Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string by Copilot · Pull Request #26690 · PowerShell/PowerShell

Copilot · 2026-01-14T19:23:18Z

Fix macOS preview package identifier bug

This PR fixes issue #26673 where macOS preview packages were incorrectly installing to the stable location instead of the preview location.

Problem

The macOS preview package for PowerShell 7.6.0-preview.6 was installing to /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7/ (stable location) instead of /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7-preview/ (preview location). This prevented users from having both stable and preview versions installed simultaneously.

Root Cause

The bug was introduced in PR #26268 where native macOS packaging tools replaced fpm. The New-MacOSPackage function incorrectly detected preview builds by checking the package name:

$pkgIdentifier = Get-MacOSPackageId -IsPreview:($Name -like '*-preview')

However, preview builds use the package name "powershell" (not "powershell-preview"), so this check always returned $false, causing preview packages to use the stable identifier com.microsoft.powershell instead of com.microsoft.powershell-preview.

Solution

Extracted and centralized the preview detection logic into Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo function that determines preview status and package identifier based on version string and LTS flag:

$packageInfo = Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo -Version $Version -LTS:$LTS
$IsPreview = $packageInfo.IsPreview
$pkgIdentifier = $packageInfo.PackageIdentifier

All package identifier logic is now centralized in this single testable function.

Changes Made

Created and refined Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo function (tools/packaging/packaging.psm1):
- Testable function that encapsulates all preview detection and package ID logic
- Takes Version and LTS parameters
- Returns hashtable with IsPreview and PackageIdentifier properties
- Inlined the package identifier logic (removed Get-MacOSPackageId helper)
Modified New-MacOSPackage function (tools/packaging/packaging.psm1):
- Added [switch]$LTS parameter
- Calls Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo to get package info
Modified New-MacOSLauncher function (tools/packaging/packaging.psm1):
- Now uses Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo instead of calling functions separately
- Consistent with other parts of the codebase
Modified New-MacOsDistributionPackage function (tools/packaging/packaging.psm1):
- Inlined simple package identifier logic
Modified Start-PSPackage function (tools/packaging/packaging.psm1):
- Added LTS = $LTS to pass the LTS flag to New-MacOSPackage
Streamlined unit tests (test/packaging/packaging.tests.ps1):
- 7 focused test cases covering all scenarios
- Tests for Test-IsPreview function
- Tests for Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo function (the centralized logic)
- Specific test documenting the bug fix for issue 7.6.0 Preview 6 installer doesn't actually update preview 5 on macOS #26673

Expected Behavior After Fix

✅ Preview packages (e.g., 7.6.0-preview.6) use identifier com.microsoft.powershell-preview and install to /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7-preview/
✅ Stable packages use identifier com.microsoft.powershell and install to /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7/
✅ LTS packages are treated as stable even if version string contains preview markers

Testing

All 7 unit tests pass successfully
Tests directly verify Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo function behavior
Tests cover preview, stable, and LTS build scenarios
Test explicitly documents the bug fix for issue 7.6.0 Preview 6 installer doesn't actually update preview 5 on macOS #26673
All package identifier logic is now centralized and testable

Validation

✅ Code review completed with no issues
✅ All unit tests passing
✅ Changes are minimal and surgical
✅ Logic centralized in single testable function per code review feedback
✅ Solution matches existing patterns in codebase

Fixes #26673

Original prompt

Problem

The macOS preview package is installing to the stable location instead of the preview location. This was reported in issue #26673 where users installing PowerShell 7.6.0-preview.6 found that their existing preview 5 installation was not updated.

The root cause is in the New-MacOSPackage function in tools/packaging/packaging.psm1 around line 2063. The current code determines if a package is a preview by checking the $Name parameter:
$pkgIdentifier = Get-MacOSPackageId -IsPreview:($Name -like '*-preview')
However, the package name for preview builds is just powershell (not powershell-preview), so this check always returns $false for preview builds, causing them to use the stable package identifier com.microsoft.powershell instead of com.microsoft.powershell-preview.

Solution

Change the preview detection in New-MacOSPackage to use the Test-IsPreview function with the $Version parameter, which is the correct approach used by other functions like New-MacOSLauncher:

Current (buggy):
$pkgIdentifier = Get-MacOSPackageId -IsPreview:($Name -like '*-preview')
Should be:
$IsPreview = Test-IsPreview -Version $Version -IsLTS:$LTS
$pkgIdentifier = Get-MacOSPackageId -IsPreview:$IsPreview
The Test-IsPreview function correctly examines the version string (e.g., 7.6.0-preview.6) to determine if it's a preview build.

Regression Source

This bug was introduced in PR #26268 "Replace fpm with native macOS packaging tools (pkgbuild/productbuild)" merged on October 28, 2025.

Files to Modify

tools/packaging/packaging.psm1 - Fix the New-MacOSPackage function to use Test-IsPreview instead of checking $Name

Acceptance Criteria

Preview macOS packages should use the identifier com.microsoft.powershell-preview

Preview macOS packages should install to /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7-preview/

Stable macOS packages should continue to use com.microsoft.powershell and install to /usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7/

Fixes #26673

This pull request was created from Copilot chat.

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- Add LTS parameter to New-MacOSPackage function - Use Test-IsPreview with Version parameter instead of checking Name - Update Start-PSPackage to pass LTS parameter to New-MacOSPackage - Fix both pkgIdentifier and IsPreview usages in New-MacOSPackage This fixes issue #26673 where preview packages incorrectly used the stable package identifier and installed to the wrong location. Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

- Add comprehensive tests for Test-IsPreview function - Add tests for Get-MacOSPackageId function - Add integration tests verifying the fix for issue #26673 - Test verifies preview detection uses version string not package name Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

test/packaging/packaging.tests.ps1

- Add 4 new tests that verify New-MacOSPackage uses the correct logic - Tests verify Test-IsPreview is called with Version and LTS parameters - Tests demonstrate the difference between the buggy and fixed logic - All 13 tests now passing (9 original + 4 new integration tests) Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

- Extract preview detection logic into Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo - This function encapsulates the logic we changed in New-MacOSPackage - Simplify tests by removing redundant test cases (13 -> 9 tests) - All tests now directly test the refactored function - Tests verify the fix for issue #26673 Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

tools/packaging/packaging.psm1

- Removed Get-MacOSPackageId function and inlined its logic - Updated New-MacOSLauncher to use Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo - Updated New-MacOsDistributionPackage to inline package ID logic - Removed tests for Get-MacOSPackageId (7 tests remain, all passing) - All package identifier logic now centralized in Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

Copilot

Pull request overview

This PR fixes a bug where macOS preview packages were incorrectly installing to the stable location (/usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7/) instead of the preview location (/usr/local/microsoft/powershell/7-preview/). The issue was introduced in PR #26268 when native macOS packaging tools replaced fpm.

Changes:

Centralized preview detection and package identifier logic into a new Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo function that uses version string analysis instead of package name checking
Added proper LTS parameter support throughout the macOS packaging pipeline
Inlined simple package identifier logic in New-MacOsDistributionPackage for better maintainability
Added comprehensive unit tests verifying the fix and all scenarios

Reviewed changes

Copilot reviewed 2 out of 2 changed files in this pull request and generated no comments.

File	Description
tools/packaging/packaging.psm1	Added `Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo` function to centralize preview detection logic; updated `New-MacOSPackage`, `New-MacOSLauncher`, and `New-MacOsDistributionPackage` to use the new function; added LTS parameter to `New-MacOSPackage`
test/packaging/packaging.tests.ps1	Added comprehensive unit tests for `Test-IsPreview` and `Get-MacOSPackageIdentifierInfo` functions, including a specific test documenting the bug fix for issue #26673

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…owerShell#26690) Co-authored-by: copilot-swe-agent[bot] <[email protected]> Co-authored-by: TravisEz13 <[email protected]>

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Copilot AI assigned Copilot and TravisEz13 Jan 14, 2026

Copilot started work on behalf of TravisEz13 January 14, 2026 19:24 View session

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Copilot AI changed the title ~~[WIP] Fix macOS preview package installation detection~~ Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string Jan 14, 2026

Copilot AI requested a review from TravisEz13 January 14, 2026 19:36

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TravisEz13 marked this pull request as ready for review January 14, 2026 22:33

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TravisEz13 added BackPort-7.4.x-Consider BackPort-7.5.x-Consider BackPort-7.6.x-Consider labels Jan 14, 2026

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TravisEz13 merged commit 5fdc2a0 into master Jan 15, 2026
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TravisEz13 deleted the copilot/fix-preview-package-installation branch January 15, 2026 15:41

daxian-dbw mentioned this pull request Jan 20, 2026

[release/v7.6] Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string #26709

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daxian-dbw added Backport-7.6.x-Migrated and removed BackPort-7.6.x-Consider labels Jan 20, 2026

TravisEz13 mentioned this pull request Feb 10, 2026

[release/v7.4] Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string #26774

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daxian-dbw mentioned this pull request Feb 15, 2026

[release/v7.5] Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string #26835

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daxian-dbw added Backport-7.5.x-Migrated and removed BackPort-7.5.x-Consider labels Feb 15, 2026

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Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string#26690

Fix macOS preview package identifier detection to use version string#26690
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Copilot AI commented Jan 14, 2026 • edited Loading Uh oh! There was an error while loading. Please reload this page.

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Fix macOS preview package identifier bug

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Copilot AI commented Jan 14, 2026 •

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