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											2018-02-09 14:03:33 +01:00
										 |  |  | QEMU and the stable process
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							|  |  |  | ===========================
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							|  |  |  | QEMU stable releases
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							|  |  |  | --------------------
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							|  |  |  | QEMU stable releases are based upon the last released QEMU version
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							|  |  |  | and marked by an additional version number, e.g. 2.10.1. Occasionally,
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							|  |  |  | a four-number version is released, if a single urgent fix needs to go
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							|  |  |  | on top.
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							|  |  |  | Usually, stable releases are only provided for the last major QEMU
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							|  |  |  | release. For example, when QEMU 2.11.0 is released, 2.11.x or 2.11.x.y
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							|  |  |  | stable releases are produced only until QEMU 2.12.0 is released, at
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							|  |  |  | which point the stable process moves to producing 2.12.x/2.12.x.y releases.
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							|  |  |  | What should go into a stable release?
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							|  |  |  | -------------------------------------
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							|  |  |  | Generally, the following patches are considered stable material:
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											2020-01-13 11:30:23 +01:00
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							|  |  |  | * Patches that fix severe issues, like fixes for CVEs
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							|  |  |  | * Patches that fix regressions
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											2018-02-09 14:03:33 +01:00
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							|  |  |  | If you think the patch would be important for users of the current release
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							|  |  |  | (or for a distribution picking fixes), it is usually a good candidate
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							|  |  |  | for stable.
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							|  |  |  | How to get a patch into QEMU stable
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							|  |  |  | -----------------------------------
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							|  |  |  | There are various ways to get a patch into stable:
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							|  |  |  | * Preferred: Make sure that the stable maintainers are on copy when you send
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							|  |  |  |   the patch by adding
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							|  |  |  |   .. code::
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							|  |  |  |      Cc: qemu-stable@nongnu.org
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							|  |  |  |   to the patch description. By default, this will send a copy of the patch
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							|  |  |  |   to ``qemu-stable@nongnu.org`` if you use git send-email, which is where
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							|  |  |  |   patches that are stable candidates are tracked by the maintainers.
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							|  |  |  | * You can also reply to a patch and put ``qemu-stable@nongnu.org`` on copy
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							|  |  |  |   directly in your mail client if you think a previously submitted patch
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							|  |  |  |   should be considered for a stable release.
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							|  |  |  | * If a maintainer judges the patch appropriate for stable later on (or you
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							|  |  |  |   notify them), they will add the same line to the patch, meaning that
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							|  |  |  |   the stable maintainers will be on copy on the maintainer's pull request.
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							|  |  |  | * If you judge an already merged patch suitable for stable, send a mail
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							|  |  |  |   (preferably as a reply to the most recent patch submission) to
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							|  |  |  |   ``qemu-stable@nongnu.org`` along with ``qemu-devel@nongnu.org`` and
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							|  |  |  |   appropriate other people (like the patch author or the relevant maintainer)
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							|  |  |  |   on copy.
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							|  |  |  | Stable release process
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							|  |  |  | ----------------------
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							|  |  |  | When the stable maintainers prepare a new stable release, they will prepare
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							|  |  |  | a git branch with a release candidate and send the patches out to
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							|  |  |  | ``qemu-devel@nongnu.org`` for review. If any of your patches are included,
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							|  |  |  | please verify that they look fine, especially if the maintainer had to tweak
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							|  |  |  | the patch as part of back-porting things across branches. You may also
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							|  |  |  | nominate other patches that you think are suitable for inclusion. After
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							|  |  |  | review is complete (may involve more release candidates), a new stable release
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							|  |  |  | is made available.
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