release-engineering

# Release Engineering Skill This skill provides a comprehensive guide for managing the release lifecycle of the Upnext Android application. It encapsulates logic for GitHub Actions, Fastlane, Semantic Versioning, and troubleshooting. ## 🚀 Triggering a Release The release pipeline is fully automated via GitHub Actions, prioritizing stability and reducing noise. ### 1. Nightly Scheduled Builds (CD) Automated deployments run daily at **2:00 AM UTC** via `.github/workflows/deploy.yml`. This batches all dependency updates and merges from the day into a single release. **Triggers:** - **Schedule:** `cron: '0 2 * * *'` - **Manual:** `workflow_dispatch` (Run via GitHub Actions UI) **Process:** 1. **Versioning:** Bumps `VERSION_CODE` and `VERSION_NAME` in `version.properties`. 2. **Build:** Generates signed Release Bundle (`.aab`). 3. **Distribution:** Fastlane uploads to **Google Play Internal Track**. 4. **Tagging:** Pushes a git tag (e.g., `v2025.1.4-215`). > **Critical Implementation Detail (GitHub Releases):** > For scheduled builds, the workflow runs on the `main` branch ref (`refs/heads/main`), not the tag ref. > To ensure a GitHub Release is attached to the newly created tag: > 1. Fastlane updates `version.properties`. > 2. The workflow explicitly reads `VERSION_NAME` and `VERSION_CODE` from the updated file. > 3. It constructs the tag name (`v{NAME}-{CODE}`) and passes it to the `softprops/action-gh-release` action. > *Do not rely on `github.ref` for scheduled release tagging.* ### 2. Pull Request Verification (CI) Every Pull Request to `main` undergoes strict quality checks via `.github/workflows/pull_request.yml`. **Unified `verify` Job:** To radically optimize GitHub Actions minutes consumption, all verification tasks are executed within a single runner matrix step using Gradle's internal dependency graph to share Daemon state and avoid redundant `:app:compileDebugKotlin` invocations: - `ktlintCheck` (Code Style) - `detekt` (Static Analysis) - `lintDebug` (Android best practices, permissions, security) - `testDebugUnitTest` (Unit Tests) - `assembleDebug` (Compilation validation) - `assembleRelease` (Verifies R8/ProGuard shrinking without crashing) > **Note on Signing in Pull Requests:** > PR builds do not have access to production signing keys. `app/build.gradle` is configured to **fallback to debug signing** automatically when the release keystore is missing. This allows `assembleRelease` to verify compilation and shrinking logic in CI without needing secrets. --- ## ⏱️ CI/CD Minute Optimization To prevent excessive consumption of GitHub Actions minutes, especially from automated dependency bots like Renovate, the following strategies are implemented: ### 1. Conditional Deployment (`deploy.yml`) The nightly scheduled build incorporates a `check_changes` pre-job. - It evaluates the commit history over the last 24 hours. - If no new commits were merged into `main`, it skips the expensive `deploy` job entirely. - Manual triggers (`workflow_dispatch`) bypass this check and force a deployment. ### 2. Renovate & PR Auto-Cancellation (`renovate.json` & `pull_request.yml`) Dependency updates can cause massive CI fan-out. To mitigate this: - **`rebaseWhen: conflicted`**: Renovate is configured to only rebase PRs if there is a git conflict, preventing it from auto-rebasing 10+ PRs whenever a single PR is merged into `main`. - **Update Grouping**: Minor and patch dependency updates are grouped into a single PR (`all-minor-patch`), reducing PR volume. - **`prConcurrentLimit: 3`**: Restricts the maximum number of simultaneous Renovate PRs. - **Concurrency Cancellation**: `pull_request.yml` includes a `concurrency` block (`cancel-in-progress: true`). If a PR receives new commits (e.g. during a manual rebase), GitHub instantly cancels the running tests for the old commit, saving minutes. --- ## 🛠 Manual Release & Debugging You can run the release logic locally using Fastlane to verify builds before pushing. ### Prerequisites - `fastlane` installed. - `key.properties` present (or environment variables set). - `service-account.json` for Google Play API access. ### Commands **Run Internal Track Deployment locally:** ```bash fastlane deploy_internal ``` *Note: This will perform the build, signing, and upload to Google Play, and will commit/tag version bumps.* **Run Specific CI Checks Locally:** ```bash # Verify Code Style ./gradlew ktlintCheck # Verify Static Analysis ./gradlew detekt # Verify Android Lint ./gradlew lintDebug # Verify Release Build (Compilation + R8) ./gradlew assembleRelease ``` --- ## 📦 Versioning Strategy Upnext uses **Calendar Versioning (CalVer)**: `YYYY.M.Patch` - **Major**: Year (e.g., 2025) - **Minor**: Month (e.g., 1 for January) - **Patch**: Incremental number for releases within that month. **File:** `version.properties` ```properties VERSION_CODE=214 VERSION_NAME=2025.1.4 ``` **Automated Bumping:** The `Fastfile` (`deploy_internal` lane) automatically: 1. Increments `VERSION_CODE` for every build. 2. Sets `VERSION_NAME` to `YYYY.M.1` (if new month) or `YYYY.M.Patch+1` (if same month). --- ## 🔧 Troubleshooting Guide ### 1. HTTP 403 / "Title Unknown" (Trakt API) * **Symptom:** App runs, but data fails to load or showing titles are missing. * **Cause:** Missing Trakt API Client ID/Secret in `local.properties` or Secrets. * **Fix:** Ensure `TRAKT_CLIENT_ID` and `TRAKT_CLIENT_SECRET` are set in GitHub Actions Secrets. ### 2. Release Build "Missing Keystore" * **Symptom:** `assembleRelease` fails with `SigningConfig "release" is missing required property "storeFile"`. * **Context:** This should NOT happen in CI anymore due to our fallback logic. * **Fix:** Check `app/build.gradle`. Ensure the `buildTypes.release` block contains the fallback logic: ```groovy if (signingConfigs.release.storeFile != null) { ... } else { signingConfig signingConfigs.debug } ``` ### 3. Missing Resources / Permissions (Lint Failures) * **Symptom:** `lintDebug` fails with "Missing permission" (e.g., `WAKE_LOCK`) or "Resource not found". * **Cause:** Multi-module projects (`core:common`, `core:data`) often need their own `AndroidManifest.xml` and resource definitions to satisfy lint, even if the app module provides them. * **Fix:** Add `AndroidManifest.xml` with `<uses-permission>` to the specific module (e.g., `core/common/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml`) or define the missing resource in that module. ### 4. Git Identity Issues * **Symptom:** "Please tell me who you are" during CI/CD. * **Fix:** The `deploy.yml` configures git user/email before tagging using `github-actions[bot]`. --- ## 📂 Key Files * `.github/workflows/deploy.yml`: Nightly CD workflow. * `.github/workflows/pull_request.yml`: PR CI workflow. * `fastlane/Fastfile`: Build automation script. * `version.properties`: App version definition. * `app/build.gradle`: Build & signing configuration. --- > Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/akitikkx) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions. <!-- tomevault:4.0:skill_md:2026-04-11 -->