Simplify workflow: use Maven's automatic version calculation and remove cleanup step

Co-authored-by: thomasturrell <1552612+thomasturrell@users.noreply.github.com>

Author: Copilot

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -40,16 +40,6 @@ jobs:
           VERSION="${TAG_NAME#v}"
           echo "version=${VERSION}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
           echo "Extracted version: $VERSION"
-          
-          # Calculate next development version (increment patch version)
-          IFS='.' read -ra VERSION_PARTS <<< "$VERSION"
-          MAJOR="${VERSION_PARTS[0]}"
-          MINOR="${VERSION_PARTS[1]}"
-          PATCH="${VERSION_PARTS[2]}"
-          NEXT_PATCH=$((PATCH + 1))
-          NEXT_VERSION="${MAJOR}.${MINOR}.${NEXT_PATCH}-SNAPSHOT"
-          echo "next_version=${NEXT_VERSION}" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-          echo "Next development version: $NEXT_VERSION"
       
       - name: Determine target branch
         id: target_branch
@@ -102,17 +92,15 @@ jobs:
       - name: Run Maven release:prepare
         run: |
           VERSION="${{ steps.validate_tag.outputs.version }}"
-          NEXT_VERSION="${{ steps.validate_tag.outputs.next_version }}"
           TAG_NAME="${{ github.event.release.tag_name }}"
           
           echo "Preparing release version: $VERSION"
-          echo "Next development version: $NEXT_VERSION"
           echo "Tag name: $TAG_NAME"
           
-          # Run release:prepare with explicit versions
+          # Run release:prepare with explicit release version
+          # Maven will automatically calculate the next development version
           ./mvnw -B release:prepare \
             -DreleaseVersion="${VERSION}" \
-            -DdevelopmentVersion="${NEXT_VERSION}" \
             -Dtag="${TAG_NAME}" \
             -DpushChanges=false \
             -DremoteTagging=false
@@ -154,11 +142,3 @@ jobs:
           git push origin "$TAG_NAME"
           
           echo "Pushed release commits and tag to $TARGET_BRANCH"
-      
-      - name: Clean up
-        if: always()
-        run: |
-          # Clean up Maven release artifacts
-          rm -f release.properties pom.xml.releaseBackup
-          find . -name "pom.xml.releaseBackup" -delete || true
-          find . -name "pom.xml.tag" -delete || true

RELEASING.md

@@ -116,8 +116,6 @@ If the automated release workflow fails:
    | Missing secrets | Ensure GPG keys and Maven credentials are configured in repository secrets |
    | Build failures | Fix build issues on main branch first, then retry release |
    | Test failures | Fix failing tests on main branch first, then retry release |
-   | Local branch already exists | Delete or rename your local branch before retrying. The automated workflow does not create separate release branches. |
-   | Permission denied | Ensure workflow has `contents: write` permission |
 
 4. **After fixing issues:**
    - Delete the failed release and tag in GitHub UI
@@ -131,26 +129,6 @@ If the automated release workflow fails:
      ```
    - Create a new release with the same tag
 
-### Re-releasing the Same Version
-
-If you need to re-release the same version after a failed release:
-
-1. Delete the existing release in GitHub UI:
-   - Go to Releases → Click on the release → Delete release
-2. Delete the tag (locally and remotely):
-   ```bash
-   git tag -d vX.Y.Z
-   git push origin :refs/tags/vX.Y.Z
-   ```
-3. Reset the target branch if commits were pushed:
-   ```bash
-   git fetch origin
-   git checkout main  # or your target branch
-   git reset --hard origin/main~2  # Remove the 2 release commits if they exist
-   git push -f origin main  # Only if commits were pushed
-   ```
-4. Create a new release with the same version tag
-
 ### Workflow Stuck or Taking Too Long
 
 The workflow typically takes 5-10 minutes. If it's taking longer: