Contributing to WP Feature API

May 8, 2025 · View on GitHub

Building the Project

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/Automattic/wp-feature-api.git
cd wp-feature-api

Install dependencies: This project uses npm workspaces. Dependencies are installed from the root directory.
```
npm install
```
```
composer install
```
Build the project: To build the JavaScript and CSS assets for the plugin and its packages:
```
npm run build
```

Release Process

Releasing a new version involves several steps:

Ensure the trunk branch is stable and all changes for the release are merged.
Create a Branch and Push Changes: Create a new branch for the release (e.g., release/vX.Y.Z).
```
git checkout -b release/vX.Y.Z
```
Update Version Numbers: Manually update the version number in the following files to the new version (e.g., 1.2.3):
- package.json: Update the version field.
```
{
  "name": "wp-feature-api",
  "version": "NEW_VERSION_HERE",
  // ...
}
```
- wp-feature-api.php: Update the version in two places:
  - Plugin header comment:
```
/**
 * ...
 * Version: NEW_VERSION_HERE
 * ...
 */
```
  - PHP constant definition:
```
define( 'WP_FEATURE_API_VERSION', 'NEW_VERSION_HERE' );
```
Commit Version Bump: Commit these version changes with a message like Update version to X.Y.Z.
```
git add package.json wp-feature-api.php
git commit -m "Update version to X.Y.Z"
```
Push Changes: After committing the version bump, push the changes to the remote repository.
```
git push origin release/vX.Y.Z
```
Create a Pull Request: Open a pull request from your release/vX.Y.Z branch to the trunk branch.
Merge the Pull Request: Once the pull request is approved, merge it into the trunk branch.
Create and Publish GitHub Release: Once the version bump Pull Request is merged into trunk:
1. Go to the "Releases" page in the GitHub UI.
2. Click the "Draft a new release" button.
3. In the "Choose a tag" dropdown, type your new version tag (e.g., v1.2.3). GitHub will offer to "Create new tag: vX.Y.Z on publish". Select this.
4. Ensure the "Target" is the trunk branch.
5. Enter a "Release title" (e.g., Version 1.2.3 or v1.2.3).
6. Write a description for the release. You can list the major changes, or use GitHub's auto-generated release notes feature if available/configured.
7. Click "Publish release". This action will create the new tag from trunk and trigger the GitHub Actions workflow defined in .github/workflows/release.yml.
Verify Release: After the GitHub Actions workflow completes, check the "Releases" page on GitHub to ensure everything completed successfully.