0204 — Release cadence is observation, not a gate

Status: Accepted Date: 2026-09-26

Amends ADR 0198 and the release consequence in ADR 0203. Invariant I14.

Decision

Release frequency has no calendar limit. The release planner reports stable-breaking minor counts over seven and thirty days, but neither count refuses publication. There is no per-release exception, override flag or alternate publication path.

All remaining compatibility obligations stay in force: a breaking pre-1.0 release bumps the minor, names the affected entrypoints, cites an ADR for a stable break, provides a dated changelog and migration with the affected audience, and passes the full release gates and exact-SHA push CI before publication.

This replaces ADR 0198’s one-minor-per-seven-days restriction and the corresponding refusal. Its stability qualification, entrypoint classification and metadata requirements remain. ADR 0203’s stdin behavior and migration remain; its final reference to the calendar budget no longer governs publication.

Reason and verification

A calendar limit blocks a tested fix independently of its correctness or migration quality. Compatibility is controlled by versioning, explicit migration and evidence. The release gate tests accept multiple stable-breaking minors in the same week while still refusing unnamed entrypoints, missing stable ADRs and undated releases.