API to create new Release Templates with Release Management?

Question

As we finalize new code for a monthly release, we branch the code, and follow up by creating a new build for the build server and new Release Template in Release Management.

All three of these steps are the same month to month except for file paths and naming conventions that include our internal release number (unique per release). We'd love to make a script to do all this for us: We'd input the desired Release Number, and all three items are generated. I know how to do this for creating the TFS branch and the TFS build definition, so creating the Release Template is the only issue.

Is there an API to programatically create Release Templates in Release Management? (Doesn't need to be a pretty API, I'd be content if I could just copy whatever file defines a previous release with a simple search/Replace of the old Release number to the new one, assuming the Release Templates are serialized to file somewhere.)

Answer 1

There is no API, and there will not be one for the existing RM 2013/2015. The database schema is also quite complicated, so you will most likely not be able to copy a release template via SQL queries.

There may be an API when the redesigned Release experience debuts in TFS 2015 Update 1.

You should not need to create a new release template for every release -- the release template should be a static set of steps necessary to release your software in a repeatable, idempotent fashion. The fact that you want to copy a release template strongly indicates that you are doing something wrong.