doc: Convert release-process to rST

Signed-off-by: Stephen Finucane <[email protected]>
Signed-off-by: Russell Bryant <[email protected]>

Documentation/automake.mk

@@ -3,4 +3,4 @@ docs += \
 	Documentation/committer-grant-revocation.rst \
 	Documentation/group-selection-method-property.txt \
 	Documentation/OVSDB-replication.md \
-	Documentation/release-process.md
+	Documentation/release-process.rst

Documentation/release-process.rst

@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+..
+      Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may
+      not use this file except in compliance with the License. You may obtain
+      a copy of the License at
+
+          http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+
+      Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+      distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT
+      WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the
+      License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations
+      under the License.
+
+      Convention for heading levels in Open vSwitch documentation:
+
+      =======  Heading 0 (reserved for the title in a document)
+      -------  Heading 1
+      ~~~~~~~  Heading 2
+      +++++++  Heading 3
+      '''''''  Heading 4
+
+      Avoid deeper levels because they do not render well.
+
+============================
+Open vSwitch Release Process
+============================
+
+This document describes the process ordinarily used for Open vSwitch
+development and release.  Exceptions are sometimes necessary, so all of the
+statements here should be taken as subject to change through rough consensus of
+Open vSwitch contributors, obtained through public discussion on, e.g., ovs-dev
+or the #openvswitch IRC channel.
+
+Release Strategy
+----------------
+
+Open vSwitch feature development takes place on the "master" branch.
+Ordinarily, new features are rebased against master and applied directly.  For
+features that take significant development, sometimes it is more appropriate to
+merge a separate branch into master; please discuss this on ovs-dev in advance.
+
+Periodically, the OVS developers fork a branch from master to become an
+official release.  These release branches are named for expected release
+number, e.g. "branch-2.3" for the branch that will yield Open vSwitch 2.3.x.
+Release branches should receive only bug fixes, not new features.  Bug fixes
+applied to release branches should be backports of corresponding bug fixes to
+the master branch, except for bugs present only on release branches (which are
+rare in practice).
+
+Sometimes there can be exceptions to the rule that a release branch receives
+only bug fixes.  In particular, after a release branch is created, but before
+the first actual release from that branch, it can be appropriate to add
+features.  Like bug fixes, new features on release branches should be backports
+of the corresponding commits on the master branch.  Features to be added to
+release branches should be limited in scope and risk and discussed on ovs-dev
+before creating the branch.
+
+After a period of testing and stabilization, and rough consensus obtained from
+contributors that the release is ready, the developers release the .0 release
+on its branch, e.g. 2.3.0 for branch-2.3.  To make the actual release, a
+developer pushes a signed tag named, e.g. v2.3.0, to the Open vSwitch
+repository, makes a release tarball available on openvswitch.org, and posts a
+release announcement to ovs-announce.
+
+As a number of bug fixes accumulate, or after important bugs or vulnerabilities
+are fixed, the OVS developers may make additional releases from a branch:
+2.3.1, 2.3.2, and so on.  The process is the same for these additional release
+as for a .0 release.
+
+At most two release branches are formally maintained at any given time: the
+latest release and the latest release designed as LTS.  An LTS release is one
+that the OVS project has designated as being maintained for a longer period of
+time.  Currently, an LTS release is maintained until the next LTS is chosen.
+There is not currently a strict guideline on how often a new LTS release is
+chosen, but so far it has been about every 2 years.  That could change based on
+the current state of OVS development.  For example, we do not want to designate
+a new release as LTS that includes disruptive internal changes, as that may
+make it harder to support for a longer period of time.  Discussion about
+choosing the next LTS release occurs on the OVS development mailing list.
+
+Release Numbering
+-----------------
+
+The version number on master should normally end in .90.  This indicates that
+the Open vSwitch version is "almost" the next version to branch.
+
+Forking master into branch-x.y requires two commits to master.  The first is
+titled "Prepare for x.y.0" and increments the version number to x.y.  This is
+the initial commit on branch-x.y.  The second is titled "Prepare for post-x.y.0
+(x.y.90)" and increments the version number to x.y.90.
+
+The version number on a release branch is x.y.z, where z is initially 0.
+Making a release requires two commits.  The first is titled *Set release dates
+for x.y.z.* and updates NEWS and debian/changelog to specify the release date
+of the new release.  This commit is the one made into a tarball and tagged.
+The second is titled *Prepare for x.y.(z+1).* and increments the version number
+and adds a blank item to NEWS with an unspecified date.
+
+Release Scheduling
+------------------
+
+Open vSwitch makes releases at the following six-month cadence, which of course
+is subject to change.
+
++-------------------+-----------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| **Time (months)** | **Approximate Dates** | **Event**                            |
++-------------------+-----------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| T                 | Apr 1, Oct 1          | Release cycle for version x.y begins |
++-------------------+-----------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| T + 4             | Aug 1, Feb 1          | branch-x.y forks from master         |
++-------------------+-----------------------+--------------------------------------+
+| T + 5.5           | Sep 15, Mar 15        | branch-x.y released as version x.y.0 |
++-------------------+-----------------------+--------------------------------------+
+
+Contact
+-------
+
+Use [email protected] to discuss the Open vSwitch development and release
+process.

FAQ.rst

@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ Q: What does it mean for an Open vSwitch release to be LTS (long-term support)?
     LTS release is 2.3.x.
 
     For more information on the Open vSwitch release process, refer to `release
-    process <Documentation/release-process.md>`__.
+    process <Documentation/release-process.rst>`__.
 
 Q: What Linux kernel versions does each Open vSwitch release work with?