release

name	release
description	Cut a new release of the Yield macOS app. Use this skill whenever the user wants to release, ship, publish, or cut a new version of Yield. Handles the full pipeline: version bump, build, sign, notarize, appcast, GitHub release, and Slack notification.

Release Yield

Cut a new release of the Yield macOS app. The argument is the version number (e.g., 0.9.7).

Version argument: $ARGUMENTS

If $ARGUMENTS is empty, read the current MARKETING_VERSION from project.yml and ask the user what version to release.

Execution discipline (read first)

This pipeline is a long run of repetitive shell + edit steps, which makes it easy to slip into describing a command instead of running it. Two rules:

1. Every step is a real tool call — an actual Bash or Edit invocation, never command text pasted into your reply. If you catch yourself writing out a command in prose or a code fence as if it ran, stop: it did not run. Re-issue it as a genuine tool call.
2. Confirm each step produced a tool result before moving on. If a step yields no output/result, you emitted it as text rather than executing it — redo it as a tool call. Don't advance the pipeline on an assumed result; every command here has observable output (test summary, ** ARCHIVE SUCCEEDED **, notarization status: Accepted, a commit hash, a release URL). No output = it didn't happen.

Known account-level snag: notarization 403

If notarytool submit fails with HTTP status code: 403. A required agreement is missing or has expired, this is not a build problem — Apple has a pending legal agreement that freezes notarization. Tell the user to sign in at developer.apple.com/account (as Account Holder for team 7G49Y875S8), accept any pending agreement banner (usually the Apple Developer Program License Agreement; also check App Store Connect → Agreements, Tax, and Banking), and that membership isn't lapsed. Acceptance can take a few minutes to propagate. The archive/signed app/zip remain valid in /tmp — just re-run from the notarization step once they confirm. Don't tight-loop the endpoint; retry on the user's go-ahead.

Process

Execute each step in order. If any step fails, stop immediately and report the error — do not continue to subsequent steps.

1. Run Tests

Run the full test suite before bumping version or building anything. If any test fails, stop the release immediately — surface the failing test names and don't continue. The release shouldn't take a single further step until tests are green.

xcodebuild test -project Yield.xcodeproj -scheme Yield -configuration Debug -destination 'platform=macOS'

A passing run ends with ** TEST SUCCEEDED **. Anything else is a failure.

2. Bump Version

In project.yml, update:

• MARKETING_VERSION to the new version ($ARGUMENTS)
• CURRENT_PROJECT_VERSION — increment by 1 from its current value

Then regenerate the Xcode project:

xcodegen generate

Commit the version bump:

git add project.yml Yield.xcodeproj/project.pbxproj Yield/Info.plist

Commit message: Bump version to VERSION (build N)

3. Archive & Export

Archive:

xcodebuild -project Yield.xcodeproj -scheme Yield -configuration Release archive -archivePath /tmp/Yield.xcarchive

Create an export options plist at /tmp/export-options.plist:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>method</key>
    <string>developer-id</string>
    <key>teamID</key>
    <string>7G49Y875S8</string>
    <key>signingStyle</key>
    <string>manual</string>
    <key>signingCertificate</key>
    <string>Developer ID Application</string>
</dict>
</plist>

Export:

xcodebuild -exportArchive -archivePath /tmp/Yield.xcarchive -exportPath /tmp/YieldExport -exportOptionsPlist /tmp/export-options.plist

4. Re-sign Sparkle & Zip

Re-sign Sparkle so it matches the app's identity:

codesign --force --deep --sign "Developer ID Application: Jeremy Fields (7G49Y875S8)" --options runtime /tmp/YieldExport/Yield.app/Contents/Frameworks/Sparkle.framework

Create the zip. This MUST use COPYFILE_DISABLE=1 and --norsrc to strip macOS AppleDouble ._ resource fork files — without this, Gatekeeper rejects the app with "unsealed contents present in the root directory of an embedded framework":

cd /tmp/YieldExport && COPYFILE_DISABLE=1 ditto -c -k --norsrc --keepParent Yield.app /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip

5. Notarize & Staple

Submit for notarization (this takes 1-3 minutes):

xcrun notarytool submit /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip --keychain-profile "notarytool-profile" --wait

If notarization fails with "No Keychain password item found", tell the user to run:

xcrun notarytool store-credentials "notarytool-profile" --apple-id EMAIL --team-id 7G49Y875S8

Staple the ticket to the app:

xcrun stapler staple /tmp/YieldExport/Yield.app

Re-zip the stapled app (replaces the previous zip):

cd /tmp/YieldExport && rm -f /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip && COPYFILE_DISABLE=1 ditto -c -k --norsrc --keepParent Yield.app /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip

6. Sparkle Signature

Sign the zip for Sparkle auto-updates:

/Users/jeremyfields/Sites/yield-app/build/derived/SourcePackages/artifacts/sparkle/Sparkle/bin/sign_update /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip

Capture the sparkle:edSignature="..." and length=... values from the output — these go in the appcast.

7. Update Appcast

Generate release notes from commits since the last tag:

git log $(git describe --tags --abbrev=0)..HEAD --oneline

Add a new <item> at the TOP of the <channel> in appcast.xml (after <title>Yield Updates</title>), using the version, build number, edSignature, length, and release notes.

Commit:

git add appcast.xml

Commit message: Update appcast for vVERSION

8. Push, Tag & GitHub Release

Push commits, then create and push the tag before creating the release. This ensures the tag exists on the correct commit when GitHub fires the published event (otherwise the Slack notification workflow may not trigger):

git push origin main
git tag vVERSION
git push origin vVERSION

Create the GitHub release pointing at the existing tag:

gh release create vVERSION /tmp/Yield-VERSION.zip --title "vVERSION" --notes "RELEASE_NOTES" --verify-tag

The release notes for GitHub should be formatted with markdown headers and bullet points. Do NOT append a "Generated with Claude Code" line to release notes — keep them attribution-free.

The GitHub Actions workflow (.github/workflows/slack-release-notify.yml) will automatically post to #yield-app when the release is created — no manual Slack step needed.

Reminders

• All commit messages must end with Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 <[e-mail]>
• Use HEREDOC syntax for commit messages to preserve formatting
• The zip MUST use COPYFILE_DISABLE=1 ditto --norsrc — never use plain zip
• Set timeout to 600000ms for notarization (it can take a few minutes)
• Report the GitHub release URL when done