added docs for releasing to mdbook

docs/src/developers.md

@@ -8,4 +8,63 @@
 `cargo test` should compile when run in /rust because there are no tests in `/rust/fastsim-py`.
 
 ## build_and_test.sh
-Running `sh build_and_test.sh` from the root fastsim directory compile/tests the Rust code, and tests the Python code. It should compile without errors.
+Running `sh build_and_test.sh` from the root fastsim directory compile/tests the Rust code, and tests the Python code. It should compile without errors.
+
+
+# Releasing
+## Incrementing the Version Number
+Increment the 3rd decimal place in the version number for small changes (e.g.
+minor bug fixes, new variables), the 2nd for medium changes (e.g. new methods
+or classes), and the 1st for large changes (e.g. changes to the interface that
+might affect backwards compatibility / the API interface).
+
+## Instructions
+1. Create and check out a new branch, e.g. for version X.X.X:
+    ```
+    git checkout -b fastsim-X.X.X
+    ```
+1. Update the version number in the `pyproject.toml` file
+1. If changes have happened in `rust/`, increment the Rust crate version numbers in `rust/fastsim-core/Cargo.toml` and `rust/fastsim-core/fastsim-proc-macros/Cargo.toml`
+1. Commit changes, as appropriate:
+    ```
+    git add pyproject.toml README.md rust/fastsim-core/Cargo.toml rust/fastsim-core/fastsim-proc-macros/Cargo.toml
+    ```
+    ```
+    git commit -m "vX.X.X"
+    ```
+1. Tag the commit with the new version number, prepended with a `v`:
+    ```
+    git tag vX.X.X
+    ```
+    Or, optionally, you can also add a tag message with the `-m` flag, for example:
+    ```
+    git tag vX.X.X -m "release version X.X.X"
+    ```
+1. Push the commit to the GitHub.com repository (for Git remote setup instructions, see [this page](https://github.nrel.gov/MBAP/fastsim/wiki/Setting-up-FASTSim-Git-remotes-for-development)):
+    ```
+    git push -u external fastsim-X.X.X
+    ```
+1. Push the tag:
+    ```
+    git push external vX.X.X
+    ```
+    This will start the `wheels.yaml` GitHub Actions workflow and run all tests
+1. Create a PR for the new version in the external repository, using the `release` label for organization
+1. When all tests pass, and a review has been completed, merge the PR
+1. If changes were made in `rust/`, publish the crates (you must be listed as an owner of both crates on crates.io):  
+    If necessary, log into crates.io first after adding and verifying your email at https://crates.io/settings/profile:
+    ```sh
+    cargo login
+    ```
+    Then, run these commands to update the crates (order matters):
+    ```sh
+    (cd rust/fastsim-core/fastsim-proc-macros && cargo publish)
+    (cd rust/fastsim-core && cargo publish)
+    ```
+1. Start a new release at https://github.com/NREL/fastsim/releases/new, selecting `vX.X.X` as both the tag and the release name. Click "Generate release notes" to automatically create a detailed change log.
+1. Click "Publish release". Wheels will then be built for various platforms and automatically uploaded to the PyPI at https://pypi.org/project/fastsim/. **Check that the release workflow finished properly at https://github.com/NREL/fastsim/actions/workflows/release.yaml!**
+1. Synchronize changes to the internal GitHub repository:
+    ```
+    git pull external fastsim-2
+    git push origin fastsim-2
+    ```