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SpECTRE
v2024.09.29
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We employ a date-based versioning scheme with the format YYYY.0M.0D[.TWEAK], where YYYY is the year, 0M the zero-padded month and 0D the zero-padded day of the month when the version is released. If additional versions are released on a single day, the TWEAK component enumerates them. For example, the first version released on May 4th, 2021 carries the name 2021.05.04. Additional versions released on May 4th, 2021 would carry the names 2021.05.04.1, 2021.05.04.2, etc.
The reason we use a date-based versioning scheme over, for example, semantic versioning is to avoid implying a notion of compatibility between releases (see section below).
Each release is guaranteed to pass all automated tests laid out in the guide on automated tests.
We provide no guarantee that releases satisfy any notion of "compatibility" with each other. In particular, the interface of any C++ library, Python module or executable may change between releases. When writing code for SpECTRE we recommend regularly rebasing on the latest develop branch of the sxs-collaboration/spectre repository and aiming to contribute your code upstream by following our contributing guide in a timely manner. That said, we make an effort to retain compatibility between releases for the following aspects of the code:
We may establish guarantees for specific interfaces related to these aspects. These guarantees will be defined in the documentation of the respective interface.
We explicitly provide no guarantee that input files remain compatible with executables built on different releases. Instead, we try to make input files as explicit as possible by not supporting default values, so simulations don't continue with subtly changed parameters part way through. We try to reflect changes that would affect running simulations in the input files, so they can (and often must) be reviewed before the simulation continues. Please note that low-level changes or bugs may always alter results, so be advised to stick with a particular compiled executable if a high level of reproducibility is crucial for your project.
We typically publish a release at the beginning of each month, and may publish additional releases irregularly. If a major bug is discovered and fixed we will likely create an unscheduled release.
You can find all releases on GitHub:
Each release is tagged with the version name and prefixed v in the repository. For example, this is how you can obtain the source code for the 2020.12.07 release:
The latest release is always available on the release branch. This is how you can obtain the source code for the latest release: