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documentation/prototypes.md

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+# Prototype process
+
+## What is a prototype?
+
+A prototype is an alternative version of Meilisearch (provided in a Docker image) containing a new feature or an improvement the engine team provides to the users.
+
+## Why providing a prototype?
+
+For some features or improvements we want to introduce in Meilisearch, we also have to make the users test them first before releasing them for many reasons:
+- to ensure we solve the first use case defined during the discovery
+- to ensure the API does not have major issues of usages
+- identify/remove concrete technical roadblocks by working on an implementation as soon as possible, like performance issues
+- to get any other feedback from the users regarding their usage
+
+These make us iterate fast before stabilizing it for the current release.
+
+> ⚠️ Prototypes are NOT [experimental features](./experimental-features.md). All experimental features are thoroughly tested before release and follow the same quality standards as other features. This is not the case with prototypes which are the equivalent of a first draft of a new feature.
+
+## How to publish a prototype?
+
+### Release steps
+
+The prototype name must follow this convention: `prototype-X-Y` where
+- `X` is the feature name formatted in `kebab-case`. It should not end with a single number.
+- `Y` is the version of the prototype, starting from `0`.
+
+✅ Example: `prototype-auto-resize-0`. </br>
+❌ Bad example: `auto-resize-0`: lacks the `prototype` prefix. </br>
+❌ Bad example: `prototype-auto-resize`: lacks the version suffix. </br>
+❌ Bad example: `prototype-auto-resize-0-0`: feature name ends with a single number.
+
+Steps to create a prototype:
+
+1. In your terminal, go to the last commit of your branch (the one you want to provide as a prototype).
+2. Create a tag following the convention: `git tag prototype-X-Y`
+3. Run Meilisearch and check that its launch summary features a line: `Prototype: prototype-X-Y` (you may need to switch branches and back after tagging for this to work).
+3. Push the tag: `git push origin prototype-X-Y`
+4. Check the [Docker CI](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch/actions/workflows/publish-docker-images.yml) is now running.
+
+🐳 Once the CI has finished to run (~1h30), a Docker image named `prototype-X-Y` will be available on [DockerHub](https://hub.docker.com/repository/docker/getmeili/meilisearch/general). People can use it with the following command: `docker run -p 7700:7700 -v $(pwd)/meili_data:/meili_data getmeili/meilisearch:prototype-X-Y`. <br>
+More information about [how to run Meilisearch with Docker](https://docs.meilisearch.com/learn/cookbooks/docker.html#download-meilisearch-with-docker).
+
+⚠️ However, no binaries will be created. If the users do not use Docker, they can go to the `prototype-X-Y` tag in the Meilisearch repository and compile it from the source code.
+
+### Communication
+
+When sharing a prototype with users, it's important to
+- remind them not to use it in production. Prototypes are solely for test purposes.
+- explain how to run the prototype
+- explain how to use the new feature
+- encourage users to let their feedback
+
+The prototype should be shared at least in the related issue and/or the related product discussion. It's the developer and the PM to decide to add more communication, like sharing it on Discord or Twitter.
+
+Here is an example of messages to share on GitHub:
+
+> Hello everyone,
+>
+> Here is the current prototype you can use to test the new XXX feature:
+>
+> How to run the prototype?
+> You need to start from a fresh new database (remove the previous used `data.ms`) and use the following Docker image:
+> ```bash
+> docker run -it --rm -p 7700:7700 -v $(pwd)/meili_data:/meili_data getmeili/meilisearch:prototype-X-Y
+> ```
+>
+> You can use the feature this way:
+> ```bash
+> ...
+> ```
+>
+> ⚠️ We do NOT recommend using this prototype in production. This is only for test purposes.
+>
+> Everyone is more than welcome to give feedback and to report any issue or bug you might encounter when using this prototype. Thanks in advance for your involvement. It means a lot to us ❤️