versioning-policy

## Context Squad is a monorepo with two publishable npm packages (`@bradygaster/squad-sdk` and `@bradygaster/squad-cli`) managed via npm workspaces. Version mismatches and prerelease leaks have caused production incidents — most notably PR #640, where a `-build.N` prerelease version silently broke workspace dependency resolution. This skill codifies the versioning rules every agent must follow. ## 1. Version Format All packages use **strict semver**: `MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH` - ✅ `0.9.1`, `1.0.0`, `0.10.0` - ❌ `0.9.1-build.4`, `0.9.1-preview.1`, `0.8.6.1-preview` No prerelease suffixes on `dev` or `main` branches — ever. ## 2. Prerelease Versions Are Ephemeral The `scripts/bump-build.mjs` script creates `-build.N` versions (e.g., `0.9.1-build.4`) for **local development testing only**. Rules: - `-build.N` versions are created automatically during local `npm run build` - They are **never committed** to `dev` or `main` - The script skips itself in CI (`CI=true` or `SKIP_BUILD_BUMP=1`) - If you see a `-build.N` version in a PR diff, it is a bug — reject the PR ## 3. SDK and CLI Version Sync Both `@bradygaster/squad-sdk` and `@bradygaster/squad-cli` **MUST have the same version** at all times. The root `package.json` version must also match. `bump-build.mjs` enforces this by updating all three `package.json` files in lockstep (root + `packages/squad-sdk` + `packages/squad-cli`). If versions diverge, workspace resolution silently breaks (see §4). ## 4. npm Workspace Semver Footgun The CLI depends on the SDK via a workspace dependency with a semver range: ```json "@bradygaster/squad-sdk": ">=0.9.0" ``` **Critical:** Per the semver specification, `>=0.9.0` does **NOT** match `0.9.1-build.4`. Semver prerelease versions (anything with a `-` suffix) are only matched by ranges that explicitly reference the same `MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH` base with a prerelease comparator. A bare `>=0.9.0` range skips all prerelease versions. **What happens:** When the local SDK has version `0.9.1-build.4`, npm's workspace resolution fails to match the `>=0.9.0` range. npm then **silently installs a stale published version** from the npm registry instead of using the local workspace link. The build succeeds but runs against old SDK code. This is the root cause of the **PR #640 incident**, where workspace packages appeared linked but were actually running against stale registry versions. ## 5. Who Bumps Versions **Surgeon (Release Manager) owns all version bumps.** | Agent | May modify `version` in package.json? | |-------|---------------------------------------| | Surgeon | ✅ Yes — sole owner of version bumps | | Any other agent | ❌ No — unless explicitly fixing a prerelease leak | If you discover a prerelease version committed to `dev` or `main`, you may fix it (revert to the clean release version) without Surgeon's approval. This is a safety escape hatch, not a license to manage versions. ## 6. Version Bump Lifecycle ``` ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ Development phase │ │ Versions stay at current release: 0.9.1 │ │ bump-build.mjs creates -build.N locally (not committed)│ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Pre-release testing │ │ bump-build.mjs → 0.9.1-build.1, -build.2, ... │ │ Local only. Never committed. Never pushed. │ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Release │ │ Surgeon bumps to next version (e.g., 0.9.2 or 0.10.0) │ │ Tags, publishes to npm registry │ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ Post-release │ │ Versions stay at the new release version (e.g., 0.9.2) │ │ Development continues on clean version │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ ``` ## 7. CI Enforcement The **`prerelease-version-guard`** CI gate blocks any PR to `dev` or `main` that contains prerelease version strings in `package.json` files. - The gate scans all three `package.json` files for `-` in the version field - PRs with prerelease versions **cannot merge** until the version is cleaned - The `skip-version-check` label bypasses the gate — use **only** for the bump-build script's own PR (if applicable), and only with Surgeon's approval ## 8. Incident Reference — PR #640 **PR #640** is the cautionary tale for this entire policy. **What happened:** Prerelease versions (`0.9.1-build.4`) were committed to a branch. The workspace dependency `>=0.9.0` failed to match the prerelease version per semver spec. npm silently installed a stale published SDK from the registry instead of linking the local workspace copy. Four PRs (#637–#640) attempted iterative patches before the root cause was identified. **Root cause:** No versioning policy existed. Agents didn't know that prerelease versions break workspace resolution, or that only Surgeon should modify versions. **Resolution:** This skill, the `prerelease-version-guard` CI gate, and the team decision to centralize version ownership under Surgeon. ## Quick Reference | Rule | Summary | |------|---------| | Format | `MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH` — no prerelease on dev/main | | Prerelease | `-build.N` is local-only, never committed | | Sync | SDK + CLI + root must have identical versions | | Ownership | Surgeon bumps versions; others don't touch them | | CI gate | `prerelease-version-guard` blocks prerelease PRs | | Escape hatch | Any agent may revert a prerelease leak to clean version | | Footgun | `>=0.9.0` does NOT match `0.9.1-build.4` per semver |