trigger-prepare-release

name	trigger-prepare-release
description	Trigger the prepare-release workflow on GitHub Actions. Supports optional arguments for version, bump type, and channel. Defaults to bump=patch, channel=stable.
metadata	{"author":"mark","version":"1.2.0"}
allowed-tools	Bash(gh:*), Bash(git:*)

Trigger Prepare Release

Trigger the prepare-release.yml workflow on GitHub Actions.

The workflow always runs against main (hardcoded inside the workflow) and produces a release/v<version> branch + PR.

Arguments

All arguments are optional.

Parameter	Default	Description
version	(empty)	Exact semver, no v prefix. Include the channel suffix if you want one (e.g. 0.9.0-alpha.1). Overrides bump AND channel.
bump	patch	Version bump type: patch, minor, major. Only used when version is empty.
channel	stable	Release channel: stable, alpha, beta, rc. Only used when version is empty.

Critical: how version interacts with channel

The workflow's Determine version step is:

if [ -n "$version" ]; then
  VERSION="$version"        # used verbatim, channel ignored
else
  VERSION=$(bump-version.js --type "$bump" --channel "$channel" --dry-run ...)
fi

So:

• ✅ version=0.9.0-alpha.1 → release v0.9.0-alpha.1 (correct way to ship an alpha at an exact version)
• ❌ version=0.9.0 + channel=alpha → release v0.9.0 (channel silently ignored, this is the trap)
• ✅ bump=minor + channel=alpha → script computes next alpha (e.g. v0.9.0-alpha.1)

Workflow

1. Parse arguments

Accept either key=value form (channel=beta bump=minor) or positional tokens (/trigger-prepare-release 0.9.0-alpha.1). For each positional token, classify by shape:

Token shape	Classified as	Examples
Looks like semver (digit-dot-digit, optional -suffix.N)	version	0.9.0, 0.9.0-alpha.1, 1.2.3-rc.2
One of stable / alpha / beta / rc (bare word)	channel	alpha, rc
One of patch / minor / major	bump	minor

Ambiguity rule: if the user supplies a semver-shaped token AND a bare channel word (e.g. 0.9.0 alpha.1 or 0.9.0 alpha), do NOT split them across version/channel — that triggers the trap above. Instead, ask the user whether they meant:

• version=0.9.0-alpha.1 (exact version with suffix), or
• bump=minor channel=alpha (let the script compute the next alpha)

2. Confirm with user

Display the resolved parameters and ask for confirmation before triggering:

Will trigger prepare-release with:
  version: 0.9.0-alpha.1
  bump:    (ignored — version is set)
  channel: (ignored — version is set)
Proceed? (y/n)

If version is empty, show resolved bump and channel instead.

3. Trigger the workflow

gh workflow run prepare-release.yml \
  --repo UniClipboard/UniClipboard \
  --ref main \
  -f version=<version> \
  -f bump=<bump> \
  -f channel=<channel>

Omit -f version= when version is empty. --ref is always main because the workflow checks out main internally regardless.

4. Confirm dispatch

After triggering, wait a few seconds and show the latest run:

gh run list --repo UniClipboard/UniClipboard --workflow=prepare-release.yml --limit 1

Report the run URL so the user can monitor progress. The run's name (prepare-release-v<resolved-version>) is the easiest way to verify the version came out as expected — check it before walking away.