Build and validate release artifacts

Build the production output, then validate the exact files that will be installed or attached to a plugin release:

npm run build
npm run validate

build creates a clean dist/ and synchronizes release metadata. validate checks the complete artifact set without relying on source files that will not be installed.

Know the supported release files

Every plugin requires:

dist/
├── manifest.json
└── main.js

The complete supported set is:

Release assets are individual files, not one plugin archive. Development source, source maps, test fixtures, local configuration, and dependency directories are not release artifacts.

Validate the manifest and identity

The release validator checks:

• strict manifest schema with no unknown fields
• valid stable plugin ID and semantic version
• minAppVersion and pluginApiVersion
• known permission names with no duplicates
• package, manifest, and exported plugin versions agree
• install directory, manifest, and exported plugin IDs agree

The starter synchronizes dist/manifest.json from the source manifest and package version during the build. Do not edit the generated dist copy to make validation pass; correct the source metadata and rebuild.

Use Validate a plugin manifest for field-specific diagnosis.

Validate the JavaScript module

main.js must:

• be a loadable ES module
• have one default export that produces a PhialsPlugin
• bundle runtime dependencies needed by the plugin
• contain no unresolved relative imports or missing split chunks
• export the Svelte mount and unmount runtime when the plugin contributes Svelte components
• match the manifest ID and version

The validator imports the artifact in an isolated plugin harness, constructs the plugin definition, inspects every provider, and deactivates it after validation. It does not grant filesystem, clipboard, or network permissions during this structural check.

Validate optional CSS and themes

When styles.css exists, validation parses it and reports:

• missing or malformed CSS
• broad global selectors that can affect unrelated Phials interfaces
• unresolved local asset imports
• fixed theme values where semantic tokens are expected

Theme assets must form exact flat pairs:

theme-slate-light.json
theme-slate-light.css
theme-slate-dark.json
theme-slate-dark.css

The matching slug must be lowercase kebab-case. Each metadata sidecar and CSS file is validated against the theme contract. See Package and test theme release artifacts.

Inspect the validator result

A successful run ends with:

validate-dist: OK

Treat warnings as release work when they identify unsupported imports, unscoped CSS, missing theme tokens, or metadata drift. Do not publish a locally hand-edited artifact set.

For reproducible release evidence:

npm ci
npm run check
npm run test:run
npm run build
npm run validate

Run those commands from a clean checkout. Then install that same dist/ output through Install a development plugin locally. Rebuilding after validation creates a different release candidate and requires another validation run.

Release versioning and publication continue under Prepare a release.