OpenClaw Changelog Update

Use this for release changelog rewrites and GitHub release-note source text. This is mandatory before every beta, beta rerun, stable release, or stable rerun. Use it with release-openclaw-maintainer; this skill owns changelog content, ordering, grouping, and attribution discipline.

Goal

Rebuild the target CHANGELOG.md version section from a complete, generated history manifest, not stale draft notes. Produce grouped user-facing release notes sorted by user interest while preserving every relevant issue/PR ref and every human Thanks @... attribution.

Inputs

Target base version: YYYY.M.PATCH, without beta suffix.
Base tag: last reachable shipped release tag, usually the previous stable or the previous beta train requested by the operator. It must be an ancestor of the target; a newer but divergent tag is not a valid history boundary. Use an explicit shipped/main-closeout SHA only when it is also reachable from the target.
Target ref: exact branch/SHA being released.
Canonical main ref: current origin/main, fetched before verification. Release notes cite the original merged main PR when the same work is carried by a backport. A release-branch PR is used only while no forward-port exists on main by the release target cutoff.

Workflow

Start on main before branching when possible:
- git fetch --tags origin
- git pull --ff-only
- confirm clean git status -sb
Audit history, including direct commits:
- git log --first-parent --date=iso-strict --pretty=format:'%h%x09%ad%x09%s' <base-tag>..<target-ref>
- git log --first-parent --grep='(#' --date=short --pretty=format:'%h%x09%ad%x09%s' <base-tag>..<target-ref>
- also inspect --since='24 hours ago' when main moved during the release.
Generate the complete contribution record and editorial manifest before writing grouped prose:
bash
```
node .agents/skills/openclaw-changelog-update/scripts/verify-release-notes.mjs \
  --base <base-tag> \
  --target <target-ref> \
  --main-ref origin/main \
  --version <YYYY.M.PATCH> \
  --manifest /tmp/openclaw-release-<YYYY.M.PATCH>.json \
  --write-ledger
```
The verifier automatically reuses public GitHub GraphQL responses from an exact base/target SHA snapshot under the worktree's git metadata. Iterative rewrites at the same target avoid repeated network discovery. Use --refresh-github-snapshot after suspect API data, --github-snapshot <path> for an explicit artifact, or --no-github-snapshot for a live-only audit. GitHub release bodies are always read live.
- the manifest is the required input to the rewrite, not an after-the-fact audit; it contains every referenced PR, eligible contributor credit, inline issue context, every direct commit, and an editorial-eligibility classification for PRs and direct commits
- for a historical backfill, add --seed-ref <pre-backfill-ref> once so contribution records from the prior changelog are retained even when an older merged commit omitted its PR number; the verifier excludes records for work reverted after the base tag, including beta work reverted before the stable release
- add repeatable --shipped-ref <prior-shipped-tag> when the reachable main closeout differs from the shipped tag or later forward-port commits re-associate PRs that were already released. Each tag is a cumulative shipped boundary: the verifier unions explicit PR rows from complete contribution records in numbered release sections, excludes only overlapping PRs, and ignores Unreleased. Never infer this boundary from the base SHA, target prose, or target record. The manifest and generated provenance retain each tag plus the exact excluded PR inventory and count for deterministic candidate validation
- source PR discovery combines merged GitHub commit associations with merged PR references explicitly present in active commit subjects/bodies so cherry-picks and squash commits remain accounted for. Resolve every association page and exclude PRs merged after the target release commit
- canonicalize backports to the original merged PR on main: explicit cherry-pick origins win, then a unique normalized-subject match requires the same author and an overlapping changed path. Suppress the backport PR when that main PR exists by the target cutoff. Keep the release-branch PR only when the change has not yet been forward-ported
- read the manifest before editing ### Highlights, ### Changes, or ### Fixes; do not carry old grouped prose forward without re-auditing it
- inspect linked PRs/issues or diffs for ambiguous commits. Direct commits are editorial input, not public ledger rows; infer material user outcomes from subject, body, touched files, tests, and nearby commits
Rewrite one stable-base section only:
- use ## YYYY.M.PATCH
- do not create beta-specific headings
- do not leave a stale ## Unreleased section above the target release
- if Unreleased contains release-bound notes, fold them into the target section instead of deleting them
Section shape:
- ### Highlights: 5-8 bullets, broad user wins first
  - include only a clear user-visible capability or workflow unlock, a material reliability/safety fix, a broad cross-surface improvement, or a release-defining integration/compatibility milestone
  - every highlight must say what changed for a user in one sentence; use one user story per bullet and group its supporting PRs
  - exclude tests, CI, refactors, docs, catalog churn, and implementation detail unless the outcome is a material install/update, data-safety, or widely visible user improvement
- ### Changes: new capabilities and behavior changes
- ### Fixes: user-facing fixes first, grouped by impact and surface
- group related changes/fixes by surface and user impact; avoid one bullet per tiny commit when several commits tell one user-facing story
- ### Complete contribution record: generated PR-first record after the grouped prose; it is the exhaustive accounting surface, not a second release summary
Preserve attribution:
- keep #issue, (#PR), Fixes #..., and Thanks @...
- every human-authored merged PR represented by a user-facing entry needs its PR ref and Thanks @author, even when the PR had no linked issue
- every human issue reporter for a Fixes #... or referenced bug issue represented by a user-facing entry needs Thanks @reporter unless the same handle is already thanked in that bullet
- every human Co-authored-by contributor on represented user-facing work needs Thanks @handle when a GitHub handle is known
- when grouping multiple PRs/issues in one bullet, include every relevant PR/issue ref and every human contributor handle in that same bullet
- multiple Thanks @... handles in one bullet are expected; do not drop or collapse contributor credit just because the note is grouped
- if one grouped bullet covers both direct commits and PRs, keep all PR refs and thanks, plus any issue refs and human credit from the direct work
- issues remain normal inline #NNN references. Do not add a separate linked-issues inventory. The generated PR record keeps source issues inline as Related #NNN on the PR that shipped them
- when backfilling an older linked-issues inventory, preserve reporter credit inline for every GitHub-confirmed closing PR relationship. Do not infer a PR relationship from a generic cross-reference event, invent an unrelated PR link for a standalone report, or recreate the retired inventory
- the complete contribution record lists every merged source PR exactly once as **PR #NNN**; source PRs include GitHub commit associations and merged PR references explicitly present in active commit subjects/bodies. It preserves author/co-author credit and any issue references in the original title
- direct commits remain in the manifest with GitHub-resolved author, co-author, issue, and editorial-eligibility data. They inform grouped prose but are never rendered as a public #### Direct commits dump. Add direct-commit credit to a grouped bullet only when it shares an explicit closing issue reference or at least two distinctive subject terms
- the verifier rejects docs, test, refactor, ci, build, chore, and style PRs in Highlights, Changes, or Fixes. Keep those internal contributions in the complete PR record, but do not give them editorial release-note space
- classify internal-only work from conventional prefixes and clear title signals such as QA, test, docs, refactor, lint, or CI; an untyped title is not automatically editorial
- do not add GHSA references, advisory IDs, or security advisory slugs to changelog entries or GitHub release-note text unless explicitly requested
- never thank bots, @claude, @openclaw, @clawsweeper, or @steipete
- do not use GitHub's release contributor count as the source of truth; the changelog must carry the complete human credit set itself
Sorting preference:
- security/data-loss and content-boundary fixes
- transcript/replay/reply delivery correctness
- channels and mobile integrations
- providers/Codex/local model reliability
- install/update/release path reliability
- performance and observability
- docs and contributor-only/internal details last or omitted
Keep bullets single-line unless existing file style forces otherwise. Avoid internal release-process noise unless it changes user install/update safety.
Check release-note side conditions:
- inspect src/plugins/compat/registry.ts
- inspect src/commands/doctor/shared/deprecation-compat.ts
- if any compatibility removeAfter is on/before release date, resolve it or explicitly record the blocker before shipping
Validate and ship:

after the manifest-driven rewrite, regenerate and verify the complete contribution record before committing:

bash

node .agents/skills/openclaw-changelog-update/scripts/verify-release-notes.mjs \
  --base <base-tag> \
  --target <target-ref> \
  --main-ref origin/main \
  --version <YYYY.M.PATCH> \
  --manifest /tmp/openclaw-release-<YYYY.M.PATCH>.json \
  --write-ledger

the command fails when any #NNN reference in release history or the rendered release section cannot resolve, when reverted work is presented as shipped, when a source PR is absent from the contribution record, when direct commits are rendered as a public record dump, when non-editorial PRs appear in grouped prose, or when an eligible PR author or known co-author is missing from that PR's Thanks @... credit. It also fails before history collection when --base is not an ancestor of --target, when ### Highlights has fewer than five or more than eight top-level bullets, or when the existing prose/record names a PR outside the source range. Only an explicit --seed-ref may add historical PR inventory; an explicit repeatable --shipped-ref may subtract PRs proven present in a prior shipped tag
when grouped prose names a PR, that same bullet must retain every contributor and linked-reporter credit from its generated PR record
unqualified #NNN references resolve against openclaw/openclaw; cross-repository references such as openclaw/imsg#141 remain literal text and must not be rewritten as local issue links

after the GitHub release or prerelease is published, verify every matching release page against the same source section:

bash

node .agents/skills/openclaw-changelog-update/scripts/verify-release-notes.mjs \
  --base <base-tag> \
  --target <target-ref> \
  --version <YYYY.M.PATCH> \
  --release-tag v<YYYY.M.PATCH> \
  --check-github

add one --release-tag for every beta and stable page in the train; a ### Release verification tail is permitted, but any other body drift fails the check
scripts/render-github-release-notes.mjs is the canonical release-body renderer used by candidate validation, publish, and verification. When the complete ## YYYY.M.PATCH section fits GitHub's 125,000-character limit and the renderer's matching 125,000-byte safety ceiling, the body must contain that exact section including its heading
when the complete source section exceeds either limit, the renderer keeps the exact grouped editorial notes through the line before ### Complete contribution record, then emits that heading with a stable link to the full contribution record in the tag-pinned CHANGELOG.md. Never truncate a bullet or partial record, and never hand-author a different compact form
append ### Release verification only when it fits after the canonical full or compact body is chosen. If it does not fit, omit the body tail and retain the immutable attached release evidence; never compact a fitting full contribution record just to preserve the optional tail
pnpm release:candidate performs this deterministic render check from the exact tag before it dispatches Full Release Validation, including when local generated checks are explicitly skipped
git diff --check
for docs/changelog-only changes, no broad tests are required
commit with scripts/committer "docs(changelog): refresh YYYY.M.PATCH notes" CHANGELOG.md
push, pull/rebase if needed, then branch/rebase release from latest main

Quota / API Outage Rule

If GitHub API quota is exhausted, do not idle. Continue work that does not need GitHub API:

local changelog rewrite and release-note extraction
local pretag checks and package/build sanity
git push/tag checks over git protocol
npm registry npm view checks
exact workflow-dispatch command preparation

Only GitHub Release creation, workflow dispatch, run polling, artifact download, and issue/PR mutation need API quota.