release-notes
[Git] Use when creating release notes from git history.
SKILL.md
Full skill instructions
Quick Summary
Goal: Generate professional release notes from git commits with automated categorization, service detection, and validation.
Workflow:
- Parse Commits —
parse-commits.cjs <base> <head>extracts structured data from git - Categorize — Pipe through
categorize-commits.cjsfor user-facing vs internal sections - Render —
render-template.cjs --version vX.Y.Zgenerates markdown with Summary, What's New, Improvements, Bug Fixes, Breaking Changes, Technical Details
Key Rules:
- Pipeline: parse → categorize → render → validate → transform
- Advanced: Service detection, breaking change analysis, PR metadata, contributor stats, version bumping
- Human Review: Generated notes are Draft status, require review/enhance/approve before publish
- Validation:
validate-notes.cjsscores against quality rules (100 points)
Be skeptical. Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence percentages (Idea should be more than 80%).
Release Notes Generation Skill
Generate professional release notes from git commits between two refs with automated categorization.
Invocation
/release-notes [base] [head] [--version vX.Y.Z] [--output path]
Examples:
# Generate release notes for commits since last tag
/release-notes v1.0.0 HEAD --version v1.1.0
# Compare branches
/release-notes main feature/new-auth --version v2.0.0-beta
# Output to specific file
/release-notes v1.0.0 HEAD --version v1.1.0 --output docs/release-notes/250111-v1.1.0.md
Workflow
Step 1: Parse Commits
Execute the commit parser to extract structured data from git history:
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs <base> <head> [--with-files]
Output: JSON with commits array containing:
hash,shortHash- Commit identifierstype,scope,description- Conventional commit partsbreaking- Boolean for breaking changesauthor,date- Attributionfiles- Changed files (with--with-filesflag)
Step 2: Categorize Commits
Pipe parsed commits through the categorizer:
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs <base> <head> | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs
Categorization Rules:
| Type | Category | User-Facing |
|---|---|---|
feat | features | Yes |
fix | fixes | Yes |
perf | improvements | Yes |
docs | docs | Yes (unless internal) |
refactor | improvements | Technical only |
test, ci, build, chore, style | internal | No |
Excluded Patterns:
chore(deps):- Dependency updateschore(config):- Configuration changes[skip changelog]- Explicit skip[ci skip]- CI markers
Step 3: Render Markdown
Generate the final release notes document:
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs <base> <head> | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/render-template.cjs --version v1.1.0 --output docs/release-notes/250111-v1.1.0.md
Complete Pipeline
For generating release notes in a single command:
# Full pipeline with output to file
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/render-template.cjs --version v1.1.0 --output docs/release-notes/250111-v1.1.0.md
# Pipeline to stdout for review
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/render-template.cjs --version v1.1.0
Advanced Features
Service Boundary Detection
Analyze which services are affected by the release:
# Parse with file changes, then detect services
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD --with-files | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/detect-services.cjs
Output: Service impact analysis with severity levels (critical, high, medium, low)
Breaking Change Analysis
Enhanced breaking change detection with migration info extraction:
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/detect-breaking.cjs
Detects:
BREAKING CHANGE:in commit body!suffix on commit type (e.g.,feat!:)- Migration instructions
PR Metadata Extraction
Extract and link pull request information:
# Extract PR numbers from commit messages
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/extract-pr-metadata.cjs
# With GitHub API enrichment (requires gh CLI)
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/extract-pr-metadata.cjs --fetch-gh
Extracts: PR numbers, titles, labels, authors from commits
Contributor Statistics
Generate detailed contributor stats:
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/contributor-stats.cjs
Output: Contributor list with commit counts, feature/fix breakdown
Version Bumping
Automatically determine and bump semantic version based on commit types:
# Auto-bump based on commits (feat→minor, fix→patch, BREAKING→major)
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/bump-version.cjs
# Bump with prerelease tag
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/bump-version.cjs --prerelease beta
# Per-service versioning
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/bump-version.cjs --service {service-name}
# Dry run (don't write version file)
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/bump-version.cjs --dry-run
Version Files:
- Root:
.version - Per-service:
.versions/<service-name>.version
Quality Validation
Validate release notes against quality rules:
# Validate with default threshold (70)
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/validate-notes.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md
# Custom threshold
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/validate-notes.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md --threshold 80
# JSON output for CI
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/validate-notes.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md --json
Validation Rules (100 points total):
| Rule | Weight | Description |
|---|---|---|
| summary_exists | 15 | Has Summary section |
| summary_not_empty | 10 | Summary has content |
| has_version | 10 | Version number present |
| features_documented | 10 | Features properly formatted |
| fixes_documented | 10 | Bug fixes properly formatted |
| no_broken_links | 10 | No empty link references |
| contributors_listed | 10 | Contributors section present |
| has_date | 5 | Date present |
| no_todo_markers | 5 | No TODO/FIXME markers |
| proper_heading_hierarchy | 5 | Proper H1→H2 structure |
| no_placeholder_text | 5 | No placeholder text |
| technical_details_collapsed | 5 | Tech details in <details> |
LLM-Powered Transforms
Transform release notes for different audiences using Claude API:
# Requires ANTHROPIC_API_KEY environment variable
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-api-key"
# Create executive summary
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/transform-llm.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md --transform executive
# Transform for business stakeholders
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/transform-llm.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md --transform business --output docs/release-notes/v1.1.0-business.md
# Transform for end users
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/transform-llm.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md --transform enduser
Transform Types:
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
summarize | Brief 3-5 bullet point summary |
business | ROI-focused, business language |
enduser | User-friendly, non-technical |
executive | Strategic impact summary |
technical | Enhanced technical details |
Full Enhanced Pipeline
Combine all features for comprehensive release notes:
# Enhanced pipeline with service detection
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD --with-files | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/detect-services.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/detect-breaking.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/contributor-stats.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/render-template.cjs --version v1.1.0
# With version bumping and validation
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/parse-commits.cjs v1.0.0 HEAD --with-files | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/bump-version.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/categorize-commits.cjs | \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/render-template.cjs --output docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md && \
node .claude/skills/release-notes/lib/validate-notes.cjs docs/release-notes/v1.1.0.md
Configuration
See config.yaml for:
- categories - Commit type to section mapping
- services - Service boundary detection by file patterns
- exclude - Patterns to exclude from user-facing notes
- output - Directory and filename format settings
Output Structure
# Release Notes: v1.1.0
**Date:** 2025-01-11
**Version:** v1.1.0
**Status:** Draft
---
## Summary
This release includes 3 new features, 2 improvements, 5 bug fixes.
## What's New
- **Add employee export endpoint** (API)
- **Implement dark mode toggle** (UI)
## Improvements
- **Optimize database queries** (Persistence)
## Bug Fixes
- **Fix date picker timezone issue** (Frontend)
- **Resolve null pointer in auth flow**
## Documentation
- **Update API documentation** (API)
## Breaking Changes
> **Warning**: The following changes may require migration
### Migrate to OAuth 2.1 (Auth)
Legacy JWT tokens no longer accepted.
Migration guide: docs/migrations/oauth-2.1.md
---
## Technical Details
<details>
<summary>For Developers</summary>
### Commits Included
| Hash | Type | Description |
| ------- | ---- | ------------------------------ |
| abc1234 | feat | Add employee export endpoint |
| def5678 | fix | Fix date picker timezone issue |
...
</details>
## Contributors
- @john.doe
- @jane.smith
---
_Generated by AI_
Human Review Gate
Generated release notes are Draft status by default:
- Review - Check accuracy, add context where needed
- Enhance - Add migration steps, links, screenshots
- Approve - Change status to "Released"
- Publish - Commit and push
Integration with Other Skills
/commit- After generating notes, commit them/git-manager- Create PR for release notes review/docs-update- Update CHANGELOG.md with new release
Troubleshooting
No commits found
Verify the refs exist and have commits between them:
git log --oneline <base>..<head>
Non-conventional commits
Commits not following type(scope): description format go to "other" category. Consider running commitlint enforcement.
Missing scope context
Add scope mappings to config.yaml → services section for better context labels.
<!-- SYNC:ai-mistake-prevention -->[IMPORTANT] Use
TaskCreateto break ALL work into small tasks BEFORE starting — including tasks for each file read. This prevents context loss from long files. For simple tasks, AI MUST ATTENTION ask user whether to skip.
AI Mistake Prevention — Failure modes to avoid on every task: Check downstream references before deleting. Deleting components causes documentation and code staleness cascades. Map all referencing files before removal. Verify AI-generated content against actual code. AI hallucinates APIs, class names, and method signatures. Always grep to confirm existence before documenting or referencing. Trace full dependency chain after edits. Changing a definition misses downstream variables and consumers derived from it. Always trace the full chain. Trace ALL code paths when verifying correctness. Confirming code exists is not confirming it executes. Always trace early exits, error branches, and conditional skips — not just happy path. When debugging, ask "whose responsibility?" before fixing. Trace whether bug is in caller (wrong data) or callee (wrong handling). Fix at responsible layer — never patch symptom site. Assume existing values are intentional — ask WHY before changing. Before changing any constant, limit, flag, or pattern: read comments, check git blame, examine surrounding code. Verify ALL affected outputs, not just the first. Changes touching multiple stacks require verifying EVERY output. One green check is not all green checks. Holistic-first debugging — resist nearest-attention trap. When investigating any failure, list EVERY precondition first (config, env vars, DB names, endpoints, DI registrations, data preconditions), then verify each against evidence before forming any code-layer hypothesis. Surgical changes — apply the diff test. Bug fix: every changed line must trace directly to the bug. Don't restyle or improve adjacent code. Enhancement task: implement improvements AND announce them explicitly. Surface ambiguity before coding — don't pick silently. If request has multiple interpretations, present each with effort estimate and ask. Never assume all-records, file-based, or more complex path.
<!-- /SYNC:ai-mistake-prevention --> <!-- SYNC:critical-thinking-mindset --><!-- /SYNC:critical-thinking-mindset --> <!-- SYNC:critical-thinking-mindset:reminder -->Critical Thinking Mindset — Apply critical thinking, sequential thinking. Every claim needs traced proof, confidence >80% to act. Anti-hallucination: Never present guess as fact — cite sources for every claim, admit uncertainty freely, self-check output for errors, cross-reference independently, stay skeptical of own confidence — certainty without evidence root of all hallucination.
MUST ATTENTION apply critical thinking — every claim needs traced proof, confidence >80% to act. Anti-hallucination: never present guess as fact.
<!-- /SYNC:critical-thinking-mindset:reminder --> <!-- SYNC:ai-mistake-prevention:reminder -->MUST ATTENTION apply AI mistake prevention — holistic-first debugging, fix at responsible layer, surface ambiguity before coding, re-read files after compaction.
<!-- /SYNC:ai-mistake-prevention:reminder -->Closing Reminders
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION break work into small todo tasks using TaskCreate BEFORE starting
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION search codebase for 3+ similar patterns before creating new code
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION cite file:line evidence for every claim (confidence >80% to act)
IMPORTANT MUST ATTENTION add a final review todo task to verify work quality
[TASK-PLANNING] Before acting, analyze task scope and systematically break it into small todo tasks and sub-tasks using TaskCreate.