feat(release): handle beta versions and update documentation

Author: rbstp

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ jobs:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     outputs:
       version: ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.version }}
+      release_type: ${{ steps.get-version.outputs.release_type }}
 
     steps:
       - name: Check out ${{ github.repository }}
@@ -53,7 +54,11 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           body=$(gh release view "$TAG" --json body -q '.body')
           notes="**Release type: $RELEASE_TYPE**${body:+$'\n\n'$body}"
-          gh release edit "$TAG" --notes "$notes"
+          prerelease_flag=""
+          if [ "$RELEASE_TYPE" = "Beta" ]; then
+            prerelease_flag="--prerelease"
+          fi
+          gh release edit "$TAG" --notes "$notes" $prerelease_flag
         env:
           GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
           TAG: v${{ steps.get-version.outputs.version }}
@@ -71,6 +76,10 @@ jobs:
       - name: Install Helm
         uses: azure/setup-helm@v4
 
+      - name: Add pre-release suffix for Beta
+        if: ${{ needs.create-release.outputs.release_type == 'Beta' }}
+        run: 'sed -i "s/^version: .*/version: ${{ needs.create-release.outputs.version }}-beta/" chart/Chart.yaml'
+
       - name: Package chart
         run: helm package chart/
 

README.md

@@ -30,10 +30,14 @@ helm template test chart/ \
 
 ## Releasing
 
-Releases are automated via GitHub Actions. Trigger the `release` workflow to:
+Releases are automated via GitHub Actions. When `chart/Chart.yaml` is updated on `master`, the `release` workflow:
 
-1. Create a GitHub release tagged with the chart version from `chart/Chart.yaml`
-2. Package and publish the chart to the [Devolutions Helm repository](https://devolutions.github.io/helm-charts)
+1. Creates a GitHub release tagged with the chart version
+2. Detects the release type (Beta, Stable, LTS) from the commit message
+3. For Beta releases, appends a `-beta` suffix to the chart version and marks the GitHub release as a prerelease
+4. Packages and publishes the chart to the [Devolutions Helm repository](https://devolutions.github.io/helm-charts)
+
+Beta chart versions use a SemVer pre-release identifier (e.g., `2026.1.3-beta`), so Helm only shows them when using `--devel`. See [chart/README.md](chart/README.md#release-channels) for details.
 
 ## License
 

chart/README.md

@@ -29,6 +29,26 @@ helm repo add devolutions https://devolutions.github.io/helm-charts
 helm repo update
 ```
 
+### Release channels
+
+The chart is published in three release channels:
+
+| Channel | Helm version example | `--devel` required | Description |
+|---------|---------------------|--------------------|-------------|
+| **Stable** | `2025.3.15` | No | Production-ready releases |
+| **LTS** | `2025.3.15` | No | Long-term support releases |
+| **Beta** | `2026.1.3-beta` | Yes | Pre-release versions for early testing |
+
+By default, `helm install` and `helm search` only show Stable and LTS versions. To include Beta releases, add the `--devel` flag:
+
+```bash
+# Search for all versions including beta
+helm search repo devolutions/devolutions-server --devel
+
+# Install a specific beta version
+helm install dvls devolutions/devolutions-server --version 2026.1.3-beta
+```
+
 ### Create the required secrets
 
 The chart expects two Kubernetes secrets to exist before installation. Create them using your preferred method (Terraform, Vault, sealed-secrets, etc.). The `kubectl` examples below are for illustration only.