From 6c830f9658c87a696027e02272eac72b40e82804 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: AnuragVasanwala <75766877+AnuragVasanwala@users.noreply.github.com>
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 2026 01:50:05 +0530
Subject: [PATCH] fix(release): ship a .distignore so release:zip packs only
 the plugin

release:zip never reads .gitignore and its default list leaves out only a few paths, so the zip carried .env.local, .claude/, docs/, src/, graphify-out/ and the lint and test configs. Add the .distignore the docs already recommend, update the docs to say it ships, and gitignore dist/.
---
 .distignore               | 24 ++++++++++++++++++++++++
 .gitignore                |  3 +++
 docs/local-development.md |  8 ++++----
 3 files changed, 31 insertions(+), 4 deletions(-)
 create mode 100644 .distignore

diff --git a/.distignore b/.distignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a49a3a4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.distignore
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+# Files left out of the release zip built by `npm run release:zip`.
+# release:zip never reads .gitignore, and this list replaces its built-in
+# default list, so everything not shipped must be listed here.
+
+# Dotfiles, including .env.local and .wp-env.override.json
+/.*
+/bin/
+/coverage/
+/docs/
+/graphify-out/
+/node_modules/
+/scripts/
+/src/
+/tests/
+/*.config.js
+/*.config.mjs
+/*.dist
+/AGENTS.md
+/CLAUDE.md
+/CONTRIBUTING.md
+/DEVELOPMENT.md
+/composer.lock
+/package.json
+/package-lock.json
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 63635c5..f163d47 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -26,6 +26,9 @@ Thumbs.db
 # Build
 assets/build/
 
+# Release zips written by `npm run release:zip`
+/dist/
+
 # Cache
 .phpunit.result.cache
 
diff --git a/docs/local-development.md b/docs/local-development.md
index c33309c..295c8bb 100644
--- a/docs/local-development.md
+++ b/docs/local-development.md
@@ -96,11 +96,11 @@ If your host deploys from a build step or a site repository instead, run the fir
 
 `release:zip` packs the working tree as it is on disk and never reads `.gitignore`. That is how the built `vendor/` and `assets/build/` get in, but it also means:
 
-- Without a `.distignore` (the skeleton ships none), only `.git/`, `dist/`, `tests/`, `node_modules/`, `bin/`, `.github/`, `*.config.js` and `package-lock.json` are left out.
-- Everything else is packed, including `src/`, `docs/`, `scripts/`, `coverage/`, `graphify-out/` and dotfiles such as the gitignored `.env.local` and `.wp-env.override.json`.
-- A `.distignore` replaces that default list rather than extending it, and does not support `!` negation, so it must list everything to leave out.
+- The plugin ships a `.distignore` that leaves out development files: dotfiles (including the gitignored `.env.local` and `.wp-env.override.json`), `src/`, `docs/`, `scripts/`, `tests/`, `bin/`, `graphify-out/`, build and lint configs, and the lock files.
+- A `.distignore` replaces the built-in default list rather than extending it, and does not support `!` negation, so it must list everything to leave out. Keep it up to date when you add files that should not ship.
+- Without a `.distignore`, only `.git/`, `dist/`, `tests/`, `node_modules/`, `bin/`, `.github/`, `*.config.js` and `package-lock.json` would be left out.
 
-Add a `.distignore` before relying on the zip. This one is a good starting point:
+The shipped `.distignore`:
 
 ```text
 # Dotfiles, including .env.local and .wp-env.override.json