[](https://gitter.im/github-changelog-generator/chat?utm_source=badge&utm_medium=badge&utm_campaign=pr-badge&utm_content=badge)
- [Features and advantages of this project](#features-and-advantages-of-this-project)
- [Alternatives](#alternatives)
- [Projects using this library](#projects-using-this-library)
- [Am I missing some essential feature?](#am-i-missing-some-essential-feature)
- [Contributing](#contributing)
- [License](#license)
### Changelog generation has never been so easy
**Fully automated changelog generation** - This gem generates a change log file based on **tags**, **issues** and merged **pull requests** (and splits them into separate lists according to labels) from :octocat: GitHub Issue Tracker.
Since you don't have to fill your `CHANGELOG.md` manually now: just run the script, relax and take a cup of :coffee: before your next release! :tada:
### *What’s the point of a change log?*
To make it easier for users and contributors to see precisely what notable changes have been made between each release (or version) of the project.
### *Why should I care?*
Because software tools are for _people_. "Changelogs make it easier for users and
contributors to see precisely what notable changes have been made between each
> - Use milestone to specify in which version bug was fixed [\#22](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/issues/22)
>
> **Fixed bugs:**
>
> - Error when trying to generate log for repo without tags [\#32](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/issues/32)
>
> **Merged pull requests:**
>
> - PrettyPrint class is included using lowercase 'pp' [\#43](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/pull/43) ([schwing](https://github.com/schwing))
>
> - support enterprise github via command line options [\#42](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/pull/42) ([glenlovett](https://github.com/glenlovett))
This generates a `CHANGELOG.md`, with pretty Markdown formatting.
### Params
Type `github_changelog_generator --help` for details.
For more details about params, read the Wiki page: [**Advanced change log generation examples**](https://github.com/skywinder/github-changelog-generator/wiki/Advanced-change-log-generation-examples)
### Params File
In your project root, you can put a params file named `.github_changelog_generator` to override default params:
Example:
```
unreleased=false
future-release=5.0.0
since-tag=1.0.0
```
### GitHub token
GitHub only allows 50 unauthenticated requests per hour.
Therefore, it's recommended to run this script with authentication by using a **token**.
Here's how:
- [Generate a token here](https://github.com/settings/tokens/new?description=GitHub%20Changelog%20Generator%20token) - you only need "repo" scope for private repositories
- Either:
- Run the script with `--token <your-40-digit-token>`; **OR**
- Set the `CHANGELOG_GITHUB_TOKEN` environment variable to your 40 digit token
You can set an environment variable by running the following command at the prompt, or by adding it to your shell profile (e.g., `~/.bash_profile` or `~/.zshrc`):
It's time to create this token! (Or, wait an hour for GitHub to reset your unauthenticated request limit.)
## Migrating from a manual changelog
Knowing how dedicated you are to your project, you probably haven't been waiting for `github-changelog-generator` to keep a changelog.
But you probably don't want your project's open issues and PRs for all past features listed in your historic changelog, either.
That's where `--base <your-manual-changelog.md>` comes in handy!
This option lets append your old manual changelog to the end of the generated entries.
If you have a `HISTORY.md` file in your project, it will automatically be picked as the static historical changelog and appended.
### Rake task
You love `rake`? We do, too! So, we've made it even easier for you:
we've provided a `rake` task library for your changelog generation.
Configure the task in your `Rakefile`:
```ruby
require 'github_changelog_generator/task'
GitHubChangelogGenerator::RakeTask.new :changelog do |config|
config.since_tag = '0.1.14'
config.future_release = '0.2.0'
end
```
All command-line options can be passed to the `rake` task as `config`
parameters. And since you're naming the `rake` task yourself, you can create
as many as you want.
You can look for params names from the [parser source code (#setup_parser)](https://github.com/skywinder/github-changelog-generator/blob/master/lib/github_changelog_generator/parser.rb). For example, to translate the bugs label to Portuguese, instead of setting `config.bugs_label`, you have to set `config.bug_prefix`, and so on.
## Features and advantages of this project
- Generate canonical, neat change log file, followed by [basic change log guidelines](http://keepachangelog.com) :gem:
- Optionally generate **Unreleased** changes (closed issues that have not released yet) :dizzy:
- **GitHub Enterprise support** via command line options! :factory:
- Flexible format **customization**:
- **Customize** issues that **should be added** to changelog :eight_spoked_asterisk:
- **Custom date formats** supported (but keep [ISO 8601](http://xkcd.com/1179/) in mind!) :date:
- Manually specify the version that fixed an issue (for cases when the issue's Closed date doesn't match) by giving the issue's `milestone` the same name as the tag of version :pushpin:
- Automatically **exclude specific issues** that are irrelevant to your changelog (by default, any issue labeled `question`, `duplicate`, `invalid`, or `wontfix`) :scissors:
- Issues (closed issues with no labels) :non-potable_water:
- Manually include or exclude issues by labels :wrench:
- Customize lots more! Tweak the changelog to fit your preferences :tophat:
(*See `github_changelog_generator --help` for details)*
### Alternatives
Here is a [wikipage list of alternatives](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/wiki/Alternatives) that I found. But none satisfied my requirements.
*If you know other projects, feel free to edit this Wiki page!*
### Projects using this library
Here's a [wikipage list of projects](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/wiki/Projects-using-Github-Changelog-Generator).
If you've used this project in a live app, please let me know! Nothing makes me happier than seeing someone else take my work and go wild with it.
*If you are using `github_changelog_generator` to generate your project's changelog, or know of other projects using it, please [add it to this list](https://github.com/skywinder/github-changelog-generator/wiki/Projects-using-Github-Changelog-Generator).*
- Open an [issue](https://github.com/skywinder/Github-Changelog-Generator/issues/new) and let's make the generator better together!
- *Bug reports, feature requests, patches, and well-wishes are always welcome.* :heavy_exclamation_mark:
## FAQ
- ***I already use GitHub Releases. Why do I need this?***
GitHub Releases is a very good thing. And it's very good practice to maintain it. (Not a lot of people are using it yet!) :congratulations:
*BTW: I would like to support GitHub Releases in [next releases](https://github.com/skywinder/github-changelog-generator/issues/56) ;)*
I'm not trying to compare the quality of handwritten and auto-generated logs. That said....
An auto-generated changelog really helps, even if you manually fill in the release notes!
For example:
When you find a closed bug, it is very useful to know which release fixed it.
So that you can easily find the issue by \# in `CHANGELOG.md`.
- it's not quite as easy to find this in handwritten releases notes
- a generated file saves you the trouble of remembering everything;
sometimes people forget to add things to a handwritten file
Ultimately, I think GitHub Releases are ideal for end-users.
Meanwhile, `CHANGELOG.md` lives right in the repository, with its detailed list of changes, which is handy for developers.
Finally, there's nothing wrong with using GitHub Releases alongside `CHANGELOG.md` in this combination.
- ***I received a warning: "GitHub API rate limit exceed" What does this mean?***
GitHub [limits the number of API requests](https://developer.github.com/v3/#rate-limiting) you can make in an hour. You can make up to 5,000 requests per hour. For unauthenticated requests, the rate limit is only up to 60 requests per hour. Unauthenticated requests are associated with your IP address (not the user making requests).
If you're seeing this warning, please do the following:
1. Make sure you're providing an OAuth token, so you're not making requests anonymously. Using an OAuth token increases your hourly request maximum from 60 to 5000.
2. If you have a large repo with lots of issues/PRs, you can use `--max-issues NUM` to limit the number of issues that are pulled back. For example: `--max-issues 1000`
- ***My Ruby version is very old, can I use this?***
When your Ruby is old, and you don't want to upgrade, and you want to
control which libraries you use, you can use Bundler.
In a Gemfile, perhaps in a non-deployed `:development` group, add this
gem:
```ruby
group :development do
gem 'github_changelog_generator', require: false
end
```
Then you can keep back dependencies like rack, which currently is only
compatible with Ruby >= 2.2.2. So, use an older version for your app by
adding a line like this to the Gemfile:
```
gem 'rack', '~> 1.6'
```
This way, you can keep on using github_changelog_generator, even if you
can't get the latest version of Ruby installed.
## Contributing
We have collected notes on how to contribute to this project in [CONTRIBUTING.md].
[CONTRIBUTING.md]: CONTRIBUTING.md
## License
Github Changelog Generator is released under the [MIT License](http://www.opensource.org/licenses/MIT).
