patch number.

Minor Release

Minor releases have the patch number set to 0. Minor releases contain functionality changes compared to earlier minor releases within the same major release, but do not break backward compatibility. A minor release is created based on the previous minor release tag, or the major release tag if this is the first minor release from the major release.

Patch Release

Patch releases increment the patch number compared to the most recent patch release. Patch releases contain no functionality changes, only bug fixes. Backward compatibility is maintained. A patch release is created based on the previous patch release tag, on the minor release tag if this is the first patch release of a minor release, or on the major release tag if this is the first patch release of a major release.