🐛 fix(cli/version): Insert build info in go tools installation methods #5303

vitorfloriano · 2025-12-27T22:43:52Z

What:

This PR changes the version resolution logic so that go build and go install properly populates all the fields in the version subcommand, resulting in a similar output to when the binary is built using make build and goreleaser build:

$ go build
$ ./kubebuilder version
Version: version.Version{KubeBuilderVersion:"v4.10.2", KubernetesVendor:"1.35.0", GitCommit:"854bec426d012fca0ff70ecaee084b3ffd79e84c", BuildDate:"2025-12-27T21:48:51Z", GoOs:"linux", GoArch:"amd64"}

$ go install
$ kubebuilder version
Version: version.Version{KubeBuilderVersion:"v4.10.2", KubernetesVendor:"1.35.0", GitCommit:"854bec426d012fca0ff70ecaee084b3ffd79e84c", BuildDate:"2025-12-27T21:48:51Z", GoOs:"linux", GoArch:"amd64"}

$ make build
go build --trimpath -o bin/kubebuilder
$ ./bin/kubebuilder version
Version: version.Version{KubeBuilderVersion:"v4.10.2", KubernetesVendor:"1.35.0", GitCommit:"854bec426d012fca0ff70ecaee084b3ffd79e84c", BuildDate:"2025-12-27T21:48:51Z", GoOs:"linux", GoArch:"amd64"}

$ goreleaser build --config=./build/.goreleaser.yml
$ ./dist/kubebuilder_linux_amd64_v1/kubebuilder version
Version: version.Version{KubeBuilderVersion:"v4.10.2", KubernetesVendor:"1.35.0", GitCommit:"79a734c0c8d65919fff833e62d71fa760cae5ffe", BuildDate:"2025-12-27T22:11:22Z", GoOs:"linux", GoArch:"amd64"}

Also, the cliVersion field in the PROJECT file is correctly populated:

~/operator$ kubebuilder init
INFO Writing kustomize manifests for you to edit...
INFO Writing scaffold for you to edit...
INFO Get controller runtime
INFO Update dependencies
Next: define a resource with:
$ kubebuilder create api
~/operator$ cat PROJECT
# Code generated by tool. DO NOT EDIT.
# This file is used to track the info used to scaffold your project
# and allow the plugins properly work.
# More info: https://book.kubebuilder.io/reference/project-config.html
cliVersion: v4.10.2
domain: my.domain
layout:
- go.kubebuilder.io/v4
projectName: operator
repo: e.com/example
version: "3"

How:

All the information we need in the version output is already "stamped" in the go binary by default. We now use debug.ReadBuildInfo to extract that info and populate the fields in the version subcommand output, instead of injecting the build info using ldflags during build process.

Also, now that the build info is extracted in the build process, not injected, the Makefile and .goreleaser.yml files do not need to store, update and inject the ldflags.

The KubernetesVendor version is being extracted from the k8s.io/apimachinery module in the dependency list that is also stamped in the binary, making it not necessary to parse that info from the go.mod files in testdata. When we bump the apimachinery version, we will consequentially update the KubernetesVendor version.

And...

We also added dist/ to .gitignore to avoid dirty builds when using goreleaser build.

Closing notes

Now that go build and go install have a similar behavior to make build and goreleaser build, we can encourage the use of those installation methods as well.

Fixes #5302

k8s-ci-robot · 2025-12-27T22:44:00Z

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This pull-request has been approved by: vitorfloriano
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Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR modernizes the version resolution logic by extracting build information from Go's built-in debug.ReadBuildInfo() instead of injecting it via ldflags during the build process. This enables go build and go install to produce binaries with complete version information equivalent to those built with make build and goreleaser build.

Key Changes:

Replaced manual version injection via ldflags with automatic extraction from Go's embedded build metadata
Refactored version logic into a dedicated internal/version package with comprehensive unit tests
Removed build-time K8s version parsing from testdata go.mod files; now extracted from binary's dependency list
Added KUBEBUILDER_TEST_VERSION environment variable to ensure consistent version output in test environments

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 8 out of 9 changed files in this pull request and generated 6 comments.

Show a summary per file

File	Description
`internal/version/version.go`	New package that implements version resolution using `debug.ReadBuildInfo()` to extract version, commit, build date, and Kubernetes vendor version from embedded build metadata
`internal/version/version_test.go`	Comprehensive unit tests for the version resolution helper functions
`cmd/cmd.go`	Updated to use the new version package instead of the old version variables
`cmd/version.go`	Removed - replaced by `internal/version/version.go` with simpler, more maintainable implementation
`cmd/version_test.go`	Removed - complex git-based pseudo-version tests no longer needed with new approach
`Makefile`	Simplified build target by removing ldflags and K8s version extraction logic; now uses `go build --trimpath`
`build/.goreleaser.yml`	Removed ldflags and KUBERNETES_VERSION environment variable configuration
`test/common.sh`	Added `KUBEBUILDER_TEST_VERSION` environment variable to force consistent "(devel)" version in tests
`.gitignore`	Added `**/dist` to ignore goreleaser build output directories

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internal/version/version_test.go

Copilot · 2025-12-29T21:10:05Z

internal/version/version.go

+func New() Version {
+	v := Version{
+		KubeBuilderVersion: develVersion,
+		KubernetesVendor:   unknown,
+		GitCommit:          unknown,
+		BuildDate:          unknown,
+		GoOs:               runtime.GOOS,
+		GoArch:             runtime.GOARCH,
+	}
+
+	if info, ok := debug.ReadBuildInfo(); ok {
+		v.KubeBuilderVersion = resolveMainVersion(info.Main)
+		v.KubernetesVendor = resolveKubernetesVendor(info.Deps)
+		v.applyVCSMetadata(info.Settings)
+	}
+
+	if develVersion := os.Getenv("KUBEBUILDER_TEST_VERSION"); develVersion != "" {
+		v.KubeBuilderVersion = develVersion
+		v.GitCommit = "test-commit"
+		v.BuildDate = "2025-01-01T00:00:00Z"
+	}
+
+	return v
+}


Missing test coverage for the New() function which integrates all the version resolution logic including the environment variable override behavior. Consider adding tests that verify: 1) the overall version resolution when build info is available, 2) the environment variable override behavior with KUBEBUILDER_TEST_VERSION, and 3) fallback behavior when build info is not available. This would ensure the integration between all the helper functions works correctly.

Copilot · 2025-12-29T21:10:05Z

internal/version/version.go

+// GetKubeBuilderVersion returns only the CLI version string.
+// Used for the cliVersion field in scaffolded PROJECT files.
+func (v Version) GetKubeBuilderVersion() string {
+	return strings.TrimPrefix(v.KubeBuilderVersion, "v")
+}


Missing test coverage for the GetKubeBuilderVersion() function. Consider adding tests to verify that it correctly strips the "v" prefix from version strings like "v4.10.4" -> "4.10.4", and handles edge cases like versions without a prefix (e.g., "(devel)" should remain "(devel)").

internal/version/version.go

The go install and go build installation methods now set all the available fields in the version subcommand output. The version resolution logic has been changed to extract build info from the binary itself, rather than inject the info using ldflags at build time. Assisted by: Google/Gemini 3 Pro

camilamacedo86 · 2025-12-31T21:58:12Z

Hi @vitorfloriano

ASAP controller-runtime new version support k8s 1.35 be release we should bump and release kb as well
So, I am just think if we should change it for the next release or the other one. I need to look with more love ;-)

vitorfloriano · 2025-12-31T23:41:13Z

@camilamacedo86 No problem. This one is very delicate and we need to review it with care.

If we manage to merge this one we can then encourage users to install Kubebuilder using go install (since that's safer for Go-based tools). It would also make it more convenient for users (and maintainers) to test different versions of Kubebuilder.

We could also simplify some scripts that currently use that git clone + make build + mv bin + chmod +x combo.

Anyway, take your time! Thanks!

k8s-ci-robot · 2026-01-03T01:36:03Z

@vitorfloriano: The following test failed, say /retest to rerun all failed tests or /retest-required to rerun all mandatory failed tests:

Test name	Commit	Details	Required	Rerun command
pull-kubebuilder-e2e-k8s-1-35-0	`e77b072`	link	true	`/test pull-kubebuilder-e2e-k8s-1-35-0`

Full PR test history. Your PR dashboard. Please help us cut down on flakes by linking to an open issue when you hit one in your PR.

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Shrushti72 · 2026-01-07T06:26:09Z

Hey there, I'm a new contributor to open source project, is this issue still pending? can i work with this and solve?

k8s-ci-robot added the cncf-cla: yes Indicates the PR's author has signed the CNCF CLA. label Dec 27, 2025

k8s-ci-robot requested review from camilamacedo86 and varshaprasad96 December 27, 2025 22:44

k8s-ci-robot added the size/XL Denotes a PR that changes 500-999 lines, ignoring generated files. label Dec 27, 2025

vitorfloriano force-pushed the fix-version-resolution branch 3 times, most recently from 626c690 to aeb0918 Compare December 28, 2025 19:11

camilamacedo86 requested a review from Copilot December 29, 2025 21:00

Copilot started reviewing on behalf of camilamacedo86 December 29, 2025 21:00 View session

Copilot AI reviewed Dec 29, 2025

View reviewed changes

vitorfloriano force-pushed the fix-version-resolution branch from f37b773 to e77b072 Compare December 29, 2025 22:47

camilamacedo86 mentioned this pull request Jan 7, 2026

bug: go build methods results in incomplete version subcommand ouput #5302

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🐛 fix(cli/version): Insert build info in go tools installation methods #5303

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🐛 fix(cli/version): Insert build info in go tools installation methods #5303

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vitorfloriano commented Dec 27, 2025

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