75 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
75 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
---
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summary: "Stable, beta, and dev channels: semantics, switching, and tagging"
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read_when:
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- You want to switch between stable/beta/dev
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- You are tagging or publishing prereleases
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---
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# Development channels
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Last updated: 2026-01-21
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Moltbot ships three update channels:
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- **stable**: npm dist-tag `latest`.
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- **beta**: npm dist-tag `beta` (builds under test).
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- **dev**: moving head of `main` (git). npm dist-tag: `dev` (when published).
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We ship builds to **beta**, test them, then **promote a vetted build to `latest`**
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without changing the version number — dist-tags are the source of truth for npm installs.
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## Switching channels
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Git checkout:
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```bash
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moltbot update --channel stable
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moltbot update --channel beta
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moltbot update --channel dev
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```
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- `stable`/`beta` check out the latest matching tag (often the same tag).
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- `dev` switches to `main` and rebases on the upstream.
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npm/pnpm global install:
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```bash
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moltbot update --channel stable
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moltbot update --channel beta
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moltbot update --channel dev
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```
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This updates via the corresponding npm dist-tag (`latest`, `beta`, `dev`).
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When you **explicitly** switch channels with `--channel`, Moltbot also aligns
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the install method:
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- `dev` ensures a git checkout (default `~/moltbot`, override with `CLAWDBOT_GIT_DIR`),
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updates it, and installs the global CLI from that checkout.
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- `stable`/`beta` installs from npm using the matching dist-tag.
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Tip: if you want stable + dev in parallel, keep two clones and point your gateway at the stable one.
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## Plugins and channels
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When you switch channels with `moltbot update`, Moltbot also syncs plugin sources:
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- `dev` prefers bundled plugins from the git checkout.
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- `stable` and `beta` restore npm-installed plugin packages.
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## Tagging best practices
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- Tag releases you want git checkouts to land on (`vYYYY.M.D` or `vYYYY.M.D-<patch>`).
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- Keep tags immutable: never move or reuse a tag.
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- npm dist-tags remain the source of truth for npm installs:
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- `latest` → stable
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- `beta` → candidate build
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- `dev` → main snapshot (optional)
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## macOS app availability
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Beta and dev builds may **not** include a macOS app release. That’s OK:
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- The git tag and npm dist-tag can still be published.
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- Call out “no macOS build for this beta” in release notes or changelog.
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