Merge branch 'add_patch_release_doc' into 'master'

Add patch release documentation for developers

2 files changed, 26 insertions, 7 deletions

diff --git a/doc/release/patch.md b/doc/release/patch.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..30bb39b4e49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/doc/release/patch.md
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+# Things to do when doing a patch release
+NOTE: This is a guide for GitLab developers. If you are trying to install GitLab see the latest stable [installation guide](install/installation.md) and if you are trying to upgrade, see the [upgrade guides](update).
+
+## When to do a patch release
+
+Do a patch release when there is a critical regression that needs to be adresses before the next monthly release.
+Otherwise include it in the monthly release and note there was a regression fix in the release announcement.
+
+## Release Procedure
+
+1. Verify that the issue can be repoduced
+1. Create an issue on private GitLab development server
+1. Name the issue "Release X.X.X CE and X.X.X EE", this will make searching easier
+1. Fix the issue on a feature branch, do this on the private GitLab development server
+1. Consider creating and testing workarounds
+1. After the branch is merged into master, cherry pick the commit(s) into the current stable branch
+1. In a separate commit in the stable branch, update the VERSION and CHANGELOG
+1. For EE, update the CHANGELOG-EE if it is EE specific fix. Otherwise, merge the stable CE branch and add to CHANGELOG-EE "Merge community edition changes for version X.X.X"
+1. Create an annotated tag vX.X.X for CE and another patch release for EE
+1. Make sure that the build has passed and no tests are failing
+1. Push the code and the tags to all the CE and EE repositories
+1. Apply the patch to GitLab Cloud and the private GitLab development server
+1. Send tweets about the release from @gitlabhq, tweet should include the most important feature that the release is addressing as well as the link to the changelog
+1. Build new packages with the latest version
+
diff --git a/doc/release/security.md b/doc/release/security.md
index 56a44b5d1da..2fe0a948ad2 100644
--- a/doc/release/security.md
+++ b/doc/release/security.md
@@ -13,14 +13,8 @@ Please report suspected security vulnerabilities in private to support@gitlab.co
 
 1. Verify that the issue can be repoduced
 1. Acknowledge the issue to the researcher that disclosed it
-1. Fix the issue on a feature branch, do this on the private GitLab development server and update the VERSION and CHANGELOG in this branch
-1. Consider creating and testing workarounds
+1. Do the steps from [patch release document](doc/release/patch.md), starting with "Create an issue on private GitLab development server"
 1. Create feature branches for the blog post on GitLab.com and link them from the code branch
-1. Merge the code feature branch into master
-1. Cherry-pick the code into the latest stable branch
-1. Create an annotated tag vX.X.X for CE and another patch release for EE
-1. Push the code and the tags to all the CE and EE repositories
-1. Apply the patch to GitLab Cloud and the private GitLab development server
 1. Merge and publish the blog posts
 1. Send tweets about the release from @gitlabhq
 1. Send out an email to the subscribers mailing list on MailChimp