Maintainer documentation for initramfs-tools

Table of Contents

1. Definitions

Note: This cheatpage assumes that you are using git-core 1.5.6 or newer.

version:version string
username:name of the alioth account
mailaddress:mailaddress of the user
^

2. Preparations

  1. Install required software (notice: git is named git-core on Debian/stable): 
    # apt-get install git git-buildpackage dpkg-dev
  2. Set environment variables (e.g. through your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc) for git and git-dch: 
    % export GIT_AUTHOR_EMAIL=<mailaddress>
% export DEBEMAIL=<mailaddress>
% export GIT_COMMITTER_EMAIL=<mailaddress>
  3. Checkout repository (anonymous): 
    % git clone git://git.debian.org/git/kernel/initramfs-tools.git
% cd initramfs-tools
  4. Checkout repository (with developer access): 
    % git clone ssh://username@git.debian.org/git/kernel/initramfs-tools.git
% cd initramfs-tools
^

3. Workflow for daily work

3.1 Implement new features

  1. Checkout new branch and switch to it: 
    % git checkout -b username/short-descr-of-new-feature
  2. Hack and commit work: 
    % $EDITOR $somefile
% git add $somefile
% git commit -s

    3. NOTE: Use 'Closes: #BUGID' for closing a bugreport, 'Thanks: Name <mailaddress>' for giving credits in your commit message. git-dch will use this information for generating the changelog using the --meta option later on.

  3. Finally push your branch to alioth: 
    % git push origin username/short-descr-of-new-feature

3.2 Merge branches

  1. Switch to the branch you want to merge: 
    % git checkout username/new-feature
  2. Rebase to master: 
    % git rebase master
  3. Switch to master branch and merge: 
    % git checkout master
% git merge username/new-feature
  4. Push: 
    % git push
  5. After branch is merged delete branch on server and locally: 
    % git push origin :username/short-descr-of-new-feature
% git branch -d username/short-descr-of-new-feature

3.3 Test specific branch

  1. Checkout a specific branch iff branch is not already present locally: 
    % git checkout -b somename/short-descr-of-new-feature origin/somename/short-descr-of-new-feature
  2. Checkout a specific branch iff branch is already present locally: 
    % git checkout -b somename/short-descr-of-new-feature
  3. Adjust debian/changelog accordingly: 
    % git-dch --debian-branch="$(git branch | awk -F\*\   '/^* / { print $2}' )" \
  --since="$(dpkg-parsechangelog | awk '/^Version:/ {print $2}')" -S --id-length=7 --meta
  4. Build package: 
    % git-buildpackage --git-debian-branch="$(git branch | awk -F\*\  '/^* / { print $2}' )" -tc
^

4. Contribute

  1. Create patch: 
    % git format-patch -s -p origin/master
  2. Send patch file(s) to maintainers via mail (requires Debian package git-email): 
    % git send-email --to=initramfs-tools@packages.qa.debian.org $PATCHFILE[S]
^

5 Releasing new version

  1. Creating changelog: 
    % git-dch --debian-branch debian --release --since HASH
    or more dynamically: 
    % git-dch --meta --release --since v$(dpkg-parsechangelog | awk '/^Version:/ {print $2}') --debian-branch="$(git branch | awk -F\*\  '/^* / { print $2}' )" [--id-length=7] [--full]
  2. Releasing: 
    % git commit -a -s -m "Releasing debian version version."
  3. Tagging: 
    % git tag -s v"version" -m "release version"
  4. Pushing: 
    % git push
% git push --tags
  5. Build in chroot and upload to ftp-master.
  6. Send mail announcing the new initramfs-tools version with subject "initramfs-tools $VERSION release" to initramfs@vger.kernel.org, debian-kernel@lists.debian.org + kernel-team@lists.ubuntu.com - including a shortlog (generated through "git shortlog $TAG..").
^

Ressources

^

Credits

^

-- Michael Prokop <mika@debian.org>