When Berkeley release a new version of BOINC, World Community Grid do not adopt it immediately. Instead, new releases undergo a thorough vetting process:
- The World Community Grid staff wait to see whether the release is stable in widespread distribution on other BOINC projects. Most releases fail at this step. Generally, it takes some months before a release reaches a stable version.
- IBM security auditing and review. At this stage, a number of issues will be identified that need addressing, as well as new features that World Community Grid require for the release to be acceptable.
- World Community Grid technicians work with the Berkeley developers to implement and test the required changes.
- Internal testing begins. The Community Advisors are the first beta testers beyond the staff and developers. More issues are identified at this stage.
- Once all the major issues are resolved, a public beta test is announced, usually via the Beta Test Announcements forum.
- The final version is promoted to the World Community Grid recommended version, and replaces the previous version on the download page. The new version is announced in the Member News forum.
- Berkeley integrate the fixes contributed by World Community Grid into their own client, and they release a new recommended version.
How to help[]
There is no formal process. All members need to do is try out the new software and report any problems.
Are Berkeley releases supported before they are adopted by World Community Grid?[]
Yes and no. Members are free to use versions not officially recommended by World Community Grid, but if problems emerge, the first troubleshooting step will be to downgrade to the recommended version.
Note: Berkeley pre-release (alpha) versions are not supported at all. Support is available directly from Berkeley instead.