Version Files

Keep repo-committed files that embed the version in sync with the release tag

version_files is a list of repo-committed files that embed the project version outside Cargo.toml — a Helm Chart.yaml, an install doc, a README badge. anodizer rewrites their version string at tag time so they never drift from the tag, and guards them in CI.

Minimal config

version_files:
  - charts/myapp/Chart.yaml
  - docs/install.md
  - README.md

Each entry is a repo-relative path. The key is settable at the top level (as above), under defaults:, or per-crate under a crates: entry. Precedence is crate → defaults → top-level: a crate that lists its own version_files overrides the shared list; a crate that lists none inherits it.

Tag-time rewriting (anodizer tag)

When anodizer tag bumps the version, it rewrites each enrolled file's version string from the old release version to the new one in the same commit that bumps Cargo.toml / Cargo.lock, so the files are tagged together and never drift from the tag. Pass --changelog and that bump commit also refreshes CHANGELOG.md (opt-in; requires a changelog: block) — both ride the same commit.

Given the latest tag v0.1.0, a minor bump, and this Chart.yaml:

# charts/myapp/Chart.yaml — before
version: 0.1.0
appVersion: v0.1.0

anodizer tag rewrites it in the bump commit:

# charts/myapp/Chart.yaml — after
version: 0.2.0
appVersion: v0.2.0

Matching details:

  • Bare and v-prefixed forms both match. 0.1.0 and v0.1.0 are each rewritten to their bumped spelling (0.2.0 / v0.2.0).

  • Word-boundary anchored. 0.1.0 does not match inside 10.1.0, so an unrelated longer version on the same line is left untouched.

  • A zero-match file is warned, not failed. An enrolled file that does not contain the old version (usually a stale enrollment) produces a warning and the tag run continues:

    $ anodizer tag
...
Warning: version_files: enrolled file docs/install.md did not contain version 0.1.0 (nothing rewritten)

Pass --dry-run to preview the rewrite counts without writing any file.

CI drift guard (anodizer check version-files)

anodizer check version-files is a read-only guard for CI. For each configured crate it resolves that crate's current declared version and verifies every enrolled file still contains it (bare or v-prefixed). A file whose version has drifted — or that is missing — is reported as STALE: and the command exits non-zero, so CI fails before a release goes out:

$ anodizer check version-files
STALE: charts/myapp/Chart.yaml (expected 0.2.0, not found)
Error: version_files check failed with 1 finding(s)
$ echo $?
1

When everything is in sync the command exits 0:

$ anodizer check version-files
all 3 version_files are in sync

When no crate enrolls any version_files, the guard is a no-op and exits 0 with a short note (no version_files configured). Wire it into CI as a pre-release gate:

- name: Check version files
  run: anodizer check version-files

Enrolling files (anodizer init --version-files)

anodizer init --version-files discovers tracked files that contain the current version and enrolls your selection into version_files in an existing .anodizer.yaml. It scans every version in play (single-crate, the shared lockstep version, and each member's own version) and presents a scrollable multi-select:

$ anodizer init --version-files
Select files to enroll under version_files (space toggles, enter confirms)
  [x] charts/myapp/Chart.yaml
  [x] docs/install.md
  [ ] CONTRIBUTING.md
enrolled 2 file(s) under version_files in .anodizer.yaml
  + charts/myapp/Chart.yaml
  + docs/install.md

Cargo.toml, Cargo.lock, and dist/ are auto-excluded — the tag command already bumps the manifest and lockfile, and dist/ is build output. Use --exclude <glob> to drop further candidates from discovery (repeatable or comma-separated):

anodizer init --version-files --exclude 'docs/**' --exclude CONTRIBUTING.md

Pass -y / --yes to enroll every discovered candidate without prompting — useful in scripts:

anodizer init --version-files -y

Enrollment is idempotent (already-enrolled paths are never re-added) and preserves the existing comments and key order in .anodizer.yaml.

Config modes

version_files works in all three config modes:

  • Single-crate — one version; enrolled files are checked and rewritten against the crate's own [package].version.
  • Workspace lockstep — a shared version; the top-level version_files enrollment is checked against the inherited [workspace.package].version.
  • Workspace per-crate — each crate enrolls its own files (under its crates: entry) and they are checked and rewritten against that crate's own version:
crates:
  - name: myapp-core
    path: crates/core
    version_files:
      - crates/core/README.md
  - name: myapp-cli
    path: crates/cli
    version_files:
      - charts/myapp/Chart.yaml
      - docs/cli-install.md

Here myapp-core's README is synced to the core crate's version while the chart and install doc track the CLI crate's version — independently.

A note on matching

Rewriting replaces word-boundary occurrences of the old version literal. An unrelated line that coincidentally carries the same version string — say a documented minimum-dependency version that happens to equal the release version — would also be rewritten. Keep enrolled files focused on the lines that should track the release, and run anodizer check version-files in CI as the safety net.