Add Nerdbank.GitVersioning for git-derived version numbers

.github/workflows/release.yml

@@ -38,27 +38,37 @@ jobs:
             **/packages.lock.json
             **/*.csproj
 
-      - name: Derive version + channel from tag
+      - name: Install Nerdbank.GitVersioning CLI
+        run: dotnet tool install --global nbgv --version 3.9.50
+
+      - name: Derive version + channel from NBGV
         id: meta
         shell: pwsh
         run: |
-          $tag = "${{ github.ref_name }}"
-          $version = $tag.TrimStart('v')
+          # NBGV is the single source of truth — version.json + git height.
+          # On a tagged (public-release) build the SemVer2 string is clean
+          # (no commit-id suffix), e.g. 0.1.0-alpha.7 or 0.1.0 for a stable cut.
+          $json = nbgv get-version --format json | ConvertFrom-Json
+          if (-not $json.PublicRelease) {
+            Write-Error "NBGV did not treat ref '$($json.BuildingRef)' as a public release. The release tag must match publicReleaseRefSpec in version.json; create it with 'nbgv tag'."
+            exit 1
+          }
+          $version = $json.SemVer2
+          $prerelease = $json.PrereleaseVersionNoLeadingHyphen   # 'alpha.7' or ''
           # Emit lowercase 'true'/'false' explicitly — PowerShell's boolean
           # string-interpolation produces 'True'/'False' (capitalised), which
           # softprops/action-gh-release@v2 silently treats as falsy.
-          if ($version.Contains('-')) {
+          if ($prerelease) {
             $isPrerelease = 'true'
-            $channel = ($version -split '-', 2)[1] -replace '\..*$', ''
-            if ([string]::IsNullOrWhiteSpace($channel)) { $channel = 'beta' }
+            $channel = ($prerelease -split '\.')[0]   # 'alpha'
           } else {
             $isPrerelease = 'false'
             $channel = 'stable'
           }
           "version=$version"           >> $env:GITHUB_OUTPUT
           "isPrerelease=$isPrerelease" >> $env:GITHUB_OUTPUT
           "channel=$channel"           >> $env:GITHUB_OUTPUT
-          Write-Host "Tag         : $tag"
+          Write-Host "Tag         : ${{ github.ref_name }}"
           Write-Host "Version     : $version"
           Write-Host "Pre-release : $isPrerelease"
           Write-Host "Channel     : $channel"
@@ -70,7 +80,10 @@ jobs:
         run: dotnet test tests/Snipdeck.Core.Tests/Snipdeck.Core.Tests.csproj --configuration Release --no-restore
 
       - name: Publish Snipdeck.App (win-x64)
-        run: dotnet publish src/Snipdeck.App/Snipdeck.App.csproj --configuration Release --runtime win-x64 --self-contained true --output publish -p:Version=${{ steps.meta.outputs.version }}
+        # No -p:Version here — Nerdbank.GitVersioning stamps the assemblies at
+        # build time from version.json + git height (the same number the meta
+        # step reads), so an explicit Version would be redundant and ignored.
+        run: dotnet publish src/Snipdeck.App/Snipdeck.App.csproj --configuration Release --runtime win-x64 --self-contained true --output publish
 
       - name: Install Velopack CLI
         run: dotnet tool install -g vpk

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -8,6 +8,12 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 ## [Unreleased]
 
 ### Added
+- **Git-derived version numbers (Nerdbank.GitVersioning).** Every build now
+  stamps a real version (`0.1.0-alpha.<git-height>+<commit>`) into all
+  assemblies from a single `version.json`, so the About page shows a meaningful
+  version for dev and CI builds instead of the `1.0.0` compile-time fallback.
+  Releases derive their version from NBGV rather than the tag string — see
+  CONTRIBUTING.md for the `nbgv tag` release flow.
 - **Trash.** A "Trash" entry in the pane footer lists soft-deleted snips from
   across every CLI. Each can be **Restored** (returned to its CLI) or **Deleted
   permanently** (after confirmation). Previously, deleting a snip moved it to

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -107,15 +107,33 @@ project boundary.
 
 ## Releases
 
-Releases are driven by git tags:
+The version number is owned by [Nerdbank.GitVersioning](https://github.com/dotnet/Nerdbank.GitVersioning)
+(NBGV), not by the tag you type. `version.json` at the repo root holds the base
+(`0.1.0-alpha.{height}`); NBGV derives the full version from it plus the git
+commit height, stamps every assembly, and the workflow reads it back at release
+time. So you don't hand-pick the `-alpha.N` counter — it tracks git height.
 
-- `v1.2.3` — stable release.
-- `v1.2.3-rc.1`, `v1.2.3-beta.4`, etc. — pre-release. The hyphen in the tag
-  marks the GitHub release as a pre-release and feeds Velopack's channel name.
+Releases are still driven by git tags, but **create the tag with NBGV so its
+name matches the computed version** (install once with
+`dotnet tool install --global nbgv`):
 
-Pushing a matching tag triggers `.github/workflows/release.yml`, which builds
-`Snipdeck.App`, packs it with Velopack, and attaches the artefacts to a new
-GitHub Release. Don't push tags from feature branches — release from `master`.
+```
+git checkout master && git pull
+nbgv tag            # mints e.g. v0.1.0-alpha.7 for the current commit
+git push origin v0.1.0-alpha.7
+```
+
+Pushing a matching tag triggers `.github/workflows/release.yml`, which derives
+the version from `nbgv get-version` (asserting it's a public release per
+`publicReleaseRefSpec`), builds `Snipdeck.App`, packs it with Velopack, and
+attaches the artefacts to a new GitHub Release. The hyphen in the version
+(`-alpha`, `-beta`, …) marks the GitHub release as a pre-release and feeds
+Velopack's channel name. Don't tag from feature branches — release from
+`master`.
+
+To cut a **stable** release (or move to a new line), edit `version.json` first
+— e.g. `0.1.0-alpha.{height}` → `0.1.0` for the first stable, or bump to
+`0.2.0-alpha.{height}` — commit that on `master`, then `nbgv tag` and push.
 
 ## Asking for direction
 

Directory.Build.props

@@ -15,4 +15,11 @@
     <GenerateDocumentationFile>true</GenerateDocumentationFile>
   </PropertyGroup>
 
+  <!-- Nerdbank.GitVersioning stamps every assembly with a git-derived version
+       (base + height + commit hash) from the repo-root version.json. Build-time
+       only, so PrivateAssets="all" keeps it out of downstream references. -->
+  <ItemGroup>
+    <PackageReference Include="Nerdbank.GitVersioning" PrivateAssets="all" />
+  </ItemGroup>
+
 </Project>

Directory.Packages.props

@@ -5,6 +5,11 @@
     <CentralPackageTransitivePinningEnabled>true</CentralPackageTransitivePinningEnabled>
   </PropertyGroup>
 
+  <!-- Build-time, all projects -->
+  <ItemGroup>
+    <PackageVersion Include="Nerdbank.GitVersioning" Version="3.9.50" />
+  </ItemGroup>
+
   <!-- Core -->
   <ItemGroup>
     <PackageVersion Include="CommunityToolkit.Mvvm" Version="8.4.2" />

version.json

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dotnet/Nerdbank.GitVersioning/main/src/NerdBank.GitVersioning/version.schema.json",
+  "version": "0.1.0-alpha.{height}",
+  "versionHeightOffset": 1,
+  "publicReleaseRefSpec": [
+    "^refs/tags/v\\d+\\.\\d+\\.\\d+"
+  ]
+}