kilocode/packages/kilo-jetbrains/RELEASING.md

Releasing the JetBrains Plugin

JetBrains releases use a release PR. The PR is where maintainers review and edit the version and changelog before anything is published.

Create a Release PR

1. Open the GitHub Actions workflow:

https://github.com/Kilo-Org/kilocode/actions/workflows/prepare-jetbrains-release.yml

2. Click Run workflow.

3. Fill the inputs:

Input	Value
kind	rc for an EAP release, stable for a default Marketplace release.
version	x.y.z-rc.n for RCs, x.y.z for stable releases.
from_tag	Optional previous tag for the changelog range. Leave empty unless the default range is wrong.

Examples:

kind=rc
version=7.3.13-rc.1

kind=stable
version=7.3.13

Changelog Range Defaults

The workflow chooses a changelog base automatically:

Release	Default from_tag
First RC for a version, e.g. 7.3.13-rc.1	Latest stable JetBrains tag.
Later RC, e.g. 7.3.13-rc.2	Previous RC for the same base version.
Stable, e.g. 7.3.13	Latest stable JetBrains tag, ignoring RCs.

Use from_tag only to override this comparison range.

For the first stable JetBrains release, there may be no previous stable tag yet. In that case, pass the last RC or another reviewed JetBrains tag as from_tag.

Review the PR

The workflow creates or updates a branch like:

jetbrains/release/v7.3.13-rc.1

The PR updates:

File	Purpose
packages/kilo-jetbrains/package.json	JetBrains plugin package version.
packages/kilo-jetbrains/CHANGELOG.md	Release notes packaged into the plugin.

Review and edit packages/kilo-jetbrains/CHANGELOG.md before merging. This changelog entry is rendered into JetBrains <change-notes>, so it appears on the Marketplace and inside IntelliJ plugin UI.

Merge and Publish

When the release PR is merged, the tag-jetbrains-release workflow validates it and creates:

jetbrains/v<version>

That tag triggers the publish-jetbrains workflow:

https://github.com/Kilo-Org/kilocode/actions/workflows/publish-jetbrains.yml

Publishing behavior:

Version	Marketplace channel	GitHub release
x.y.z-rc.n	eap	Prerelease
x.y.z	default	Stable release

The workflow verifies, signs, and publishes the plugin ZIP, then uploads the ZIP to the matching GitHub Release.

Installing RC Builds

RC builds are published to the eap channel. To get them in IntelliJ IDEA:

1. Open Settings > Plugins.
2. Click the gear icon and choose Manage Plugin Repositories.
3. Add the following URL:

https://plugins.jetbrains.com/plugins/list?channel=eap&pluginId=28350

4. Search for Kilo Code in the Marketplace tab.

Manual Recovery

If the PR was merged but the tag workflow failed after validation, create the tag manually at the merge commit:

git fetch origin main
git tag jetbrains/v7.3.13 <merge-sha>
git push origin jetbrains/v7.3.13

Do not create a tag before the release PR is merged unless intentionally bypassing the release-PR flow.

Required GitHub Actions Secrets

Secret	Purpose
KILO_MAINTAINER_APP_ID	GitHub App ID used to create/update release PRs and tags.
KILO_MAINTAINER_APP_SECRET	GitHub App private key used to create/update release PRs and tags.
JETBRAINS_MARKETPLACE_TOKEN	Marketplace API token for publishing.
JETBRAINS_CERTIFICATE_CHAIN	PEM certificate chain for plugin signing.
JETBRAINS_PRIVATE_KEY	PEM private key for plugin signing.
JETBRAINS_PRIVATE_KEY_PASSWORD	Password for the private key.

Before the first publish, complete RELEASE_TODO.md to set up these secrets and the Marketplace plugin entry.