dev.languagetool.org

How to make a LanguageTool Release

This is our internal documentation for how to make a new release. This is only relevant to release managers.

NOTE: As of March 2025, LanguageTool has switched to a snapshot-based release model. Get the latest snapshot from https://languagetool.org/download/snapshots/.

Preparation

• make sure you’re on Java 17 (we support Java 17 and being on Java 17 is the easiest way to ensure that): java -version
• update local source: git pull -r
• work in a local branch: git checkout -b vX.Y-release
• update the i18n property files by running wti pull
  • see webtranslateit.com under “Settings / API Tokens” for the API key
• Update the version number in:
  • top-level pom.xml: only set property revision
  • mvn versions:set (set the version number of today’s release when prompted)
  • update <version>${revision}</version> to the new version number in all pom.xml files (using ${revision} as a variable would cause issues when publishing the artifact via Sonatype)
  • commit changes
• mvn clean test
• Optional: run org.languagetool.dev.RuleOverview and paste the result to languages.html (when running from IntelliJ IDEA, set “Working directory” to $MODULE_WORKING_DIR$)
• update CHANGES.md file
  • sort language changes alphabetically
  • make sure list the of updated languages matches languages.html
• update README.md file
• make sure there are no useless files (these would become part of the download file):
  • run git status and check the output under “untracked files”
  • make sure there are no *.bak files in resources

Now we’re ready to create and upload the Maven artifacts. Details are at http://central.sonatype.org/pages/ossrh-guide.html:

Releasing the artifacts to Maven Central

• mvn clean install
• mvn javadoc:jar
• mvn source:jar
• cd languagetool-standalone/scripts
• open the stage-artifacts.sh script
  • set the version number
  • make sure the list of Maven projects to be deployed is up-to-date
  • ./stage-artifacts.sh (this will sign and upload the artifacts to the staging area, it will take > 30 minutes. NOTE: this requires a proper set-up of ~/.m2/settings.xml)
  • if this doesn’t work, go to https://oss.sonatype.org/#profile;User%20Token and create a token, copying the XML to ~/.m2/settings.xml and using sonatype-nexus-staging as the <id>
• log in at https://oss.sonatype.org
  • go to “Staging Repositories” page.
  • select the staging repository: orglanguagetool-xyz (usually at the bottom of the list)
  • click “Close”
  • test the artifacts in project languagetool-client-example:
    • adapt the pom.xml (set the new “orglanguagetool-xyz” as a repo and update the dependencies)
    • clean local m2 repo: rm -r ~/.m2/repository/org/languagetool/
    • adapt version in pom.xml and build-opensource.sh and run it (unzips the uberjar and replaces META-INF/org/langetool/language-module.properties with the language-module.properties from languagetool-standalone - this is needed because with the original file, all languages except one get lost)
  • if okay, click “Release” (requires a refresh) - note that once released, the artifacts cannot be deleted or modified! It may take a few hours before the artifacts actually become available.
• set a tag in git: git tag -a vX.Y -m 'version X.Y'
• push the tag: git push origin vX.Y

After the Release

• git checkout vx.y-release
• Set the new version (x.y-SNAPSHOT) in these files:
  • set <version>x.y</version> to <version>${revision}</version> in all pom.xml files
  • top-level pom.xml: set property properties -> revision to the new x.y-SNAPSHOT version
  • mvn versions:set (use ${revision} when prompted for new version)
  • commit
• merge the branch back to trunk: git checkout master; git merge vX.Y-release
• update: git pull (not pull -r)
• push your changes: git push

Update website

• enter the next release date in your personal calendar so you don’t forget it
• set new version number in Java API

Write announcements

• http://forum.languagetool.org - include checksums (Unix command: sha256sum <file>).
• Update this release documentation if there have been any changes in the process

Update the web app at community.languagetool.org

Just update the LT dependencies in BuildConfig.groovy. Deployment happens automatically.

Backups and Misc

Not really related to a release, but should be done once in a while, and the release is a good opportunity:

• Download forum backup at http://forum.languagetool.org/admin/backups

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