diff --git a/.ci/ansible/Containerfile.j2 b/.ci/ansible/Containerfile.j2
index afe0b118..d57b44ed 100644
--- a/.ci/ansible/Containerfile.j2
+++ b/.ci/ansible/Containerfile.j2
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ ADD ./{{ item.name }} ./{{ item.name }}
 # S3 botocore needs to be patched to handle responses from minio during 0-byte uploads
 # Hacking botocore (https://github.com/boto/botocore/pull/1990)
 
+# This MUST be the ONLY call to pip install in inside the container.
 RUN pip3 install --upgrade pip setuptools wheel && \
   rm -rf /root/.cache/pip && \
   pip3 install
diff --git a/.ci/assets/release_requirements.txt b/.ci/assets/release_requirements.txt
index c064e947..6635a872 100644
--- a/.ci/assets/release_requirements.txt
+++ b/.ci/assets/release_requirements.txt
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
-bump2version
+bump-my-version
 gitpython
 towncrier
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/calc_constraints.py b/.ci/scripts/calc_constraints.py
index 2004bbdf..99050529 100755
--- a/.ci/scripts/calc_constraints.py
+++ b/.ci/scripts/calc_constraints.py
@@ -13,6 +13,11 @@
 from packaging.version import Version
 import yaml
 
+try:
+    import tomllib
+except ImportError:
+    import tomli as tomllib
+
 
 CORE_TEMPLATE_URL = "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pulp/pulpcore/main/template_config.yml"
 
@@ -59,11 +64,11 @@ def to_upper_bound(req):
                 operator = "~="
                 version = Version(spec.version)
                 if version.micro != 0:
-                    max_version = f"{version.major}.{version.minor}.{version.micro-1}"
+                    max_version = f"{version.major}.{version.minor}.{version.micro - 1}"
                 elif version.minor != 0:
-                    max_version = f"{version.major}.{version.minor-1}"
+                    max_version = f"{version.major}.{version.minor - 1}"
                 elif version.major != 0:
-                    max_version = f"{version.major-1}.0"
+                    max_version = f"{version.major - 1}.0"
                 else:
                     return f"# NO BETTER CONSTRAINT: {req}"
                 return f"{requirement.name}{operator}{max_version}"
@@ -100,18 +105,32 @@ def main():
     parser.add_argument("filename", nargs="*")
     args = parser.parse_args()
 
-    with fileinput.input(files=args.filename) as req_file:
-        for line in req_file:
-            if line.strip().startswith("#"):
-                # Shortcut comment only lines
-                print(line.strip())
-            else:
-                req, comment = split_comment(line)
-                if args.upper:
-                    new_req = to_upper_bound(req)
+    modifier = to_upper_bound if args.upper else to_lower_bound
+
+    req_files = [filename for filename in args.filename if not filename.endswith("pyproject.toml")]
+    pyp_files = [filename for filename in args.filename if filename.endswith("pyproject.toml")]
+    if req_files:
+        with fileinput.input(files=req_files) as req_file:
+            for line in req_file:
+                if line.strip().startswith("#"):
+                    # Shortcut comment only lines
+                    print(line.strip())
                 else:
-                    new_req = to_lower_bound(req)
-                print(new_req + comment)
+                    req, comment = split_comment(line)
+                    new_req = modifier(req)
+                    print(new_req + comment)
+    for filename in pyp_files:
+        with open(filename, "rb") as fp:
+            pyproject = tomllib.load(fp)
+            for req in pyproject["project"]["dependencies"]:
+                new_req = modifier(req)
+                print(new_req)
+            optional_dependencies = pyproject["project"].get("optional-dependencies")
+            if optional_dependencies:
+                for opt in optional_dependencies.values():
+                    for req in opt:
+                        new_req = modifier(req)
+                        print(new_req)
 
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/check_release.py b/.ci/scripts/check_release.py
index 0872feb4..09effc4f 100755
--- a/.ci/scripts/check_release.py
+++ b/.ci/scripts/check_release.py
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ def main():
         for branch in branches:
             if branch != DEFAULT_BRANCH:
                 # Check if a Z release is needed
+                reasons = []
                 changes = repo.git.ls_tree("-r", "--name-only", f"origin/{branch}", "CHANGES/")
                 z_changelog = False
                 for change in changes.split("\n"):
@@ -76,23 +77,34 @@ def main():
                         )
                     elif ext in Z_CHANGELOG_EXTS:
                         z_changelog = True
+                if z_changelog:
+                    reasons.append("Backports")
 
                 last_tag = repo.git.describe("--tags", "--abbrev=0", f"origin/{branch}")
                 req_txt_diff = repo.git.diff(
                     f"{last_tag}", f"origin/{branch}", "--name-only", "--", "requirements.txt"
                 )
-                if z_changelog or req_txt_diff:
+                if req_txt_diff:
+                    reasons.append("requirements.txt")
+                pyproject_diff = repo.git.diff(
+                    f"{last_tag}", f"origin/{branch}", "--name-only", "--", "pyproject.toml"
+                )
+                if pyproject_diff:
+                    reasons.append(
+                        "pyproject.toml changed (PLEASE check if dependencies are affected."
+                    )
+
+                if reasons:
                     curr_version = Version(last_tag)
                     assert curr_version.base_version.startswith(
                         branch
                     ), "Current-version has to belong to the current branch!"
                     next_version = Version(f"{branch}.{curr_version.micro + 1}")
-                    reason = "CHANGES" if z_changelog else "requirements.txt"
                     print(
                         f"A Z-release is needed for {branch}, "
                         f"Prev: {last_tag}, "
                         f"Next: {next_version.base_version}, "
-                        f"Reason: {reason}"
+                        f"Reason: {','.join(reasons)}"
                     )
                     releases.append(next_version)
             else:
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/check_requirements.py b/.ci/scripts/check_requirements.py
index 14506859..fc3f787d 100755
--- a/.ci/scripts/check_requirements.py
+++ b/.ci/scripts/check_requirements.py
@@ -5,11 +5,13 @@
 #
 # For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template
 
+import tomllib
 import warnings
-from pkg_resources import Requirement
+from packaging.requirements import Requirement
 
 
 CHECK_MATRIX = [
+    ("pyproject.toml", True, True, True),
     ("requirements.txt", True, True, True),
     ("dev_requirements.txt", False, True, False),
     ("ci_requirements.txt", False, True, True),
@@ -20,17 +22,33 @@
     ("clitest_requirements.txt", False, True, True),
 ]
 
-errors = []
 
-for filename, check_upperbound, check_prereleases, check_r in CHECK_MATRIX:
-    try:
+def iterate_file(filename):
+    if filename == "pyproject.toml":
+        with open(filename, "rb") as fd:
+            pyproject_toml = tomllib.load(fd)
+            if "project" in pyproject_toml:
+                for nr, line in enumerate(pyproject_toml["project"]["dependencies"]):
+                    yield nr, line
+    else:
         with open(filename, "r") as fd:
             for nr, line in enumerate(fd.readlines()):
                 line = line.strip()
                 if not line or line.startswith("#"):
                     continue
+                if "#" in line:
+                    line = line.split("#", maxsplit=1)[0]
+                yield nr, line.strip()
+
+
+def main():
+    errors = []
+
+    for filename, check_upperbound, check_prereleases, check_r in CHECK_MATRIX:
+        try:
+            for nr, line in iterate_file(filename):
                 try:
-                    req = Requirement.parse(line)
+                    req = Requirement(line)
                 except ValueError:
                     if line.startswith("git+"):
                         # The single exception...
@@ -49,18 +67,21 @@
                             and req.name != "pulp-file-client"
                         ):
                             errors.append(f"{filename}:{nr}: Prerelease versions found in {line}.")
-                    ops = [op for op, ver in req.specs]
-                    spec = str(req.specs)
+                    ops = [spec.operator for spec in req.specifier]
                     if "~=" in ops:
                         warnings.warn(f"{filename}:{nr}: Please avoid using ~= on {req.name}!")
                     elif "<" not in ops and "<=" not in ops and "==" not in ops:
                         if check_upperbound:
                             errors.append(f"{filename}:{nr}: Upper bound missing in {line}.")
-    except FileNotFoundError:
-        # skip this test for plugins that don't use this requirements.txt
-        pass
+        except FileNotFoundError:
+            # skip this test for plugins that don't use this requirements.txt
+            pass
+
+    if errors:
+        print("Dependency issues found:")
+        print("\n".join(errors))
+        exit(1)
+
 
-if errors:
-    print("Dependency issues found:")
-    print("\n".join(errors))
-    exit(1)
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/collect_changes.py b/.ci/scripts/collect_changes.py
index d39642c7..f3f03322 100755
--- a/.ci/scripts/collect_changes.py
+++ b/.ci/scripts/collect_changes.py
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ def main():
             for change in main_changes:
                 fp.write(change[1])
 
-        repo.git.commit("-m", "Update Changelog", "-m" "[noissue]", CHANGELOG_FILE)
+        repo.git.commit("-m", "Update Changelog", CHANGELOG_FILE)
 
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/pr_labels.py b/.ci/scripts/pr_labels.py
new file mode 100755
index 00000000..0c478a21
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.ci/scripts/pr_labels.py
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+#!/bin/env python3
+
+# This script is running with elevated privileges from the main branch against pull requests.
+
+import re
+import sys
+import tomllib
+from pathlib import Path
+
+from git import Repo
+
+
+def main():
+    assert len(sys.argv) == 3
+
+    with open("pyproject.toml", "rb") as fp:
+        PYPROJECT_TOML = tomllib.load(fp)
+    BLOCKING_REGEX = re.compile(r"DRAFT|WIP|NO\s*MERGE|DO\s*NOT\s*MERGE|EXPERIMENT")
+    ISSUE_REGEX = re.compile(r"(?:fixes|closes)[\s:]+#(\d+)")
+    CHERRY_PICK_REGEX = re.compile(r"^\s*\(cherry picked from commit [0-9a-f]*\)\s*$")
+    try:
+        CHANGELOG_EXTS = {
+            f".{item['directory']}" for item in PYPROJECT_TOML["tool"]["towncrier"]["type"]
+        }
+    except KeyError:
+        CHANGELOG_EXTS = {".feature", ".bugfix", ".doc", ".removal", ".misc"}
+
+    repo = Repo(".")
+
+    base_commit = repo.commit(sys.argv[1])
+    head_commit = repo.commit(sys.argv[2])
+
+    pr_commits = list(repo.iter_commits(f"{base_commit}..{head_commit}"))
+
+    labels = {
+        "multi-commit": len(pr_commits) > 1,
+        "cherry-pick": False,
+        "no-issue": False,
+        "no-changelog": False,
+        "wip": False,
+    }
+    for commit in pr_commits:
+        labels["wip"] |= BLOCKING_REGEX.search(commit.summary) is not None
+        no_issue = ISSUE_REGEX.search(commit.message, re.IGNORECASE) is None
+        labels["no-issue"] |= no_issue
+        cherry_pick = CHERRY_PICK_REGEX.search(commit.message) is not None
+        labels["cherry-pick"] |= cherry_pick
+        changelog_snippets = [
+            k
+            for k in commit.stats.files
+            if k.startswith("CHANGES/") and Path(k).suffix in CHANGELOG_EXTS
+        ]
+        labels["no-changelog"] |= not changelog_snippets
+
+    print("ADD_LABELS=" + ",".join((k for k, v in labels.items() if v)))
+    print("REMOVE_LABELS=" + ",".join((k for k, v in labels.items() if not v)))
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    main()
diff --git a/.ci/scripts/validate_commit_message.py b/.ci/scripts/validate_commit_message.py
index fd6e1156..4b7b30bf 100755
--- a/.ci/scripts/validate_commit_message.py
+++ b/.ci/scripts/validate_commit_message.py
@@ -9,21 +9,16 @@
 import sys
 from pathlib import Path
 import subprocess
-
-
 import os
 import warnings
 from github import Github
 
-
-NO_ISSUE = "[noissue]"
 CHANGELOG_EXTS = [".feature", ".bugfix", ".doc", ".removal", ".misc", ".deprecation"]
+KEYWORDS = ["fixes", "closes"]
+
 sha = sys.argv[1]
 message = subprocess.check_output(["git", "log", "--format=%B", "-n 1", sha]).decode("utf-8")
 
-
-KEYWORDS = ["fixes", "closes"]
-
 g = Github(os.environ.get("GITHUB_TOKEN"))
 repo = g.get_repo("pulp/pulp_file")
 
@@ -64,15 +59,5 @@ def __check_changelog(issue):
     for issue in pattern.findall(message):
         __check_status(issue)
         __check_changelog(issue)
-else:
-    if NO_ISSUE in message:
-        print("Commit {sha} has no issues but is tagged {tag}.".format(sha=sha[0:7], tag=NO_ISSUE))
-    elif "Merge" in message and "cherry picked from commit" in message:
-        pass
-    else:
-        sys.exit(
-            "Error: no attached issues found for {sha}. If this was intentional, add "
-            " '{tag}' to the commit message.".format(sha=sha[0:7], tag=NO_ISSUE)
-        )
 
 print("Commit message for {sha} passed.".format(sha=sha[0:7]))
diff --git a/.github/template_gitref b/.github/template_gitref
index 9e5cdc02..d37a43c8 100644
--- a/.github/template_gitref
+++ b/.github/template_gitref
@@ -1 +1 @@
-2021.08.26-364-g6f9579c
+2021.08.26-393-g0e700c1
diff --git a/.github/workflows/build.yml b/.github/workflows/build.yml
index 40c2acbe..23f484a3 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/build.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/build.yml
@@ -34,11 +34,11 @@ jobs:
       - name: "Install python dependencies"
         run: |
           echo ::group::PYDEPS
-          pip install packaging twine wheel mkdocs jq
+          pip install build packaging twine wheel mkdocs jq
           echo ::endgroup::
       - name: "Build package"
         run: |
-          python3 setup.py sdist bdist_wheel --python-tag py3
+          python3 -m build
           twine check dist/*
       - name: "Install built packages"
         run: |
diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index a06f906d..efa974bc 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -43,6 +43,9 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           .github/workflows/scripts/check_commit.sh
 
+  docs:
+    uses: "./.github/workflows/docs.yml"
+
   lint:
     uses: "./.github/workflows/lint.yml"
 
@@ -61,6 +64,7 @@ jobs:
       - "check-commits"
       - "lint"
       - "test"
+      - "docs"
     if: "always()"
     steps:
       - name: "Collect needed jobs results"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/create-branch.yml b/.github/workflows/create-branch.yml
index 39e163e5..71b39e4c 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/create-branch.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/create-branch.yml
@@ -26,6 +26,12 @@ jobs:
           fetch-depth: 0
           path: "pulp_file"
 
+      - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 1
+          repository: "pulp/plugin_template"
+          path: "plugin_template"
+
       - uses: "actions/setup-python@v5"
         with:
           python-version: "3.11"
@@ -33,7 +39,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: "Install python dependencies"
         run: |
           echo ::group::PYDEPS
-          pip install bump2version jinja2 pyyaml packaging
+          pip install bump-my-version packaging -r plugin_template/requirements.txt
           echo ::endgroup::
 
       - name: "Setting secrets"
@@ -48,7 +54,7 @@ jobs:
         run: |
           # Just to be sure...
           git checkout main
-          NEW_BRANCH="$(bump2version --dry-run --list release | sed -Ene 's/^new_version=([[:digit:]]+\.[[:digit:]]+)\..*$/\1/p')"
+          NEW_BRANCH="$(bump-my-version show new_version --increment release | sed -Ene 's/^([[:digit:]]+\.[[:digit:]]+)\.[[:digit:]]+$/\1/p')"
           if [ -z "$NEW_BRANCH" ]
           then
             echo Could not determine the new branch name.
@@ -64,20 +70,13 @@ jobs:
       - name: Bump version on main branch
         working-directory: pulp_file
         run: |
-          bump2version --no-commit minor
+          bump-my-version bump --no-commit minor
 
       - name: Remove entries from CHANGES directory
         working-directory: pulp_file
         run: |
           find CHANGES -type f -regex ".*\.\(bugfix\|doc\|feature\|misc\|deprecation\|removal\)" -exec git rm {} +
 
-      - name: Checkout plugin template
-        uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          repository: pulp/plugin_template
-          path: plugin_template
-          fetch-depth: 0
-
       - name: Update CI branches in template_config
         working-directory: plugin_template
         run: |
@@ -94,10 +93,8 @@ jobs:
           branch: minor-version-bump
           base: main
           title: Bump minor version
-          body: '[noissue]'
           commit-message: |
             Bump minor version
-            [noissue]
           delete-branch: true
 
       - name: Push release branch
diff --git a/.github/workflows/docs.yml b/.github/workflows/docs.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..887a6f75
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/docs.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+# WARNING: DO NOT EDIT!
+#
+# This file was generated by plugin_template, and is managed by it. Please use
+# './plugin-template --github pulp_file' to update this file.
+#
+# For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template
+
+---
+name: "Docs"
+on:
+  workflow_call:
+
+jobs:
+  test:
+    if: "endsWith(github.base_ref, 'main')"
+    runs-on: "ubuntu-20.04"
+    defaults:
+      run:
+        working-directory: "pulp_file"
+    steps:
+      - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 1
+          path: "pulp_file"
+      - uses: "actions/setup-python@v5"
+        with:
+          python-version: "3.11"
+      - name: "Setup cache key"
+        run: |
+          git ls-remote https://github.com/pulp/pulp-docs main | tee pulp-docs-main-sha
+      - uses: "actions/cache@v4"
+        with:
+          path: "~/.cache/pip"
+          key: ${{ runner.os }}-pip-${{ hashFiles('pulp-docs-main-sha') }}
+          restore-keys: |
+            ${{ runner.os }}-pip-
+      - name: "Install python dependencies"
+        run: |
+          echo ::group::PYDEPS
+          pip install -r doc_requirements.txt
+          echo ::endgroup::
+      - name: "Build changelog"
+        run: |
+          towncrier build --yes --version 4.0.0.ci
+      - name: "Build docs"
+        run: |
+          pulp-docs build
+
+  no-test:
+    if: "!endsWith(github.base_ref, 'main')"
+    runs-on: "ubuntu-20.04"
+    steps:
+      - run: |
+          echo "Skip docs testing on non-main branches."
diff --git a/.github/workflows/lint.yml b/.github/workflows/lint.yml
index ebc72097..ef085081 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/lint.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/lint.yml
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ defaults:
 
 jobs:
   lint:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    runs-on: "ubuntu-latest"
 
     steps:
       - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
@@ -34,29 +34,38 @@ jobs:
           pip install -r lint_requirements.txt
           echo ::endgroup::
 
-      - name: Lint workflow files
+      - name: "Lint workflow files"
         run: |
           yamllint -s -d '{extends: relaxed, rules: {line-length: disable}}' .github/workflows
 
+      - name: "Verify bump version config"
+        run: |
+          bump-my-version bump --dry-run release
+          bump-my-version show-bump
+
       # run black separately from flake8 to get a diff
-      - name: Run black
+      - name: "Run black"
         run: |
           black --version
           black --check --diff .
 
       # Lint code.
-      - name: Run flake8
-        run: flake8
+      - name: "Run flake8"
+        run: |
+          flake8
 
-      - name: Run extra lint checks
-        run: "[ ! -x .ci/scripts/extra_linting.sh ] || .ci/scripts/extra_linting.sh"
+      - name: "Run extra lint checks"
+        run: |
+          [ ! -x .ci/scripts/extra_linting.sh ] || .ci/scripts/extra_linting.sh
 
-      # check for any files unintentionally left out of MANIFEST.in
-      - name: Check manifest
-        run: check-manifest
+      - name: "Check for any files unintentionally left out of MANIFEST.in"
+        run: |
+          check-manifest
 
-      - name: Check for pulpcore imports outside of pulpcore.plugin
-        run: sh .ci/scripts/check_pulpcore_imports.sh
+      - name: "Check for pulpcore imports outside of pulpcore.plugin"
+        run: |
+          sh .ci/scripts/check_pulpcore_imports.sh
 
-      - name: Check for gettext problems
-        run: sh .ci/scripts/check_gettext.sh
+      - name: "Check for common gettext problems"
+        run: |
+          sh .ci/scripts/check_gettext.sh
diff --git a/.github/workflows/pr_checks.yml b/.github/workflows/pr_checks.yml
index 846ab131..2a901608 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/pr_checks.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/pr_checks.yml
@@ -6,57 +6,62 @@
 # For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template
 
 ---
-name: File PR static checks
+name: "File PR static checks"
 on:
   pull_request_target:
-    types: [opened, synchronize, reopened]
+    types: ["opened", "synchronize", "reopened"]
 
 # This workflow runs with elevated permissions.
 # Do not even think about running a single bit of code from the PR.
 # Static analysis should be fine however.
 
 concurrency:
-  group: ${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}-${{ github.workflow }}
+  group: "${{ github.event.pull_request.number }}-${{ github.workflow }}"
   cancel-in-progress: true
 
 jobs:
-  single_commit:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    name: Label multiple commit PR
+  apply_labels:
+    runs-on: "ubuntu-latest"
+    name: "Label PR"
     permissions:
-      pull-requests: write
+      pull-requests: "write"
     steps:
       - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
         with:
           fetch-depth: 0
-      - name: Commit Count Check
+      - uses: "actions/setup-python@v5"
+        with:
+          python-version: "3.11"
+      - name: "Determine PR labels"
         run: |
+          pip install GitPython==3.1.42
           git fetch origin ${{ github.event.pull_request.head.sha }}
-          echo "COMMIT_COUNT=$(git log  --oneline --no-merges origin/${{ github.base_ref }}..${{ github.event.pull_request.head.sha }} | wc -l)" >> "$GITHUB_ENV"
-      - uses: actions/github-script@v7
+          python .ci/scripts/pr_labels.py "origin/${{ github.base_ref }}" "${{ github.event.pull_request.head.sha }}" >> "$GITHUB_ENV"
+      - uses: "actions/github-script@v7"
+        name: "Apply PR Labels"
         with:
           script: |
-            const labelName = "multi-commit";
-            const { COMMIT_COUNT } = process.env;
+            const { ADD_LABELS, REMOVE_LABELS } = process.env;
 
-            if (COMMIT_COUNT == 1)
-            {
-              try {
-                await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({
-                  issue_number: context.issue.number,
-                  owner: context.repo.owner,
-                  repo: context.repo.repo,
-                  name: labelName,
-                });
-              } catch(err) {
+            if (REMOVE_LABELS.length) {
+              for await (const labelName of REMOVE_LABELS.split(",")) {
+                try {
+                  await github.rest.issues.removeLabel({
+                    issue_number: context.issue.number,
+                    owner: context.repo.owner,
+                    repo: context.repo.repo,
+                    name: labelName,
+                  });
+                } catch(err) {
+                }
               }
             }
-            else
-            {
+            if (ADD_LABELS.length) {
               await github.rest.issues.addLabels({
                 issue_number: context.issue.number,
                 owner: context.repo.owner,
                 repo: context.repo.repo,
-                labels: [labelName],
+                labels: ADD_LABELS.split(","),
               });
             }
+...
diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 37ab6171..7c5354a1 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: "Install python dependencies"
         run: |
           echo ::group::PYDEPS
-          pip install bump2version towncrier
+          pip install bump-my-version towncrier
           echo ::endgroup::
 
       - name: "Configure Git with pulpbot name and email"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/scripts/before_install.sh b/.github/workflows/scripts/before_install.sh
index 7c0ac3f7..47a77872 100755
--- a/.github/workflows/scripts/before_install.sh
+++ b/.github/workflows/scripts/before_install.sh
@@ -45,11 +45,6 @@ if [ -f $PRE_BEFORE_INSTALL ]; then
   source $PRE_BEFORE_INSTALL
 fi
 
-if [[ -n $(echo -e $COMMIT_MSG | grep -P "Required PR:.*") ]]; then
-  echo "The Required PR mechanism has been removed. Consider adding a scm requirement to requirements.txt."
-  exit 1
-fi
-
 if [ "$GITHUB_EVENT_NAME" = "pull_request" ] || [ "${BRANCH_BUILD}" = "1" -a "${BRANCH}" != "main" ]
 then
   echo $COMMIT_MSG | sed -n -e 's/.*CI Base Image:\s*\([-_/[:alnum:]]*:[-_[:alnum:]]*\).*/ci_base: "\1"/p' >> .ci/ansible/vars/main.yaml
@@ -57,7 +52,7 @@ fi
 
 for i in {1..3}
 do
-  ansible-galaxy collection install "amazon.aws:1.5.0" && s=0 && break || s=$? && sleep 3
+  ansible-galaxy collection install "amazon.aws:8.1.0" && s=0 && break || s=$? && sleep 3
 done
 if [[ $s -gt 0 ]]
 then
diff --git a/.github/workflows/scripts/install.sh b/.github/workflows/scripts/install.sh
index c8feec0d..4e2e0f2e 100755
--- a/.github/workflows/scripts/install.sh
+++ b/.github/workflows/scripts/install.sh
@@ -21,11 +21,8 @@ PLUGIN_SOURCE="./pulp_file/dist/pulp_file-${PLUGIN_VERSION}-py3-none-any.whl"
 export PULP_API_ROOT="/pulp/"
 
 PIP_REQUIREMENTS=("pulp-cli")
-if [[ "$TEST" = "docs" || "$TEST" = "publish" ]]
-then
-  PIP_REQUIREMENTS+=("-r" "doc_requirements.txt")
-fi
 
+# This must be the **only** call to "pip install" on the test runner.
 pip install ${PIP_REQUIREMENTS[*]}
 
 
@@ -112,5 +109,5 @@ if [[ "$TEST" = "azure" ]]; then
 fi
 
 echo ::group::PIP_LIST
-cmd_prefix bash -c "pip3 list && pip3 install pipdeptree && pipdeptree"
+cmd_prefix bash -c "pip3 list"
 echo ::endgroup::
diff --git a/.github/workflows/scripts/release.sh b/.github/workflows/scripts/release.sh
index 9525f229..a08353cd 100755
--- a/.github/workflows/scripts/release.sh
+++ b/.github/workflows/scripts/release.sh
@@ -10,7 +10,8 @@ then
   exit 1
 fi
 
-NEW_VERSION="$(bump2version --dry-run --list release | sed -ne 's/^new_version=//p')"
+# The tail is a necessary workaround to remove the warning from the output.
+NEW_VERSION="$(bump-my-version show new_version --increment release | tail -n -1)"
 echo "Release ${NEW_VERSION}"
 
 if ! [[ "${NEW_VERSION}" == "${BRANCH}"* ]]
@@ -20,7 +21,7 @@ then
 fi
 
 towncrier build --yes --version "${NEW_VERSION}"
-bump2version release --commit --message "Release {new_version}" --tag --tag-name "{new_version}" --tag-message "Release {new_version}" --allow-dirty
-bump2version patch --commit
+bump-my-version bump release --commit --message "Release {new_version}" --tag --tag-name "{new_version}" --tag-message "Release {new_version}" --allow-dirty
+bump-my-version bump patch --commit
 
 git push origin "${BRANCH}" "${NEW_VERSION}"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/scripts/script.sh b/.github/workflows/scripts/script.sh
index b03abc39..c42bce5d 100755
--- a/.github/workflows/scripts/script.sh
+++ b/.github/workflows/scripts/script.sh
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ source .github/workflows/scripts/utils.sh
 export POST_SCRIPT=$PWD/.github/workflows/scripts/post_script.sh
 export FUNC_TEST_SCRIPT=$PWD/.github/workflows/scripts/func_test_script.sh
 
-# Needed for both starting the service and building the docs.
+# Needed for starting the service
 # Gets set in .github/settings.yml, but doesn't seem to inherited by
 # this script.
 export DJANGO_SETTINGS_MODULE=pulpcore.app.settings
@@ -26,14 +26,6 @@ export PULP_SETTINGS=$PWD/.ci/ansible/settings/settings.py
 
 export PULP_URL="https://pulp"
 
-if [[ "$TEST" = "docs" ]]; then
-  if [[ "$GITHUB_WORKFLOW" == "File CI" ]]; then
-    towncrier build --yes --version 4.0.0.ci
-  fi
-  pulp-docs build
-  exit
-fi
-
 REPORTED_STATUS="$(pulp status)"
 
 echo "machine pulp
@@ -54,12 +46,14 @@ pushd ../pulp-openapi-generator
 
   # Workaround: Domains are not supported by the published bindings.
   # Sadly: Different pulpcore-versions aren't either...
-  # So we exclude the prebuilt ones only for domains disabled.
-  if [ "$(jq -r '.domain_enabled' <<<"${REPORTED_STATUS}")" = "true" ] || [ "$(jq -r '.online_workers[0].pulp_href|startswith("/pulp/api/v3/")' <<< "${REPORTED_STATUS}")" = "false" ]
+  # * In the 'pulp' scenario we use the published/prebuilt bindings, so we can test it.
+  # * In other scenarios we generate new bindings from server spec, so we have a more
+  #   reliable client.
+  if [ "$TEST" = "pulp" ]
   then
-    BUILT_CLIENTS=""
-  else
     BUILT_CLIENTS=" "
+  else
+    BUILT_CLIENTS=""
   fi
 
   for ITEM in $(jq -r '.versions[] | tojson' <<<"${REPORTED_STATUS}")
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
index 4fad66ff..5c43ec14 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: "Install python dependencies"
         run: |
           echo ::group::PYDEPS
-          pip install towncrier twine wheel httpie docker netaddr boto3 ansible mkdocs jq jsonpatch
+          pip install towncrier twine wheel httpie docker netaddr boto3 'ansible~=10.3.0' mkdocs jq jsonpatch
           echo "HTTPIE_CONFIG_DIR=$GITHUB_WORKSPACE/pulp_file/.ci/assets/httpie/" >> $GITHUB_ENV
           echo ::endgroup::
 
@@ -117,5 +117,5 @@ jobs:
           docker logs pulp || true
           docker exec pulp ls -latr /etc/yum.repos.d/ || true
           docker exec pulp cat /etc/yum.repos.d/* || true
-          docker exec pulp bash -c "pip3 list && pip3 install pipdeptree && pipdeptree"
+          docker exec pulp bash -c "pip3 list" || true
 ...
diff --git a/.github/workflows/update_ci.yml b/.github/workflows/update_ci.yml
index 7aeb8151..62993e22 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/update_ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/update_ci.yml
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: "Install python dependencies"
         run: |
           echo ::group::PYDEPS
-          pip install gitpython requests packaging jinja2 pyyaml
+          pip install gitpython packaging -r plugin_template/requirements.txt
           echo ::endgroup::
 
       - name: "Configure Git with pulpbot name and email"
@@ -62,13 +62,8 @@ jobs:
           committer: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           author: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           title: "Update CI files for branch main"
-          body: ""
           branch: "update-ci/main"
           base: "main"
-          commit-message: |
-            Update CI files
-
-            [noissue]
           delete-branch: true
       - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
         with:
@@ -89,13 +84,8 @@ jobs:
           committer: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           author: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           title: "Update CI files for branch 1.11"
-          body: ""
           branch: "update-ci/1.11"
           base: "1.11"
-          commit-message: |
-            Update CI files
-
-            [noissue]
           delete-branch: true
       - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
         with:
@@ -116,13 +106,8 @@ jobs:
           committer: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           author: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           title: "Update CI files for branch 1.12"
-          body: ""
           branch: "update-ci/1.12"
           base: "1.12"
-          commit-message: |
-            Update CI files
-
-            [noissue]
           delete-branch: true
       - uses: "actions/checkout@v4"
         with:
@@ -143,11 +128,7 @@ jobs:
           committer: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           author: "pulpbot <pulp-infra@redhat.com>"
           title: "Update CI files for branch 1.15"
-          body: ""
           branch: "update-ci/1.15"
           base: "1.15"
-          commit-message: |
-            Update CI files
-
-            [noissue]
           delete-branch: true
+...
diff --git a/MANIFEST.in b/MANIFEST.in
index 69515046..53db324a 100644
--- a/MANIFEST.in
+++ b/MANIFEST.in
@@ -9,3 +9,4 @@ include functest_requirements.txt
 include test_requirements.txt
 include unittest_requirements.txt
 recursive-exclude pulp_file/tests/functional *
+exclude releasing.md
diff --git a/doc_requirements.txt b/doc_requirements.txt
index 90ec2d51..a12e9156 100644
--- a/doc_requirements.txt
+++ b/doc_requirements.txt
@@ -1,9 +1,8 @@
 # WARNING: DO NOT EDIT!
 #
 # This file was generated by plugin_template, and is managed by it. Please use
-# './plugin-template --docs pulp_file' to update this file.
+# './plugin-template --github pulp_file' to update this file.
 #
 # For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template
--r requirements.txt
 towncrier
-# Extra requirements
+pulp-docs @ git+https://github.com/pulp/pulp-docs@main
diff --git a/functest_requirements.txt b/functest_requirements.txt
index 7a9ed3d5..12679fc6 100644
--- a/functest_requirements.txt
+++ b/functest_requirements.txt
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
 pytest<8
 pytest-custom_exit_code
 pytest-xdist
+pytest-timeout
diff --git a/lint_requirements.txt b/lint_requirements.txt
index 401ed981..a528dd0b 100644
--- a/lint_requirements.txt
+++ b/lint_requirements.txt
@@ -5,9 +5,10 @@
 #
 # For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template
 
-# python packages handy for developers, but not required by pulp
 black==24.3.0
+bump-my-version
 check-manifest
 flake8
 flake8-black
+packaging
 yamllint
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index aef8ada7..a0383ba9 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ requires = [
 build-backend = 'setuptools.build_meta'
 
 [tool.towncrier]
-package = "pulp_file"
 filename = "CHANGES.md"
 directory = "CHANGES/"
 title_format = "## {version} ({project_date}) {{: #{version} }}"
diff --git a/releasing.md b/releasing.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..8f76a20e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/releasing.md
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+[//]: # "WARNING: DO NOT EDIT!"
+[//]: # ""
+[//]: # "This file was generated by plugin_template, and is managed by it. Please use"
+[//]: # "'./plugin-template --github pulp_file' to update this file."
+[//]: # ""
+[//]: # "For more info visit https://github.com/pulp/plugin_template"
+# Releasing (For Internal Use)
+
+This document outlines the steps to perform a release.
+
+### Determine if a Release is Required
+- Make sure to have GitPython python package installed
+- Run the release checker script:
+  ```
+  python3 .ci/scripts/check_release.py
+  ```
+
+### Release a New Y-version (e.g., 3.23.0)
+- If a new minor version (Y) is needed, trigger a [Create New Release Branch](https://github.com/pulp/pulp_file/actions/workflows/create-branch.yml) job from the main branch via the GitHub Actions.
+- Look for the "Bump minor version" pull request and merge it.
+- Trigger a [Release Pipeline](https://github.com/pulp/pulp_file/actions/workflows/release.yml) job by specifying the new release branch (X.**Y**) via the GitHub Actions.
+
+### Release a New Z-version (Patch Release) (e.g., 3.23.1, 3.22.12)
+- Trigger a [Release Pipeline](https://github.com/pulp/pulp_file/actions/workflows/release.yml) job by specifying the release branch (X.Y) via the GitHub Actions.
+
+## Final Steps
+- Ensure the new version appears on PyPI (it should appear after [Publish Release](https://github.com/pulp/pulp_file/actions/workflows/publish.yml) workflow succeeds).
+- Verify that the changelog has been updated by looking for the "Update Changelog" pull request (A new PR should be available on the next day).
+- [optional] Post a brief announcement about the new release on the [Pulp Discourse](https://discourse.pulpproject.org/).
diff --git a/template_config.yml b/template_config.yml
index 2af39a08..d40e16a6 100644
--- a/template_config.yml
+++ b/template_config.yml
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 # This config represents the latest values used when running the plugin-template. Any settings that
 # were not present before running plugin-template have been added with their default values.
 
-# generated with plugin_template@2021.08.26-364-g6f9579c
+# generated with plugin_template@2021.08.26-393-g0e700c1
 
 api_root: /pulp/
 black: true
@@ -12,7 +12,6 @@ check_stray_pulpcore_imports: true
 ci_base_image: ghcr.io/pulp/pulp-ci-centos9
 ci_env: {}
 ci_trigger: '{pull_request: {branches: [''*'']}}'
-ci_update_docs: false
 cli_package: pulp-cli
 cli_repo: https://github.com/pulp/pulp-cli.git
 core_import_allowed: []
@@ -21,16 +20,12 @@ deploy_client_to_rubygems: true
 deploy_to_pypi: true
 disabled_redis_runners:
 - s3
-doc_requirements_from_pulpcore: false
 docker_fixtures: false
-docs_test: false
 flake8: true
 flake8_ignore: []
 github_org: pulp
-issue_tracker: github
 latest_release_branch: null
 lint_requirements: false
-noissue_marker: '[noissue]'
 os_required_packages: []
 parallel_test_workers: 8
 plugin_app_label: file