docs(core): move release process from CONTRIBUTING.md to AGENTS.md (#846)

Signed-off-by: Drew Cain <groksrc@gmail.com>
Co-authored-by: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

AGENTS.md

@@ -253,6 +253,31 @@ async_client.set_client_factory(your_custom_factory)
 
 See SPEC-16 for full context manager refactor details.
 
+### Release Process
+
+Releases are driven by `just release` / `just beta` — never by a bare `git tag`. The recipes bump version metadata, run pre-flight checks, commit, tag, and push. GitHub Actions then publishes to PyPI and updates the Homebrew formula.
+
+**Stable release:**
+
+```
+just release v0.21.3
+```
+
+The recipe runs `just lint` + `just typecheck`, then updates `__version__` in `src/basic_memory/__init__.py` and `"version"` in `server.json` (MCP registry metadata), commits as `chore: update version to X.Y.Z for vX.Y.Z release`, creates the `vX.Y.Z` tag, and pushes both the commit and the tag to `origin/main`. After the tag lands, the `Release` workflow builds the package, publishes to PyPI, creates the GitHub release with auto-generated notes, and updates the Homebrew formula. The recipe finishes by printing the post-release tasks the workflow doesn't cover.
+
+**Beta release:** `just beta v0.21.3b1` — same flow with a beta-suffixed tag. PyPI consumers install with `pip install basic-memory --pre`.
+
+**Development builds:** every commit to `main` publishes a `0.21.3.dev26+468a22f`-style version to PyPI automatically via `.github/workflows/dev-release.yml`. No human action.
+
+**Do not tag releases by hand.** A bare `git tag vX.Y.Z` skips the in-code version bump. Package metadata is still correct (uv-dynamic-versioning derives it from the git tag) but `basic-memory --version` reports the previous release, which is what happened with v0.21.2 → v0.21.3.
+
+**Post-release tasks** the recipe surfaces but doesn't run:
+- `docs.basicmemory.com` — add notes to `src/pages/latest-releases.mdx`
+- `basicmachines.co` — bump version in `src/components/sections/hero.tsx`
+- MCP Registry — `mcp-publisher publish` from the repo root
+
+See `.claude/commands/release/release.md` (and `beta.md`, `release-check.md`, `changelog.md` alongside it) for the full release + post-release runbook, including the slash commands.
+
 ## BASIC MEMORY PRODUCT USAGE
 
 ### Knowledge Structure

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -224,40 +224,6 @@ See `test-int/BENCHMARKS.md` for detailed benchmark documentation.
 - **Fixtures**: Use async pytest fixtures for setup and teardown
 - **Markers**: Use `@pytest.mark.benchmark` for benchmarks, `@pytest.mark.slow` for slow tests
 
-## Release Process
-
-Basic Memory uses automatic versioning based on git tags with `uv-dynamic-versioning`. Here's how releases work:
-
-### Version Management
-- **Development versions**: Automatically generated from git commits (e.g., `0.12.4.dev26+468a22f`)
-- **Beta releases**: Created by tagging with beta suffixes (e.g., `git tag v0.13.0b1`)
-- **Stable releases**: Created by tagging with version numbers (e.g., `git tag v0.13.0`)
-
-### Release Workflows
-
-#### Development Builds
-- Automatically published to PyPI on every commit to `main`
-- Version format: `0.12.4.dev26+468a22f` (base version + dev + commit count + hash)
-- Users install with: `pip install basic-memory --pre --force-reinstall`
-
-#### Beta Releases
-1. Create and push a beta tag: `git tag v0.13.0b1 && git push origin v0.13.0b1`
-2. GitHub Actions automatically builds and publishes to PyPI
-3. Users install with: `pip install basic-memory --pre`
-
-#### Stable Releases
-1. Create and push a version tag: `git tag v0.13.0 && git push origin v0.13.0`
-2. GitHub Actions automatically:
-   - Builds the package with version `0.13.0`
-   - Creates GitHub release with auto-generated notes
-   - Publishes to PyPI
-3. Users install with: `pip install basic-memory`
-
-### For Contributors
-- No manual version bumping required
-- Versions are automatically derived from git tags
-- Focus on code changes, not version management
-
 ## Creating Issues
 
 If you're planning to work on something, please create an issue first to discuss the approach. Include: