From Rebar3 to Rebar4 ​

Base Goal: Kickstarter Success ​

Completed

Funding target: €8,800

This goal established the foundation for Rebar4’s enhanced Erlang/OTP integration.

• CA Certificates Integration: use OS-native CA certificate bundles via Erlang/OTP to replace the certifi library.
• Command-Line Parsing: move toward the OTP command-line framework for more consistent functionality.
• Streamlining Libraries: integrate erlware_commons directly into Rebar3, simplifying dependencies and maintenance.

Stretch Goal 1: Improved Stability & Compatibility ​

In progress

Funding target: €11,400

This funded stretch goal is the current active development focus.

• Plugin Lockfiles: extend lockfiles to plugins to guarantee consistent builds across different setups.
• Focused Compatibility: streamline support for current Erlang/OTP versions.
• Versioning Strategy: develop a robust versioning approach that aligns with OTP’s deprecation practices.

Stretch Goal 2: Dependency Management & OTP Integration ​

Planning

Funding target: €15,200

This funded stretch goal will refine Rebar3’s dependencies and prepare the next phase of OTP integration work.

• Dependency Inventory: review dependencies for more streamlined maintenance.
• OTP Inclusion Planning: coordinate with the OTP team around standardising Rebar3’s inclusion in the OTP distribution.
• OTP Team Input: include relevant wishes from the OTP team where they align with the funded scope.

Stretch Goal 3: Bonus Plugin Audit ​

To do

Stretch Goal 3 was not funded as a full stretch goal, so the broader community support and issue resolution scope is outside the funded roadmap. As a bonus, the team plans to include the plugin ecosystem audit where possible.

• Plugin Ecosystem Audit: assess and update essential Rebar3 plugins so they work smoothly with the new Rebar3 version.
• Rebar3 Issues Triage and Hex/Mix compatibility remain outside the funded scope unless they overlap with the planned work.

OTP Integration Inputs ​

In progress

These items are already being considered while work proceeds on the funded goals.

• Integrate into Erlang/OTP where appropriate, especially where it supports the base goal of replacing vendor dependencies.
• Explore building OTP with Rebar.

Rebar3 Maintainer Inputs ​

To do

The team will work through maintainer ideas and include the ones that fit the funded roadmap and available development time.

• Remove Hex options from .app.src.
• Generate the entire .app from rebar.config.
• Move erl_epmd_port config under kernel.
• Rename the default profile to dev.
• Support dev-only dependencies.
• Support optional dependencies.
• Support version constraints.
• Support a prefix in the Git resource for version calculation.