# Wip Release

> One-command release pipeline. Bumps version, updates changelog + SKILL.md, publishes to npm + GitHub.

- Skill: `wipcomputer-wip-ai-devops-toolbox/wip-release` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 11 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds add wipcomputer-wip-ai-devops-toolbox/wip-release`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/wipcomputer-wip-ai-devops-toolbox/wip-release/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: DevOps & Infra
- License: MIT
- Author: wipcomputer (https://skillmd.com/u/wipcomputer-wip-ai-devops-toolbox)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/wipcomputer-wip-ai-devops-toolbox/wip-release

---


# wip-release

Local release pipeline. One command bumps version, updates all docs, publishes everywhere.

## When to Use This Skill

**Use wip-release for:**
- Releasing a new version of any @wipcomputer package
- After merging a PR to main and you need to publish
- Bumping version + changelog + SKILL.md in one step
- Publishing alpha or beta prereleases for testing
- Pushing hotfixes to npm without full deploy-public

**Use --dry-run for:**
- Previewing what a release would do before committing

**Use --no-publish for:**
- Bumping version and tagging without publishing to registries

### Do NOT Use For

- Repos without a package.json

## Release Tracks

Four release tracks. Each has different behavior for npm tags, public repo sync, and release notes.

| Track | Command | npm tag | Public code sync | Public release notes |
|-------|---------|---------|-----------------|---------------------|
| Alpha | `wip-release alpha` | @alpha | No | No (opt in with --release-notes) |
| Beta | `wip-release beta` | @beta | No | Yes, prerelease (opt out with --no-release-notes) |
| Hotfix | `wip-release hotfix` | @latest | No | Yes (opt out with --no-release-notes) |
| Stable | `wip-release patch/minor/major` | @latest | Yes (deploy-public) | Yes, full notes |

### Version numbering

- Alpha: `1.9.68-alpha.1`, `1.9.68-alpha.2`, etc.
- Beta: `1.9.68-beta.1`, `1.9.68-beta.2`, etc.
- Hotfix: normal version bump (patch)
- Stable: normal version bump (patch/minor/major)

## API Reference

### CLI

```bash
# Stable (existing behavior)
wip-release patch                           # full pipeline
wip-release minor --dry-run                 # preview only
wip-release major --no-publish              # bump + tag only
wip-release patch --skip-product-check      # skip product docs gate

# Alpha
wip-release alpha                           # npm @alpha, no public notes
wip-release alpha --release-notes           # npm @alpha + prerelease notes on public

# Beta
wip-release beta                            # npm @beta + prerelease notes on public
wip-release beta --no-release-notes         # npm @beta, skip public notes

# Hotfix
wip-release hotfix                          # npm @latest + public release notes
wip-release hotfix --no-release-notes       # npm @latest, skip public notes
```

### Product Docs Gate

wip-release checks that product docs (dev update, roadmap, readme-first) were updated before publishing. Only runs on repos with an `ai/` directory.

- **patch**: warns if product docs are stale (non-blocking)
- **minor/major**: blocks release until product docs are updated
- **--skip-product-check**: bypasses the gate

Checks:
1. `ai/dev-updates/` has a file modified since the last release tag
2. `ai/product/plans-prds/roadmap.md` was modified since last release
3. `ai/product/readme-first-product.md` was modified since last release

### Skill Publish to Website

After publishing, wip-release auto-copies SKILL.md to your website as plain text. Any AI can fetch the URL and get clean install instructions.

**Setup:** Add `.publish-skill.json` to your repo root:
```json
{ "name": "wip-my-tool", "websiteRepo": "/path/to/website-repo" }
```

**How it works:**
1. If SKILL.md exists and a website repo is configured, copies SKILL.md to `{website}/wip.computer/install/{name}.txt`
2. Runs `deploy.sh` in the website repo to push live
3. Non-blocking: if deploy fails, the release still succeeds

**Website repo resolution:**
1. `.publish-skill.json` `websiteRepo` field (per-repo)
2. `WIP_WEBSITE_REPO` env var (global fallback)

**Name resolution (first match wins):**
1. `.publish-skill.json` `name` field
2. `package.json` name (with `@scope/` prefix stripped)
3. Directory name (with `-private` suffix stripped)

### Module

```javascript
import { release, releasePrerelease, releaseHotfix, detectCurrentVersion, bumpSemver, bumpPrerelease } from '@wipcomputer/wip-release';

// Stable release
await release({ repoPath: '.', level: 'patch', notes: 'fix', dryRun: false, noPublish: false });

// Alpha/beta prerelease
await releasePrerelease({ repoPath: '.', track: 'alpha', notes: 'testing', dryRun: false, noPublish: false, publishReleaseNotes: false });

// Hotfix
await releaseHotfix({ repoPath: '.', notes: 'critical fix', dryRun: false, noPublish: false, publishReleaseNotes: true });
```

## Troubleshooting

### "Could not fetch npm token from 1Password"
Check that `~/.openclaw/secrets/op-sa-token` exists and `op` CLI is installed.

### "Push failed"
Branch protection may prevent direct pushes. Make sure you're on main after merging a PR.

### SKILL.md not updated
Only updates if the file has a YAML frontmatter `version:` field between `---` markers.

## MCP

Tools: `release`, `release_status`

Add to `.mcp.json`:
```json
{
  "wip-release": {
    "command": "node",
    "args": ["/path/to/tools/wip-release/mcp-server.mjs"]
  }
}
```