Proposal: @react-native-community/template versioning scheme

[Blake Friedman]

Background

As part of the move to support changes in the RFC-0759 React Native Frameworks, we're going to have to come up with a semver based versioning scheme to use with the @react-native-community/template package.

Proposal

1. Track only the npm MINOR number, and use the latest PATCH
2. Clean up the init command:

  --version <string>              Shortcut for `--template react-native@version`

• version text should just read --template @react-native-community/template@version

Example

As with the existing template, the version of React Native should be exactly pinned so users can manage upgrading from their template version manually. The downside of this approach is that we have to maintain this compatibility list as part of the release process, which no-longer is done for "free" as part of the react-native release process.

Problems

React Native version pinning

$ npx @react-native-community/cli init --version 0.75.0 Foobar

Currently we pin the version of React Native to each template release. Since the template was bound to the react-native npm package this wasn't an issue. We'd automatically get a release with each release of react-native. We no longer get this.

The first approach that comes to mind is:

1. bump the PATCH version for every PATCH release of React Native. For example:

• react-native@0.75.0 + template@0.75.0; template bug leads to template@0.75.1
• react-native@0.75.1 + template@0.75.2
• etc ...

2. Update a map of some kind between { [react-native-version]: template-version } within the package.json that init can lookup using https://registry.npmjs.org/react-native/latest which is guaranteed to have all reverse lookups.

"name": "@react-native-community/template",
...
"react-native-versions": {
  "0.74.0": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.1": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.2": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.3": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.4": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.5": "0.74.0",
  "0.74.6": "0.74.1",
  "0.75.0-rc1": "0.75.0",
  "0.75.0-rc2": "0.75.1",
  "0.75.0-rc3": "0.75.2",
  "0.75.0": "0.75.2",
  "0.75.1": "0.75.3",
  ...
}

It's entirely possible that we can do some basic work to compress that a little (see the sequence of 0.74.0-5 with matching template version of 0.74.0), but for now it might be good just keep it simple.

[Nicola Corti]

The downside of this approach is that we have to

@blakef you have an unfinished sentence here.

Update a map of some kind between { [react-native-version]: template-version } within the package.json that init can lookup using https://registry.npmjs.org/react-native/latest which is guaranteed to have all reverse lookups.

IMHO this should be the preferred approach. I would not put the map inside the package.json but inside a file that the init command can easily access.

The logic could be something like:

1. Users requested init --version 0.75.0-rc.1
   1. Check if the version mapping is present for the given version
      1. if yes use the template package at the specified version.
      2. if not, align the package to the minor version (so get the highest 0.75.x version of template you can find).
2. Users requested init --version next (or any other NPM tag)
   1. Resolve the tag and follow the same mapping algorithm mentioned above

[Michał Pierzchała]

Do we really need the mapping? Unless there are breaking changes disguised as minor released, it shouldn't be problematic for any 0.75.x RN version to download any 0.75.y template. Keeping the mappings is gonna be a hassle for maintenance imho

[Blake Friedman]

Thanks @cortinico and @thymikee.

@thymikee sure, I guess we can guarantee that template 0.75.<latest> works with react-native 0.75.<latest>. If folks want to step outside of that, then they're going to have to know what they're doing.

Upgrade Helper

One thing to consider is that rn-diff-purge assumes that the template and react-native have a 1:1 relationship. This would change that.

We can probably tweak rn-diff-purge to match these using https://registry.npmjs.org/react-native and the npmjs registry data:

curl https://registry.npmjs.org/react-native | jq '.time | with_entries(select(.key | test("-nightly-") | not)) | to_entries | sort_by(.value) | from_entries'

Gives us this:

  ...
  "0.73.4": "2024-02-06T01:41:46.299Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.0": "2024-02-21T17:45:56.390Z",
  "0.73.5": "2024-02-26T19:11:08.247Z",
  "0.71.17": "2024-02-27T02:12:54.109Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.1": "2024-02-27T02:18:33.641Z",
  "0.72.11": "2024-02-28T18:14:47.759Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.2": "2024-03-04T20:50:40.367Z",
  "0.73.6": "2024-03-11T10:31:58.694Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.3": "2024-03-11T16:10:27.937Z",
  "0.72.12": "2024-03-11T17:04:21.206Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.4": "2024-03-18T16:31:36.248Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.5": "2024-03-25T16:14:40.545Z",
  "0.74.0-rc.6": "2024-04-02T12:14:10.038Z",
  "modified": "2024-04-02T12:14:10.205Z"

Which we can correlate with template releases and update the rn-diff-purge's new-release.sh script to more accurately capture the correct react-native:template relationship.

TL;DR / Outcome

We don't need a version table (that would have to be maintained). For projects that may require this, then can match the specified version of react-native to the template at the time using npm's API.

[Lorenzo Sciandra]

Sorry it took me a while to get around to comment here - I have been having mixed feelings about the versioning scheme having to be a 1:1 relationship with the npm react-native releases but I think that ultimately it is the right call.

Blake, as you mentioned already, upgrade-helper has that as an expectation to work properly, and in a way we also want people to have this template and DX flow to behave exactly as before in order to minimise confusion. So with that in mind I think that even if it might just be a super small change (ex. the version in the package.json) this template should keep the 1:1.

[Michał Pierzchała]

Realistically, to make sure we have the parity between RN releases and upgrade helper, we should set up some automation that's triggered from RN release webhook and match accordingly. We should also have the freedom to amend those versions for critical bug fixes. Like:

• react-native@0.74.2 -> (triggers template release) ->
• @react-native-community/template@0.74.2 -> (after bugfix) ->
• @react-native-community/template@0.74.2-1