ci: implement RC branch-based release workflow

Refactor GitHub Actions workflows to support a release candidate (RC)
branch workflow instead of direct develop->main flow.

Changes:
- cd-development.yml: Trigger on PRs to RC branches (not push to develop)
  * Updated summary to show PR context (source/target branches)
  * Build development images when code is promoted to RC

- cd-release.yml: Trigger on PRs from RC to main/master
  * Added path filters for code changes only
  * Enables release validation before merge to main

- ci-comprehensive.yml: Run tests on PRs to RC branches
  * Full test suite now runs for PRs to main, master, and RC branches
  * Ensures code quality before RC promotion

New workflow:
  develop (push) -> no actions
  develop -> rc (PR) -> run tests + development build
  rc -> main (PR) -> run tests + release build

Supports both single RC branch (rc) and versioned RC branches (rc/*)

Breaking change: Development builds no longer trigger on push to develop.
They now require a PR to an RC branch.

.github/workflows/cd-development.yml

@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 name: CD - Development Build
 
 on:
-  push:
-    branches: [ develop ]
+  pull_request:
+    branches: [ 'rc', 'rc/**' ]
     # Only trigger builds when actual code changes
     # This uses explicit paths to skip documentation, markdown, and other non-code changes
     paths:
@@ -251,7 +251,8 @@ jobs:
                 
                 **Version:** ${version}
                 **Commit:** ${context.sha.substring(0, 7)}
-                **Branch:** develop
+                **PR:** #${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}
+                **Target Branch:** ${{ github.base_ref }}
                 **Build:** #${context.runNumber}
                 
                 ### Docker Image
@@ -313,7 +314,8 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           echo "## 🚀 Development Build ${{ steps.status.outputs.status }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
           echo "" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
-          echo "**Branch:** develop" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
+          echo "**Target Branch:** ${{ github.base_ref }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
+          echo "**Source Branch:** ${{ github.head_ref }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
           echo "**Commit:** ${{ github.sha }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
           echo "**Build:** #${{ github.run_number }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
           echo "**Trigger:** ${{ github.event_name }}" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
@@ -340,5 +342,5 @@ jobs:
           
           echo "" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
           echo "---" >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
-          echo "💡 **Tip:** This workflow only runs for code changes. Documentation and test-only changes are skipped." >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
+          echo "💡 **Tip:** This workflow runs on PRs to RC branches. Documentation and test-only changes are skipped." >> $GITHUB_STEP_SUMMARY
 

.github/workflows/cd-release.yml

@@ -9,12 +9,30 @@ name: CD - Release Build
 # - Tests can optionally be run via workflow_dispatch for manual releases
 #
 # Workflow is triggered by:
-# - Push to main/master (after PR merge)
+# - Pull request from RC branch to main/master
+# - Push to main/master (after PR merge from RC)
 # - Git tags (v*.*.*)
 # - Release events
 # - Manual workflow_dispatch
 
 on:
+  pull_request:
+    branches: [ main, master ]
+    # Only trigger from RC branches
+    paths:
+      - 'app/**'
+      - 'migrations/**'
+      - 'requirements*.txt'
+      - 'setup.py'
+      - 'Dockerfile'
+      - 'docker-compose*.yml'
+      - 'package*.json'
+      - 'tailwind.config.js'
+      - 'postcss.config.js'
+      - '.github/workflows/cd-release.yml'
+      - 'babel.cfg'
+      - 'pytest.ini'
+      - 'Makefile'
   push:
     branches: [ main, master ]
     tags: [ 'v*.*.*' ]

.github/workflows/ci-comprehensive.yml

@@ -5,15 +5,19 @@ name: Comprehensive CI Pipeline
 # Test Strategy:
 # - Smoke tests (fast, critical) run first
 # - Unit, integration, security, and code quality tests run in parallel
-# - Full test suite with PostgreSQL runs for PRs to main/master
+# - Full test suite with PostgreSQL runs for PRs to main/master and RC branches
 # - Docker build test ensures the image builds correctly
 # - Test summary posted as PR comment
 #
-# All tests must pass before a PR can be merged to main
+# All tests must pass before a PR can be merged
+#
+# Workflow triggers:
+# - PRs to RC branches (from develop) - validates code before RC build
+# - PRs to main/master (from RC) - validates code before release
 
 on:
   pull_request:
-    branches: [ main, develop ]
+    branches: [ main, master, 'rc', 'rc/**' ]
 
 env:
   PYTHON_VERSION: '3.11'
@@ -300,13 +304,13 @@ jobs:
           docker rm test-container
 
   # ============================================================================
-  # Full Test Suite (runs on all PRs to main/master)
+  # Full Test Suite (runs on all PRs to main/master/rc)
   # ============================================================================
   full-test-suite:
     name: Full Test Suite with PostgreSQL
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     needs: [smoke-tests, unit-tests, integration-tests]
-    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request' && (github.base_ref == 'main' || github.base_ref == 'master')
+    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request' && (github.base_ref == 'main' || github.base_ref == 'master' || startsWith(github.base_ref, 'rc'))
     timeout-minutes: 30
     
     services: