[RN][CI] Setup release publishing flow (#248)

## What?
- Adds `React Native` to workflow_dispatch for releases
  - Performs validation on the semver tag compared to package json
  - Creates a `react-native/X.Y.Z` tag
  - Builds and Publishes that tag 
- Updates the RN podspec source tag to use the `react-native/` namespace.
- Changed workflow dispatch to avoid confusion between draft and dry-run settings
Theres some scripts added to give us the ability to test tarbals of the release build against expo and react-native community cli installs, as well as with npm / yarn / bun / pnpm.



| Before | After | 
| ------ | ----- |
| <img width="307" height="388" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/c8553f5d-dedc-467c-9ce0-b8dda7ba348a" /> | <img width="310" height="418" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/d62fdb72-3ef6-4f98-abce-d227ff104dfc" /> |

I also fixed some output on the release plan 
<img width="445" height="355" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/e8ede813-43ab-41d4-a940-a14178ffc4a3" />

## Other
In order to produce react-native `4.0.0-alpha.1` I needed to update podspec and gradle to point to the swift/android `4.0.0-alpha.1` versions published last week

We have this awkward process for gradle, where the android sdk has to build and publish to `mavenLocal` for local dev, this is gated behind the `USE_LOCAL_SDK` flag

This could fail silently if mavenLocal didn't have a 4.0.0-alpha.1 version, so I added an exclusiveContent filter which ensures the checkout-kit library, when the `USE_LOCAL_SDK` flag is true, will fail to build, ensuring we don't accidentally false positive test against a published SDK in maven.
```gradle 
 if (useLocalSdk) {
    exclusiveContent {
      forRepository {
        mavenLocal()
      }
      filter {
        includeModule("com.shopify", "checkout-kit")
      }
    }
  }
```

Author: kieran-osgood-shopify

.github/CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -126,8 +126,8 @@ Once merged, run the [Release package workflow](../../actions/workflows/release.
 
 1. Select `iOS` as the platform.
 2. Enter the expected version. The workflow reads the SDK version from the checked-in files and fails if the typed version does not match.
-3. Leave `dry-run` enabled first to review the release plan.
-4. Rerun with `dry-run` disabled. By default this creates a draft GitHub Release with the bare semver tag (e.g. `3.8.1`) for human review.
+3. Select `Dry run` first to review the release plan without creating a release.
+4. Rerun with `Draft release` to create a draft GitHub Release with the bare semver tag (e.g. `3.8.1`) for human review.
 5. Publish the draft release when ready. Publishing the draft kicks off the [Swift publish workflow](../../actions/workflows/swift-publish.yml), which publishes the new version to CocoaPods.
 
 ---
@@ -174,8 +174,8 @@ Once merged, run the [Release package workflow](../../actions/workflows/release.
 
 1. Select `Android` as the platform.
 2. Enter the expected version. The workflow reads the SDK version from `platforms/android/lib/build.gradle` and fails if the typed version does not match.
-3. Leave `dry-run` enabled first to review the release plan.
-4. Rerun with `dry-run` disabled. By default this creates a draft GitHub Release with the `android/`-prefixed tag (e.g. `android/3.0.1`) for human review.
+3. Select `Dry run` first to review the release plan without creating a release.
+4. Rerun with `Draft release` to create a draft GitHub Release with the `android/`-prefixed tag (e.g. `android/3.0.1`) for human review.
 5. Publish the draft release when ready. Publishing the draft kicks off the [Android publish workflow](../../actions/workflows/android-publish.yml). **A manual approval by a maintainer is required before publication to Maven Central.**
 
 ---
@@ -208,3 +208,20 @@ If your change intentionally modifies the public API:
 3. Commit the updated `.api.md` file in the same PR.
 
 If you did *not* intend to change public API and `api:check` is failing, the diff shows what your change inadvertently affected — treat it as a signal that something in your PR has consumer-visible impact.
+
+### Releasing a new React Native version
+
+Open a pull request with the following changes:
+
+1. Bump the `version` in `platforms/react-native/modules/@shopify/checkout-kit-react-native/package.json`.
+2. Add an entry to the React Native changelog.
+
+Supported release versions are `X.Y.Z` and prerelease versions are `X.Y.Z-{alpha|beta|rc}.N`.
+
+Once merged, run the [Release package workflow](../../actions/workflows/release.yml):
+
+1. Select `React Native` as the platform.
+2. Enter the expected version. The workflow reads the SDK version from `platforms/react-native/modules/@shopify/checkout-kit-react-native/package.json` and fails if the typed version does not match.
+3. Select `Dry run` first to review the release plan without creating a release.
+4. From the dry-run job summary, copy the generated `gh workflow run` command to create a `Draft release` without retyping the validated version. Running it creates a draft GitHub Release with the `react-native/`-prefixed tag (e.g. `react-native/4.0.1`) for human review.
+5. Publish the draft release when ready. Publishing the draft kicks off the [React Native publish workflow](../../actions/workflows/rn-publish.yml), which publishes `@shopify/checkout-kit-react-native` to npm.

.github/scripts/package-json-version

@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+file="${1:-}"
+
+if [ -z "$file" ]; then
+  echo "::error::Usage: package-json-version <package.json>" >&2
+  exit 2
+fi
+
+if [ ! -f "$file" ]; then
+  echo "::error file=$file::Version source file does not exist." >&2
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+if ! version=$(jq -er '.version | strings | select(length > 0)' "$file"); then
+  echo "::error file=$file::Could not extract version." >&2
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+printf '%s' "$version"

.github/scripts/validate-release-version

@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ Usage: validate-release-version <platform> [expected-version] [expected-tag]
 Validates the selected SDK's checked-in version declarations, optional user
 version input, optional git tag, and prints GitHub Actions outputs to stdout.
 
-Platforms: iOS, Android
+Platforms: iOS, Android, React Native
 USAGE
 }
 
@@ -42,6 +42,12 @@ extract_first_match() {
   printf '%s\n' "$value"
 }
 
+json_version() {
+  local file="$1"
+
+  .github/scripts/package-json-version "$file"
+}
+
 check_same_version() {
   local expected="$1"
   local file="$2"
@@ -84,8 +90,19 @@ case "$PLATFORM_INPUT" in
     VERSION=$(extract_first_match "$ANDROID_VERSION_FILE" 's/^[[:space:]]*def[[:space:]]+versionName[[:space:]]*=[[:space:]]*"([^"]+)".*/\1/p')
     ;;
 
+  "React Native"|react-native|ReactNative|rn|RN)
+    PLATFORM="react-native"
+    DISPLAY_PLATFORM="React Native"
+    RELEASE_TITLE_PREFIX="React Native"
+    TAG_PREFIX="react-native/"
+    PUBLISH_WORKFLOW="rn-publish.yml"
+
+    RN_PACKAGE_FILE="platforms/react-native/modules/@shopify/checkout-kit-react-native/package.json"
+    VERSION=$(json_version "$RN_PACKAGE_FILE")
+    ;;
+
   *)
-    echo "::error::Unsupported platform '$PLATFORM_INPUT'. Expected one of: iOS, Android." >&2
+    echo "::error::Unsupported platform '$PLATFORM_INPUT'. Expected one of: iOS, Android, React Native." >&2
     exit 1
     ;;
 esac
@@ -110,8 +127,10 @@ fi
 
 if [[ "$VERSION" == *-* ]]; then
   PRERELEASE="true"
+  NPM_TAG="next"
 else
   PRERELEASE="false"
+  NPM_TAG="latest"
 fi
 
 {
@@ -122,6 +141,7 @@ fi
   echo "release_title=$RELEASE_TITLE"
   echo "publish_workflow=$PUBLISH_WORKFLOW"
   echo "prerelease=$PRERELEASE"
+  echo "npm_tag=$NPM_TAG"
 }
 
 echo "✓ ${DISPLAY_PLATFORM} version '$VERSION' validates and maps to tag '$TAG'." >&2

.github/workflows/ci.yml

@@ -66,6 +66,11 @@ jobs:
               - '.github/workflows/rn-build-ios.yml'
               - '.github/workflows/rn-check-packed-files.yml'
               - '.github/workflows/rn-lint.yml'
+              - '.github/workflows/rn-publish.yml'
+              - '.github/workflows/release.yml'
+              - '.github/scripts/package-json-version'
+              - '.github/scripts/validate-release-version'
+              - '.github/actions/setup/**'
               - '.github/workflows/breaking-changes.yml'
               - '.github/workflows/ci.yml'
             web:

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -10,20 +10,20 @@ on:
         options:
           - iOS
           - Android
+          - React Native
       version:
         description: Expected SDK version. Must match the checked-in SDK version for the selected platform.
         required: true
         type: string
-      dry-run:
-        description: Dry run
+      mode:
+        description: Release mode
         required: false
-        type: boolean
-        default: true
-      draft:
-        description: Draft release
-        required: false
-        type: boolean
-        default: true
+        type: choice
+        default: Dry run
+        options:
+          - Dry run
+          - Draft release
+          - Production release
 
 permissions:
   contents: write
@@ -81,14 +81,13 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Print release plan
         env:
-          DRY_RUN: ${{ inputs['dry-run'] && 'true' || 'false' }}
+          MODE: ${{ inputs.mode }}
           DISPLAY_PLATFORM: ${{ steps.release.outputs.display_platform }}
           VERSION: ${{ steps.release.outputs.version }}
           TAG: ${{ steps.release.outputs.tag }}
           RELEASE_TITLE: ${{ steps.release.outputs.release_title }}
           PRERELEASE: ${{ steps.release.outputs.prerelease }}
           PUBLISH_WORKFLOW: ${{ steps.release.outputs.publish_workflow }}
-          DRAFT: ${{ inputs.draft && 'true' || 'false' }}
         run: |
           set -euo pipefail
           echo "Release plan:"
@@ -98,21 +97,25 @@ jobs:
           echo "  Title: ${RELEASE_TITLE}"
           echo "  Prerelease: ${PRERELEASE}"
           echo "  Publish workflow: ${PUBLISH_WORKFLOW}"
-          echo "  Dry run: ${DRY_RUN}"
-          echo "  Draft release: ${DRAFT}"
-          if [ "$DRY_RUN" = "false" ] && [ "$DRAFT" = "true" ]; then
+          echo "  Mode: ${MODE}"
+          if [ "$MODE" = "Dry run" ]; then
+            echo "  Release creation: skipped"
+            echo "  Publish dispatch: skipped"
+          elif [ "$MODE" = "Draft release" ]; then
+            echo "  Release creation: draft GitHub Release"
             echo "  Publish dispatch: skipped until the draft release is manually published"
-          elif [ "$DRY_RUN" = "false" ]; then
+          else
+            echo "  Release creation: published GitHub Release"
             echo "  Publish dispatch: ${PUBLISH_WORKFLOW} will be dispatched after release creation"
           fi
 
       - name: Create GitHub Release
-        if: ${{ !inputs['dry-run'] }}
+        if: ${{ inputs.mode != 'Dry run' }}
         env:
           TAG: ${{ steps.release.outputs.tag }}
           RELEASE_TITLE: ${{ steps.release.outputs.release_title }}
           PRERELEASE: ${{ steps.release.outputs.prerelease }}
-          DRAFT: ${{ inputs.draft && 'true' || 'false' }}
+          DRAFT: ${{ inputs.mode == 'Draft release' && 'true' || 'false' }}
           GH_TOKEN: ${{ github.token }}
         run: |
           set -euo pipefail
@@ -131,7 +134,7 @@ jobs:
           gh release create "${args[@]}"
 
       - name: Dispatch publish workflow
-        if: ${{ !inputs['dry-run'] && !inputs.draft }}
+        if: ${{ inputs.mode == 'Production release' }}
         env:
           TAG: ${{ steps.release.outputs.tag }}
           PUBLISH_WORKFLOW: ${{ steps.release.outputs.publish_workflow }}
@@ -143,22 +146,50 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Summary
         env:
-          DRY_RUN: ${{ inputs['dry-run'] && 'true' || 'false' }}
-          DRAFT: ${{ inputs.draft && 'true' || 'false' }}
+          MODE: ${{ inputs.mode }}
           DISPLAY_PLATFORM: ${{ steps.release.outputs.display_platform }}
           VERSION: ${{ steps.release.outputs.version }}
           TAG: ${{ steps.release.outputs.tag }}
           RELEASE_TITLE: ${{ steps.release.outputs.release_title }}
           PUBLISH_WORKFLOW: ${{ steps.release.outputs.publish_workflow }}
+          REF_NAME: ${{ github.ref_name }}
+          PLATFORM: ${{ inputs.platform }}
         run: |
+          set -euo pipefail
+
+          WORKFLOW_URL="https://github.com/${GITHUB_REPOSITORY}/actions/workflows/release.yml"
+
           cat >> "$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY" <<SUMMARY
           ## Release plan
 
-          - Dry run: `${DRY_RUN}`
-          - Draft release: `${DRAFT}`
+          - Mode: \`${MODE}\`
           - Platform: ${DISPLAY_PLATFORM}
           - Version: ${VERSION}
           - Tag: \`${TAG}\`
           - Title: ${RELEASE_TITLE}
           - Publish workflow: \`${PUBLISH_WORKFLOW}\`
           SUMMARY
+
+          if [ "$MODE" = "Dry run" ]; then
+            cat >> "$GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY" <<SUMMARY
+
+          ## Continue to draft release
+
+          GitHub does not currently support pre-filled \`workflow_dispatch\`
+          form inputs via URL. To avoid retyping the validated version, run this
+          GitHub CLI command:
+
+          \`\`\`bash
+          gh workflow run release.yml \\
+            --repo "${GITHUB_REPOSITORY}" \\
+            --ref "${REF_NAME}" \\
+            -f platform="${PLATFORM}" \\
+            -f version="${VERSION}" \\
+            -f mode="Draft release"
+          \`\`\`
+
+          Or open the [Release package workflow](${WORKFLOW_URL}) and enter the
+          same values manually.
+          SUMMARY
+            echo "::notice::GitHub CLI draft release command written to the job summary."
+          fi