From owner-freebsd-doc Sun Nov 5 15:30: 6 2000 Delivered-To: freebsd-doc@freebsd.org Received: from freefall.freebsd.org (freefall.FreeBSD.org [216.136.204.21]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 5365637B4C5 for ; Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:30:01 -0800 (PST) Received: (from gnats@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.9.3/8.9.2) id PAA66388; Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:30:01 -0800 (PST) (envelope-from gnats@FreeBSD.org) Received: from static.unixfreak.org (static.unixfreak.org [63.198.170.139]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 0FE6937B4C5 for ; Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:28:59 -0800 (PST) Received: from lambda.unixfreak.org (lambda [63.198.170.138]) by static.unixfreak.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id D87791F10 for ; Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:28:58 -0800 (PST) Received: (from dima@localhost) by lambda.unixfreak.org (8.11.0/8.11.0) id eA5NSwB13834; Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:28:58 -0800 (PST) (envelope-from dima) Message-Id: <200011052328.eA5NSwB13834@lambda.unixfreak.org> Date: Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:28:58 -0800 (PST) From: dima@unixfreak.org Reply-To: dima@unixfreak.org To: FreeBSD-gnats-submit@freebsd.org X-Send-Pr-Version: 3.2 Subject: docs/22627: Answering questions about the meaning of -RC and -BETA is repetitive. Sender: owner-freebsd-doc@FreeBSD.ORG Precedence: bulk X-Loop: FreeBSD.org >Number: 22627 >Category: docs >Synopsis: Answering questions about the meaning of -RC and -BETA is repetitive. >Confidential: no >Severity: non-critical >Priority: low >Responsible: freebsd-doc >State: open >Quarter: >Keywords: >Date-Required: >Class: change-request >Submitter-Id: current-users >Arrival-Date: Sun Nov 05 15:30:01 PST 2000 >Closed-Date: >Last-Modified: >Originator: Dima Dorfman >Release: FreeBSD 4.1-STABLE-20000916 i386 >Organization: private >Environment: Not relevant. >Description: When a release is about to be made, -STABLE becomes -RC (or -BETA, in the case of 4.1.1 -> 4.2). Some people get scared and e-mail freebsd-questions. Answering them quickly gets repetitive. Since this happens every time a release is about to be made, I think it warrants an FAQ entry. I remember someone saying they were going to write something to this affect, but I can't seem to find it (`grep -ri -- -rc *` doesn't return anything relevant). >How-To-Repeat: Subscribe to and follow freebsd-questions during a code freeze. >Fix: Apply the following to doc/en_US.ISO_8859-1/books/faq/book.sgml. Index: book.sgml =================================================================== RCS file: /st/cvs/FreeBSD/doc/en_US.ISO_8859-1/books/faq/book.sgml,v retrieving revision 1.119 diff -u -r1.119 book.sgml --- book.sgml 2000/11/01 18:50:56 1.119 +++ book.sgml 2000/11/05 23:12:50 @@ -6526,6 +6526,39 @@ + + + + I tried to update by system to the latest -STABLE, but + got -RC or -BETA! What's going on? + + + + Short answer: it's just a name. RC stands for + Release Candidate. It signifies that a + release is imminent. In FreeBSD, -BETA is synonymous with + -RC. + + Long answer: FreeBSD derives its releases from one of + two places. Major, dot-zero, releases, such as + 3.0-RELEASE and 4.0-RELEASE, are branched from the head of + the development stream, commonly referred to as -CURRENT. Minor releases, such + as 3.1-RELEASE or 4.2-RELEASE, are snapshots of the active + -STABLE branch. + + When a release is about to be made, the branch from + which it will be derived from has to undergo a certain + process. Part of this process is a code freeze. When a + code freeze is initiated, the name of the branch is + changed to reflect that it's about to become a release. + For example, if the branch used to be called 4.0-STABLE, + its name will be changed to 4.1-RC to signify that a + release is about to be made from it. Once the release, + 4.1-RELEASE in this example, has been made, the branch + will be renamed to 4.1-STABLE. + + >Release-Note: >Audit-Trail: >Unformatted: To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-doc" in the body of the message