Change Management Policy

Change Management Policy

Overview

This document defines the change management process for HeliosDB Nano, ensuring controlled, documented, and auditable changes to code, configuration, and infrastructure.

Change Categories

Standard Changes

Pre-approved, low-risk changes that follow documented procedures.

Change Type	Example	Approval	Lead Time
Dependency update (patch)	1.2.3 → 1.2.4	Automated	Immediate
Documentation update	README changes	1 reviewer	< 1 day
Bug fix (non-security)	Minor fixes	1 reviewer	< 1 day
Test additions	New test coverage	1 reviewer	< 1 day

Normal Changes

Routine changes requiring standard review and approval.

Change Type	Example	Approval	Lead Time
Feature implementation	New functionality	2 reviewers	2-5 days
Dependency update (minor)	1.2.x → 1.3.0	1 reviewer + CI	1-2 days
Configuration change	New settings	1 reviewer	1 day
Performance optimization	Code improvements	2 reviewers	2-3 days

Significant Changes

High-impact changes requiring extensive review.

Change Type	Example	Approval	Lead Time
Breaking API change	Protocol changes	3 reviewers + arch	1-2 weeks
Security-related change	Crypto updates	Security team	1 week
Dependency update (major)	1.x → 2.0	2 reviewers + test	3-5 days
Architecture change	Module restructure	Architecture review	2-4 weeks

Emergency Changes

Urgent changes to address critical issues.

Change Type	Example	Approval	Lead Time
Security patch	CVE remediation	Security lead	< 24 hours
Critical bug fix	Data corruption	2 reviewers	< 24 hours
Incident response	Active attack	Incident commander	Immediate

Change Request Process

1. Request Initiation

## Change Request

**Title**: [Brief description]
**Category**: [Standard/Normal/Significant/Emergency]
**Requestor**: [Name]
**Date**: [YYYY-MM-DD]

### Description
[Detailed description of the proposed change]

### Justification
[Why is this change needed?]

### Impact Assessment
- Affected components: [List]
- Risk level: [Low/Medium/High]
- Rollback plan: [Description]

### Testing Plan
[How will the change be tested?]

### Implementation Plan
[Step-by-step implementation]

2. Review & Approval

Category	Reviewers Required	Approval Authority
Standard	1 peer	Automated/Self
Normal	2 peers	Team lead
Significant	3 peers + specialist	Architecture team
Emergency	1 peer + lead	Security/Ops lead

3. Implementation

# Feature branch workflow
git checkout -b feature/change-description
git commit -m "feat: description"
git push origin feature/change-description

# Create pull request
gh pr create --title "feat: description" --body "$(cat change_request.md)"

4. Verification

• Automated tests pass (CI)
• Manual review completed
• Security scan clean
• Documentation updated
• Changelog updated

5. Deployment

# Merge to main
gh pr merge --squash

# Create release (for tagged releases)
git tag -a v3.5.9 -m "Release v3.5.9"
git push origin v3.5.9

CI/CD Pipeline Controls

Automated Checks

.github/workflows/ci.yml

name: CI

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Build
        run: cargo build --all-features

      - name: Test
        run: cargo test --all-features

      - name: Clippy
        run: cargo clippy -- -D warnings

      - name: Security Audit
        run: cargo audit

      - name: License Check
        run: cargo deny check licenses

Branch Protection

# Required for main branch
branch_protection:
  required_reviews: 2
  dismiss_stale_reviews: true
  require_code_owner_review: true
  required_status_checks:
    - build
    - test
    - clippy
    - security-audit
  enforce_admins: true
  allow_force_pushes: false
  allow_deletions: false

Security-Sensitive Paths

Changes to these paths require security team review:

CODEOWNERS:
/src/crypto/          @security-team
/src/auth/            @security-team
/Cargo.toml           @security-team
/docs/compliance/     @security-team
/.github/workflows/   @devops-team @security-team

Release Process

Version Numbering

Semantic Versioning (SemVer):

• MAJOR: Breaking changes (X.0.0)
• MINOR: New features, backward compatible (0.X.0)
• PATCH: Bug fixes, backward compatible (0.0.X)

Release Checklist

• All tests passing
• Security audit clean
• CHANGELOG.md updated
• Version bumped in Cargo.toml
• Documentation updated
• Release notes drafted
• Tag created and pushed
• Binaries built and published
• Announcement prepared

Hotfix Process

# Create hotfix branch from latest release
git checkout -b hotfix/3.5.8 v3.5.8

# Apply fix
git cherry-pick <fix-commit>

# Update version
# Edit Cargo.toml: 3.5.8 → 3.5.9

# Tag and release
git tag -a v3.5.9 -m "Hotfix: description"
git push origin v3.5.9

# Merge back to main
git checkout main
git merge hotfix/3.5.8

Rollback Procedures

Code Rollback

# Revert specific commit
git revert <commit-hash>

# Rollback to previous version
git checkout v3.5.7
cargo build --release

Database Rollback

-- HeliosDB branch-based rollback
CHECKOUT BRANCH 'pre_change_branch';

-- Or time-travel query
SELECT * FROM users AS OF '2026-01-23T12:00:00Z';

Configuration Rollback

# Restore previous configuration
cp /etc/heliosdb/heliosdb.toml.backup /etc/heliosdb/heliosdb.toml
systemctl restart heliosdb

Audit Trail

Change Log Format

{
  "change_id": "CHG-2026-0001",
  "timestamp": "2026-01-24T12:00:00Z",
  "type": "normal",
  "description": "Add FIPS 140-3 support",
  "requestor": "developer@heliosdb.io",
  "approvers": ["reviewer1@heliosdb.io", "reviewer2@heliosdb.io"],
  "commit": "abc123",
  "pr_number": 456,
  "files_changed": 15,
  "lines_added": 500,
  "lines_removed": 100,
  "test_results": "passed",
  "security_review": "approved"
}

Retention

Record Type	Retention Period
Change requests	3 years
Approval records	3 years
Deployment logs	1 year
Rollback events	3 years

Compliance Mapping

SOC 2 (CC8)

• CC8.1: Changes authorized before implementation ✓
• CC8.2: Changes tested before deployment ✓
• CC8.3: Changes follow documented process ✓

ITIL Change Management

• Request for Change (RFC) ✓
• Change Advisory Board (CAB) → Architecture review ✓
• Post-Implementation Review (PIR) → PR merge review ✓