JDK 22 enters Rampdown Phase One next Thursday

[Mark Reinhold]

JDK 22 enters Rampdown Phase One next week on Thursday, 7 December.
Changes intended for JDK 22 should be in the main-line repository
(https://github.com/openjdk/jdk) by 17:00 UTC on that day [1].

At that time we’ll fork the main line to the JDK 22 stabilization
repository, jdk22, and promote next week’s build and all remaining
JDK 22 builds from there.

We will integrate most stabilization changes via backports, as we did
for JDK 21:

  - Most fixes and enhancements intended for the stabilization repository
    will also be applicable to the main-line repository.  Integrate such
    a change into the main-line repository first.  Then, after you have
    obtained any required approvals, backport it to the stabilization
    repository using the Skara `/backport` command [2] or, if necessary,
    by manually opening a backport PR with the title `Backport $HASH`,
    where `$HASH` is the original commit hash.  (The Developers’ Guide
    contains more information on working with backports [3].)

  - Some fixes will be specific to the stabilization repository and not
    applicable to the main-line repository.  Integrate such a change
    directly into the stabilization repository.

In order to make sure that no backports are missed, prior to the RDP 2
and RC phases we will remind JDK Contributors to review changes that have
been integrated into the main-line repository but not backported to the
stabilization repository.

The Rampdown Phase One process is defined in JEP 3 [4].

To answer a potential FAQ, yet again: Now that we’ve moved over to Git,
why don’t we just use a branch in the main-line repository for JDK 22
stabilization work?  A few of us have given that some thought, but a
change of that scope requires preparation and coordination.  We hope
to revisit that option for JDK 23.

- Mark


[1] https://time.is/1700_7_December_2023_in_UTC/Stockholm/London/Boston/San_Francisco?JDK_22_Rampdown_Phase_One
[2] https://wiki.openjdk.org/display/SKARA/Backports
[3] https://openjdk.org/guide/#working-with-backports-in-jbs
[4] https://openjdk.org/jeps/3