Dsssyc · Oct 29, 2026 · Oct 29, 2026
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,14 +2,14 @@
 
 All notable changes to `fastdb` and its bindings are documented here. Release entries are retained after publication. Historical implementation notes below preserve the evidence available at their original date.
 
-## 0.2.4 — release preparation
+## 0.2.4 — 2026-10-29
 
 - Fix ownership of standalone native database factories and standalone feature-reference factories in the Python binding. Repeated truncate/fill/save/close and file load/read/close cycles release their native allocations.
 - Pin borrowed buffers in the native database's release callback; release the export and shared mapping after its layers. Tables, rows, numeric arrays and chunks keep backing alive independently of the engine. Closing a RecordEngine releases its references; callers control checked-owner invalidation with `invalidate`.
 - Obtain bulk numeric columns directly from the native table address and field offset without creating per-row feature and geometry caches. Checked aliases follow snapshot remaps and reject stale row/column access.
 - Cache column accessors and arrays without table or fill-handler reference cycles, release obsolete builders, and attach NumPy chunk-array owners in C so cleanup is immediate with cyclic GC disabled. Engine-dependent writes after RecordEngine closure report a clear error; retained writable arrays remain usable.
 - Synchronize Python, Rust, TypeScript/WASM and the Core bundle at version 0.2.4. The Core bundle version is derived from the shared package manifests.
-- Local validation and memory measurements are recorded in [the native memory report](docs/reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md). Exact-source CI, release artifacts and publication remain pending in [the 0.2.4 draft release record](docs/releases/0.2.4.md).
+- Memory measurements are in [the native memory report](docs/reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md). Release evidence is tracked in [the 0.2.4 release record](docs/releases/0.2.4.md).
 
 ## 0.2.3 — 2026-10-21
 

diff --git a/docs/releases/0.2.4.md b/docs/releases/0.2.4.md
@@ -1,43 +1,80 @@
-# FastDB 0.2.4 release record — draft
+# FastDB 0.2.4 release record
+
+The coordinated release uses immutable tag `v0.2.4`, source
+`f82fa13adeae2b87a295bf984821c85c44b55a3d`, for Python `fastdb4py`, npm
+`fastdb4ts`, Rust `fastdb`/`fastdb-sys` and the Core SDK.
 
 0.2.4 addresses standalone native database ownership, numeric column cache
-retention, and mapped backing lifetime. The design, prior measurements, and
-validation boundary are in the [native memory report](../reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md).
-
-The coordinated release covers Python `fastdb4py`, npm `fastdb4ts`, Rust
-`fastdb` and `fastdb-sys`, and the Core SDK bundles from one source commit.
-Package manifests and lockfiles carry 0.2.4. Core bundle metadata derives the
-version from the package manifests.
-
-## Validation
-
-Local checks pass 403 Python tests, compileall, sdist/wheel builds, 45 native
-ASan/UBSan tests, 21 Rust unit/integration tests and one compile-fail doctest,
-58 TypeScript/WASM tests, and both 117-symbol ABI checks on macOS ARM64.
-Installed wheels on CPython 3.10 and 3.13 each pass all 403 Python tests.
-Six-cycle, 15,498,593-row read/write
-probes with cyclic GC disabled show bounded memory in the native memory report.
-The release requires complete `tests.yml` and `release-artifacts.yml` runs for the
-same final source on `main`, followed by exact-source consumer verification.
-
-| Evidence | Value | Status |
-| --- | --- | --- |
-| Final source SHA | | Pending |
-| Successful `tests.yml` run | | Pending |
-| Successful `release-artifacts.yml` run | | Pending |
-| Candidate manifest digest and artifact IDs | | Pending |
-| Complete archive inventory and hashes | | Pending |
-| Immutable `v0.2.4` tag and GitHub release assets | | Pending |
-| PyPI workflow and published inventory | | Pending |
-| crates.io workflow and archive hashes | | Pending |
-| npm workflow and tarball hash | | Pending |
-| Installed published-consumer checks | | Pending |
-
-The candidate inventory comprises 35 Python wheels, one sdist, four Core
-bundles, two Rust crates, and one npm tarball. Verify the native C++/C ABI/Rust
-and installed-wheel consumers on Windows ARM64, along with the remaining
-required platform and language gates. Record publication and installed
-consumer evidence after the exact source and artifact identity checks pass.
+retention, and mapped backing lifetime. The design, memory measurements and
+local validation are in the [native memory report](../reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md).
+The verified candidate keeps the 0.2.3 inventory of 43 archives: 35 Python
+wheels, one sdist, four Core bundles, two Rust crates and one npm tarball.
+Portable payload semantics and ABI-117 are unchanged.
+
+## Exact-source validation
+
+- [Run Tests 40932272066](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40932272066): complete success, including sanitizers.
+- [Release Artifacts 40932272107](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40932272107): complete success; one retained 43-archive candidate. The native Windows x64 and ARM64 jobs each passed 41 C++ tests, including `legacy.lifetime`, and the ABI export check.
+
+Release Artifacts for the version merge `8f24619`
+([run 40926228094](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40926228094))
+failed to compile `tests/cpp/test_legacy_lifetime.cpp` with MSVC. The test
+included `windows.h` after private headers that use `namespace std`, so the RPC
+`byte` typedef was ambiguous with `std::byte`.
+[PR #45](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/pull/45) defines
+`WIN32_LEAN_AND_MEAN`. Pull-request CI does not build native Windows targets,
+so the run above is the first Windows compile of the fix.
+
+The combined candidate is artifact `12922534983`; its GitHub ZIP digest is
+`sha256:f7cb6fdf7e408d4b282f6baff7ea41001a3315d16fad88d1a14501068262b6bc`.
+The exact CI `release-manifest.json` is 13,092 bytes, SHA-256
+`8a07ab93409811bb5e11418876ba082594758c2b3b87a766699c447586a9c5bf`.
+The Python fragment is artifact `12924197817`. The candidate passed the
+release verifier for its source SHA.
+
+## Windows x64 check before publication
+
+A Windows 11 x64 machine installed the candidate CPython 3.10 wheel from this
+run into a fresh environment.
+
+- With cyclic GC disabled, six write cycles and six read cycles of a
+  15,498,593-row F32 table kept the process commit charge (`PrivateUsage`)
+  flat: write cycles changed it by 0 bytes and read cycles by at most 4 KiB.
+  The published 0.2.3 wheel grew by 374–379 MiB per write cycle and
+  312–317 MiB per read cycle in the same script. Removing the data file after
+  the cycles succeeded.
+- The full Python suite passed 397 tests and skipped one. The five failures
+  are Windows shared-memory defects that also fail with 0.2.3 and its tests:
+  - `ObjectEngine.share()` closes its only handle, which deletes a Windows
+    named mapping before `ObjectEngine.load` opens it (four tests).
+  - `FastSerializer.loads_shm` compares the requested range with the
+    page-rounded size of an opened Windows mapping. The out-of-range test
+    therefore reaches the native loader, which raises
+    `Invalid FastDB database buffer.` instead of the size error; 0.2.3 raised
+    `AttributeError` there.
+
+These Windows defects are not regressions and remain open.
+
+## Publication
+
+- [PyPI 40940243958](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40940243958): the tag push reused the exact-source Python artifact.
+- [npm 40940925984](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40940925984) and [Rust 40940920531](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/actions/runs/40940920531) published and verified the tested archives.
+
+The [GitHub release](https://github.com/world-in-progress/fastdb/releases/tag/v0.2.4)
+retains the candidate archives, exact CI manifest, CI proof and publication
+receipt.
+
+All 39 public registry files were downloaded and matched the CI manifest by
+size and SHA-256: 36 PyPI files, one npm tarball and two Rust crates.
+Consumer checks against the published bytes:
+
+- Python 3.10 on macOS ARM64 installed `fastdb4py==0.2.4` with
+  `--only-binary=:all:` into a fresh environment and passed all 403 Python
+  tests from the release source.
+- The public npm tarball passed the packed `fastdb4ts/payload` inventory and
+  Wasm smoke check of `tests/ci/check_ts_payload_package.py`.
+- No registry-only Rust consumer was built for this release. Both published
+  crates are byte-identical to the tested candidate.
 
 See [publishing](publishing.md) for the source-bound publication process and
 the [0.2.3 record](0.2.3.md) for the previous platform matrix.
diff --git a/docs/reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md b/docs/reports/0.2.4-native-memory.md
@@ -121,8 +121,10 @@ doctest, 58 TypeScript/WASM tests and 117-symbol native and WASM ABI checks.
 The three shutdown scripts each return zero twice in both Python runtimes.
 The six retained-view/release scenarios and chained writes pass on CPython
 3.10. Release policy tests pass 105 cases and 98 subtests.
-Windows, Linux, macOS x86_64 and free-threaded Python have
-not been executed for this fix. Registry artifacts and the complete release
-matrix remain subject to the [publishing process](../releases/publishing.md).
+Pull-request CI ran the Python suite on Linux x86_64 with CPython 3.12 and
+free-threaded 3.13. Release Artifacts built every wheel, ran its read/write
+smoke and payload tests, and ran the native Core tests on Windows x64 and
+ARM64. Before publication, a Windows x64 machine ran the full Python suite and
+the memory loops; see the [0.2.4 release record](../releases/0.2.4.md).
 
 Raw logs, measurements and build archives are kept outside the source repository.