Freeze the API and prepare the 0.9 release candidate

.github/ISSUE_TEMPLATE/release-candidate.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+name: Release candidate feedback
+description: Report OpenDisNet 0.9 RC interoperability, API, performance, or documentation results.
+title: "[RC feedback]: "
+body:
+  - type: markdown
+    attributes:
+      value: |
+        Thank you for testing the OpenDisNet release candidate. Do not attach controlled, private, or operational packet captures.
+  - type: input
+    id: version
+    attributes:
+      label: Package version
+      description: Enter the exact prerelease version, for example 0.9.0-rc.1.
+      placeholder: 0.9.0-rc.1
+    validations:
+      required: true
+  - type: input
+    id: environment
+    attributes:
+      label: Environment
+      description: Include the target framework, operating system, architecture, and application type.
+      placeholder: .NET 10, Windows 11 x64, UDP simulation gateway
+    validations:
+      required: true
+  - type: dropdown
+    id: category
+    attributes:
+      label: Feedback category
+      options:
+        - Wire interoperability
+        - API usability
+        - Performance or allocation
+        - Packaging or installation
+        - Documentation
+        - Successful validation
+    validations:
+      required: true
+  - type: textarea
+    id: families
+    attributes:
+      label: PDU families and workflows tested
+      description: Describe the representative workflows and protocol families you exercised.
+    validations:
+      required: true
+  - type: textarea
+    id: result
+    attributes:
+      label: Result
+      description: Explain what worked or failed, the expected behavior, and a minimal synthetic reproduction when applicable.
+    validations:
+      required: true
+  - type: checkboxes
+    id: safety
+    attributes:
+      label: Data handling
+      options:
+        - label: I confirm this report contains no controlled, private, or operational packet capture.
+          required: true

.github/workflows/ci.yml

@@ -26,7 +26,13 @@ jobs:
       - run: dotnet run --project tools/OpenDisNet.Generator/OpenDisNet.Generator.csproj --configuration Release --no-restore -- --verify
       - run: dotnet build --configuration Release --no-restore
       - run: dotnet test --configuration Release --no-build
-      - run: dotnet pack src/OpenDisNet/OpenDisNet.csproj --configuration Release --no-build --output artifacts/packages
+      - run: dotnet pack src/OpenDisNet/OpenDisNet.csproj --configuration Release --no-build --output artifacts/packages -p:PackageVersion=0.0.0-ci.${{ github.run_id }}
+      - name: Restore packed-package consumer
+        run: dotnet restore tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --source "${{ github.workspace }}/artifacts/packages" --force --no-cache -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=0.0.0-ci.${{ github.run_id }}
+      - name: Run packed-package consumer on .NET 9
+        run: dotnet run --project tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --configuration Release --framework net9.0 --no-restore -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=0.0.0-ci.${{ github.run_id }}
+      - name: Run packed-package consumer on .NET 10
+        run: dotnet run --project tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --configuration Release --framework net10.0 --no-restore -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=0.0.0-ci.${{ github.run_id }}
       - uses: actions/upload-artifact@v7
         if: matrix.os == 'ubuntu-latest'
         with:

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -27,6 +27,12 @@ jobs:
       - run: dotnet restore --locked-mode
       - run: dotnet test --configuration Release --no-restore
       - run: dotnet pack src/OpenDisNet/OpenDisNet.csproj --configuration Release --no-restore --output artifacts/packages -p:PackageVersion=${{ env.PACKAGE_VERSION }}
+      - name: Restore packed-package consumer
+        run: dotnet restore tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --source "${{ github.workspace }}/artifacts/packages" --force --no-cache -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=${{ env.PACKAGE_VERSION }}
+      - name: Run packed-package consumer on .NET 9
+        run: dotnet run --project tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --configuration Release --framework net9.0 --no-restore -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=${{ env.PACKAGE_VERSION }}
+      - name: Run packed-package consumer on .NET 10
+        run: dotnet run --project tests/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke/OpenDisNet.PackageSmoke.csproj --configuration Release --framework net10.0 --no-restore -p:OpenDisNetPackageVersion=${{ env.PACKAGE_VERSION }}
       - name: Authenticate to NuGet.org
         uses: NuGet/login@v1
         id: nuget
@@ -37,4 +43,10 @@ jobs:
       - name: Create GitHub release
         env:
           GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
-        run: gh release create "${{ github.ref_name }}" artifacts/packages/*.*nupkg --generate-notes --verify-tag
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          flags=(--generate-notes --verify-tag)
+          if [[ "${{ github.ref_name }}" == *-* ]]; then
+            flags+=(--prerelease)
+          fi
+          gh release create "${{ github.ref_name }}" artifacts/packages/*.*nupkg "${flags[@]}"

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -5,6 +5,14 @@ Versioning after 1.0 and uses prerelease versions while conformance is incomplet
 
 ## Unreleased
 
+- Froze the complete public C# surface with compiler-enforced API baselines and
+  NuGet package compatibility validation against OpenDisNet 0.8.0.
+- Added an external-style smoke consumer that installs the packed artifact and
+  exercises all 72 PDU factory/codec paths on .NET 9 and .NET 10.
+- Added prerelease-aware publishing, an external 0.9 RC test checklist, and a
+  structured GitHub feedback form.
+- Corrected the `RadioId` construction example discovered by the package smoke
+  consumer.
 - Added deterministic populated conformance cases for all 72 DIS v7 PDU types,
   independent byte vectors, and truncation checks at every byte boundary across
   all 12 protocol families planned for versions 0.3 through 0.8.

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -4,3 +4,8 @@ Contributions should include specification-section provenance, known binary
 vectors, round-trip tests, and malformed-input tests. Run `dotnet test
 --configuration Release` before opening a pull request. Do not submit IEEE
 specification text or non-public operational packet captures.
+
+The public API is frozen during the 0.9 release-candidate cycle. Additive API
+changes must update `src/OpenDisNet/PublicAPI.Unshipped.txt`, include tests, and
+describe the consumer benefit in the changelog. Removals or signature changes
+require explicit breaking-change review and a new release candidate.

README.md

@@ -7,10 +7,11 @@
 OpenDisNet is a high-performance, type-safe .NET codec for Distributed
 Interactive Simulation (DIS) Protocol Version 7, defined by IEEE 1278.1-2012.
 
-> **Development status:** pre-release. All 72 DIS v7 PDU identifiers have typed
-> models and native C# binary codecs. Every protocol family has populated
-> round-trip and boundary-truncation coverage; remaining 1.0 release gates are
-> tracked in [`docs/conformance.md`](docs/conformance.md).
+> **Development status:** 0.9 release-candidate hardening. All 72 DIS v7 PDU
+> identifiers have typed native C# codecs, every family has populated and
+> boundary-truncation coverage, and the public API is frozen for external
+> validation. See the [`RC testing guide`](docs/release-candidate.md) and
+> [`conformance matrix`](docs/conformance.md).
 
 ## Install
 
@@ -57,7 +58,7 @@ var signal = new SignalPdu
 {
     ExerciseId = 1,
     Timestamp = 42,
-    Radio = new RadioId(new EntityId(1, 10, 42), number: 7),
+    Radio = new RadioId(new EntityId(1, 10, 42), 7),
     EncodingScheme = SignalEncodingScheme.EncodedAudio(SignalEncodingType.Opus),
     TdlType = SignalTdlType.Other,
     SampleRate = 8_000,

docs/api-design.md

@@ -38,6 +38,13 @@ untrusted network input.
 
 ## Compatibility
 
-The package is pre-1.0 while the complete PDU surface is being reviewed. After
-1.0, public names and wire behavior follow semantic versioning. Internal codec
-generation may change without becoming part of the supported API.
+The 0.9 release-candidate line freezes the complete public C# surface before
+1.0. `PublicAPI.Shipped.txt` is the reviewable contract. Compiler analyzers
+reject an unrecorded public addition or removal, and NuGet package validation
+compares new artifacts with version 0.8.0 for binary compatibility.
+
+New API belongs in `PublicAPI.Unshipped.txt` and requires tests plus a changelog
+entry. Removing or changing frozen API requires explicit breaking-change review
+and another release candidate. After 1.0, public names and wire behavior follow
+semantic versioning. Internal codec generation may change without becoming part
+of the supported API.

docs/conformance.md

@@ -37,6 +37,15 @@ input tests, and round-trip tests.
 - [x] 0.8 Live Entity
 - [x] 0.8 Information Operations
 
+## 0.9 release readiness
+
+- [x] Frozen, compiler-enforced public C# API baseline
+- [x] NuGet package compatibility validation against 0.8.0
+- [x] Packed-package consumer validation on .NET 9 and .NET 10
+- [x] Prerelease-aware GitHub and NuGet publishing workflow
+- [x] External RC validation checklist and structured feedback form
+- [ ] External RC feedback reviewed and high-impact findings resolved
+
 Family coverage is implemented and exercised entirely in C#/.NET. Frozen bytes
 from an independent implementation are test inputs only; they are not product
 code or a runtime/build dependency. Two default vectors and 28 aggressively

docs/release-candidate.md

@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+# 0.9 external release candidate
+
+Version 0.9 is the public API freeze and external validation stage before 1.0.
+The current C# surface is recorded in `PublicAPI.Shipped.txt`; builds reject an
+undocumented addition or removal, and package validation compares every new
+artifact with the published 0.8.0 package.
+
+## Install an RC
+
+Release candidates use SemVer tags such as `v0.9.0-rc.1`. After a candidate is
+published, install that exact version so test results remain reproducible:
+
+```shell
+dotnet add package OpenDisNet --version 0.9.0-rc.1
+```
+
+GitHub and NuGet identify RC builds as prereleases. Do not use an RC in a
+production exercise unless your own release policy permits prerelease packages.
+
+## External validation checklist
+
+Test the workflows that resemble your application rather than only constructing
+empty PDUs:
+
+1. Deserialize representative, non-sensitive DIS v7 datagrams from each family
+   your application consumes.
+2. Inspect the typed properties your application needs and reserialize the PDU.
+3. Construct and transmit representative PDUs using ordinary object initializers.
+4. Confirm unknown enumeration values, reserved bits, and vendor-defined bodies
+   survive a decode/encode round trip when applicable.
+5. Exercise caller-owned buffers or sustained packet rates if allocation and
+   throughput matter to your application.
+6. Build with nullable analysis and warnings enabled to expose API friction.
+
+Never attach controlled, private, or operational packet captures. Reduce a
+problem to synthetic bytes or property values before reporting it.
+
+## Report results
+
+Use the repository's **Release candidate feedback** issue form. Include the
+exact package version, target framework, operating system, PDU families tested,
+and whether the problem concerns API usability, wire interoperability,
+performance, or documentation.
+
+## 1.0 exit criteria
+
+- Public API analyzer and 0.8.0 package-compatibility validation remain clean.
+- The packed-package consumer passes on .NET 9 and .NET 10.
+- No unresolved high-impact wire-correctness or data-loss defect remains.
+- External testing covers real application workflows without relying on
+  sensitive captures.
+- Any intentional API change after the freeze is documented, reviewed as a
+  breaking-change candidate, and followed by another RC.

docs/releasing.md

@@ -5,6 +5,17 @@ publishes to NuGet.org, and creates a GitHub release for tags such as `v0.2.0`.
 GitHub-generated notes are categorized using `.github/release.yml`, and package
 plus symbol artifacts are attached to the release shown on the repository page.
 
+Prerelease tags use SemVer identifiers such as `v0.9.0-rc.1`. The workflow
+derives the package version from the tag and marks the GitHub release as a
+prerelease automatically. Before publishing any tag, the workflow validates the
+public API, compares the package with the 0.8.0 compatibility baseline, and runs
+an external-style consumer against the packed artifact on .NET 9 and .NET 10.
+
+The RC testing contract and feedback process are documented in
+[`release-candidate.md`](release-candidate.md). Promote an RC to a stable tag
+only after its exit criteria are satisfied; published NuGet versions and GitHub
+releases are never rewritten.
+
 ## One-time NuGet.org setup
 
 1. Reserve or publish the `OpenDisNet` package ID under the intended NuGet.org owner.

src/OpenDisNet/OpenDisNet.csproj

@@ -17,7 +17,13 @@
     <GenerateDocumentationFile>true</GenerateDocumentationFile>
     <NoWarn>$(NoWarn);CS1591</NoWarn>
     <PackageRequireLicenseAcceptance>false</PackageRequireLicenseAcceptance>
+    <EnablePackageValidation>true</EnablePackageValidation>
+    <PackageValidationBaselineVersion>0.8.0</PackageValidationBaselineVersion>
+    <EnableStrictModeForCompatibleTfms>true</EnableStrictModeForCompatibleTfms>
   </PropertyGroup>
+  <ItemGroup>
+    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.CodeAnalysis.PublicApiAnalyzers" Version="5.6.0" PrivateAssets="all" />
+  </ItemGroup>
   <ItemGroup>
     <None Include="..\..\README.md" Pack="true" PackagePath="\" />
   </ItemGroup>