From b2b1e75ec64b4fd890f679f649ed0cddbddd2f7d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: thePR0M3TH3AN <53631862+PR0M3TH3AN@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Sat, 14 Mar 2026 16:23:52 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] docs: establish formal release process and pre-flight checks

---
 RELEASE.md | 65 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 65 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 RELEASE.md

diff --git a/RELEASE.md b/RELEASE.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d038b00
--- /dev/null
+++ b/RELEASE.md
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+# VoxVera Release Process
+
+This document outlines the mandatory steps to perform before every release to ensure code quality, cross-language integrity, and professional distribution assets.
+
+## 1. Pre-Flight Checks (Quality Assurance)
+
+Before any release, the codebase must pass all internal quality checks.
+
+### Run Tests
+Ensure all core CLI, E2E, and Integrity tests pass:
+```bash
+pytest tests/
+```
+*Note: The `test_integrity.py` check is critical as it verifies that all 14+ language locales have synchronized keys.*
+
+### Run Linting
+Ensure the code adheres to style guidelines (no trailing whitespace, proper spacing, etc.):
+```bash
+# Using flake8 (excluding vendored dependencies)
+flake8 voxvera/ --exclude=voxvera/vendor/
+```
+
+## 2. Generate Localized Assets
+
+Documentation and site templates must be regenerated to reflect the latest locale strings and binary names.
+
+```bash
+# Regenerate docs/ folders for all languages
+python3 -m voxvera.cli build-docs
+
+# Synchronize site/ directory (QRs, HTML, and portable Zips)
+python3 -m voxvera.cli build-site
+```
+
+## 3. Build Distribution Binaries
+
+Standardized binaries and AppImages must be generated for the current platform.
+
+### Standard Binary
+Generates an architecture-specific binary (e.g., `voxvera-linux-x86_64`) in `voxvera/resources/bin/`.
+```bash
+./scripts/build_binaries.sh
+```
+
+### AppImage (Linux)
+Wraps the standard binary into a self-contained AppImage.
+```bash
+./packaging/build_appimage.sh
+```
+
+## 4. Release Execution
+
+1. **Version Bump:** Update `__version__` in `voxvera/__init__.py` and `version` in `pyproject.toml`.
+2. **Commit & Tag:**
+   ```bash
+   git add .
+   git commit -m "chore: release vX.Y.Z"
+   git tag -a vX.Y.Z -m "VoxVera vX.Y.Z"
+   git push origin main --tags
+   ```
+3. **GitHub Release:**
+   Create a release and upload the assets from `voxvera/resources/bin/` and `site/download/`.
+   ```bash
+   gh release create vX.Y.Z voxvera/resources/bin/* site/download/*.zip --title "VoxVera vX.Y.Z" --notes "Release notes here..."
+   ```