ADS Windows CE Build Numbering

ADS gives a unique number to every CE build it releases. This allows ADS to identify builds for configuration management, test and troubleshooting purposes.

The Release Number Format

The format of the release number is

    m.mm.vv.bb   ccc-ddd (e.g. 4.20.13.01 PRO-RAM)

where
    m.mm  is the Microsoft kernel release (e.g. 4.20 for CE 4.2)
    vv      is the ADS release number
    bb      is the ADS build index
    ccc   specifies the licensing model (CORE, PROfessional, PROPLUS Professional-Plus)
    ddd   specifies the registry driver uses (RAM- or HIVE-based)


Build Numbering and the ADS Development Process

Build numbering may be best understood in the context of how ADS performs CE builds. That process is as follows:

1. Our development team makes changes to the drivers for one or more platforms, testing driver changes on their local computers.
   
   
2. The driver changes are uploaded to our version control system, then downloaded into a central build machine.
   
   
3. If this is the first build since a formal ADS build release, we increment the ADS release number ("vv") and the build index ("b") becomes zero (e.g. 4.20.15.2 to 4.20.16.0). Otherwise we increment just the build index ("b").
   
   
4. We create a new CE build, compiling the new drivers and assembling them into a CE binary image.
   
   
5. The new CE image goes to our validation lab, where we run the build through a series of standard tests to verify that all drivers meet our specifications.
   
   
6. If the build fails validation, the process returns to Step 1 to make corrections.
   
   
7. If the build passes validation, it moves on to our configuration management, where it is assigned an ADS part number (format: 700xxx-xxxxx).
   
   
8. The CE build is released to our developers site and details about the changes are posted on the appropriate forum page.

Release Candidates (Beta Builds)

Sometimes we make release candidate CE builds available to you, our customers, before the build has completed validation. In these cases, the build is assigned an ADS part number after Step 3 and given directly to you. We will let you know that the release candidate has not yet been formally tested or released, but give you the opportunity to test the changes in parallel with our validation team. In most cases, this "parallel processing" helps accelerate your product development.


Previous ADS Build Numbering Systems

ADS has used two other build numbering schemes in the past.

1. In the days of CE 3.0 and 4.0, ADS used the format m.vv, where the "m" was a "3" or "4" representing CE 3.0 and CE 4.0, respectively, and vv was the sequential ADS build number.

2. Around the time that CE 4.1 and 4.2 were released, ADS adopted a new numbering scheme to account for the additional digits in the Microsoft releases. The new format was m.mm.vv where m.mm was "4.10" or "4.20" for the Microsoft kernel release, and vv was the sequential ADS build number. Details are posted at topic 1781.

Note that some 4.10 builds used the m.vv (4.vv) format. To determine if they are 4.0 or 4.1 CE builds, see the debug port output.