Release Notes

Create and publish release notes for your projects.

Overview

Clienwork's release notes feature helps you:

• Document releases with version tracking
• Link completed requests and issues to releases
• Auto-generate release notes from deployments
• Use AI to write professional release content
• Publish notes for client visibility

Creating Release Notes

Manual Creation

1. Go to Project → Release Notes
2. Click New Release Note
3. Enter title and version
4. Select completed requests/issues to include
5. Write or generate content
6. Save as draft or publish

Linking Items

When creating a release note, you can link:

• Requests - Completed feature requests
• Issues - Resolved bug fixes

Only completed items that aren't already linked to a release note are shown.

Auto-Generate from Deployments

If you have deployment tracking set up, you can automatically generate release notes.

How It Works

1. Go to Project → Release Notes → New
2. Click Generate from Deployment
3. Select environment (production, staging, etc.)

The system will:

• Find the last two successful deployments
• Collect all completed requests/issues since the previous deployment
• Generate a draft with "Changes" and "Bug Fixes" sections
• Include commit information

Generated Content

## Changes

- **PR-123**: Add user authentication
- **PR-124**: Implement dashboard charts

## Bug Fixes

- **ISS-45**: Fix login timeout issue
- **ISS-46**: Resolve mobile layout bug

---
*Commit: abc1234*

AI Content Generation

Use AI to write professional release notes from your completed items.

1. Select the items to include
2. Click Generate with AI
3. AI analyzes the items and writes formatted content
4. Review and edit as needed

The AI will:

• Group related changes together
• Use appropriate headings (New Features, Improvements, Bug Fixes)
• Write in the same language as your item titles
• Incorporate completion notes for context

Version Tracking

Version Format

You can use any version format:

• Semantic: 1.2.0, 2.0.0-beta
• Date-based: 2024.01.15
• Custom: January 2024 Release

Auto-Generated Versions

When generating from deployments, version defaults to the deployment date:

2024.01.15

Publishing

Draft vs Published

Publish a Release Note

1. Open the release note
2. Click Publish
3. Set published_at timestamp

Unpublish

1. Open the published release note
2. Click Unpublish
3. Returns to draft state

Managing Release Notes

View List

Go to Project → Release Notes to see all release notes with:

• Title and version
• Item count
• Publication status
• Creation date

Edit

1. Click on a release note
2. Modify title, version, or content
3. Save changes

Delete

1. Open the release note
2. Click Delete
3. Confirm deletion

Completion Notes

When completing requests, team members can add completion notes. These notes:

• Appear in release note generation
• Provide context for AI content generation
• Help document what was actually delivered

Adding Completion Notes

1. When marking a request as complete
2. Add notes in the completion dialog
3. Notes are saved and linked to the request

Best Practices

Writing Good Release Notes

1. Be specific - Describe what changed, not just that it changed
2. Group logically - Features together, fixes together
3. Use consistent formatting - Bullet points, bold for keys
4. Include context - Why the change was made when relevant

Version Strategy

• Use semantic versioning for libraries/APIs
• Use date-based versions for web applications
• Be consistent within a project

Publishing Cadence

• Publish after each deployment to production
• Keep draft notes for staging releases
• Consider client expectations for update frequency