Release Schedule and Communication

Course Exchange Releases

Course Exchange will use the MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH version numbering for all future releases, where:

MAJOR Release = X
MINOR Release = Y
PATCH Release = Z

Given a version number MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH, increment the:

MAJOR version may contain incompatible API changes,
MINOR version may add functionality in a backwards-compatible manner, and
PATCH version will only contain backwards-compatible bug fixes.

A normal version number MUST take the form X.Y.Z where X, Y, and Z are non-negative integers, and MUST NOT contain leading zeroes. X is the major version, Y is the minor version, and Z is the patch version. Each element MUST increase numerically. For instance: 1.9.0 -> 1.10.0 -> 1.11.0.

Major Releases - X.y.z

Major Releases will occur on the last Monday of September each year.

Release notes will be distributed ninety days in advance of each new release.

Release notes will be posted in public confluence space here, and emailed to identified IT director of all Consortium colleges and registered account holders.

Release candidate will be distributed to Pilot sixty days before release to Production.

IF necessary, downtime will be determined upon code freeze and will be communicated in release notes, ninety days prior to release.

Minor Releases - x.Y.z

Minor releases will occur every third Wednesday at the conclusion of sprint demo.

Minor releases will be backward compatible and will address technical debt/bug fixes and feature changes.

Release notes will be published the same day here, and emailed to identified IT director of all Consortium colleges and registered account holders.

Release candidate will be deployed to Pilot environment 7 days before release to Production. Any newly released feature in a Production deployment will be behind a feature flag.

New features will remain behind feature flags in Production for 8 weeks after deployment. New features can be enabled in Production at the request of colleges during this time.

Minor releases will adhere to a Zero Downtime Deployment process to minimize the effect on end users.

Patch Releases - x.y.Z

CCCTC reserves the right to release release hotfix patches for critical issues at any time.

Upon CCCTC Executive approval of a Patch Release:

Release Notes will be published here.
Release notification will be emailed to identified IT director of all Consortium colleges and registered account holders.

Timing of release candidate deployment to Pilot and Production will be determined at the time of Executive Approval and communicated in the Release Notes.

Patch releases will adhere to a Zero Downtime Deployment process to minimize the effect on end users.