docs: deprecate the standalone keep-common fork

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -4,8 +4,11 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 The format is based on Keep a Changelog and this fork follows Semantic Versioning for tagged releases.
 
 ## Unreleased
+### Deprecated
+- Plan retirement of this standalone Threshold fork after keep-core's release candidate lands and remaining consumers are reviewed. Runtime code and generators already live in keep-core; preserve existing module/repository coordinates and immutable tags. See [DEPRECATION.md](DEPRECATION.md).
+
 ### Added
-- Release guide and initial changelog stub for the fork of `keep-core/keep-common`.
+- Release guide and initial changelog stub for the fork of `keep-network/keep-common`.
 
 ### Changed
 - Bump minimum Go toolchain to 1.26.8 to include standard library security fixes; CI and releases read this version from `go.mod`.

CONTRIBUTING.adoc

@@ -7,12 +7,19 @@ The following is a set of guidelines for contributing. These are mostly
 guidelines, not rules. Use your best judgment, and feel free to propose changes
 to this document in a pull request.
 
+== Maintenance status
+
+This standalone fork is being deprecated; see link:DEPRECATION.md[Deprecation plan].
+New development of the absorbed libraries and generators belongs in `keep-core`.
+Coordinate any maintenance work needed by retained consumers through
+https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common/issues/33[the retirement tracker].
+
 == Getting started
 
-1. Fork https://github.com/keep-network/keep-common[`keep-network/keep-common`]
+1. Fork https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common[`threshold-network/keep-common`]
 2. Clone your fork
 3. Follow the
-https://github.com/keep-network/keep-common/blob/main/README.adoc[installation
+https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common/blob/main/README.adoc[installation
 steps] in the README.
 4. Enable
 https://help.github.com/en/articles/about-commit-signature-verification[commit

DEPRECATION.md

@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+# Deprecating the standalone Threshold fork
+
+`threshold-network/keep-common` is being retired as a standalone library. Keep
+its existing repository name and `github.com/keep-network/keep-common` module
+identity. There will be no `threshold-common` rename or replacement module.
+
+This decision applies only to the Threshold fork. The original
+`keep-network/keep-common` repository and other organizations' forks have their
+own owners and maintenance policies.
+
+## Why keep-core no longer needs it
+
+At the reviewed release-candidate commit
+[`a90ce1bf0738a35e4e3881f634f07520c2b8529e`](https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-core/tree/a90ce1bf0738a35e4e3881f634f07520c2b8529e),
+keep-core has incorporated both the runtime packages and code generators from
+this repository through [PR #4327](https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-core/pull/4327).
+Its `go.mod`, `go.sum`, imports, and generator commands no longer consume this
+module. The sole remaining `keep-common` string is a historical link to the
+original upstream issue #117, not a build dependency.
+
+The final incorporated package layout is not `pkg/keepcommon`. Runtime packages
+were flattened into keep-core (for example `pkg/persistence` and
+`pkg/chain/ethereumutil`), and the generator is local at
+`tools/generators/ethereum`. There is no supported one-line module replacement
+for other applications: owners need to review their own API and build needs.
+
+The migration baseline is **dev**, which is expected to land on main through
+[PR #4256](https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-core/pull/4256) before this
+retirement is completed. Older main still pins this fork; verify the actual
+landed release rather than adding a temporary rename migration to old main.
+
+## Remaining consumers
+
+A review on 2026-09-16 found additional organization-private release/tooling
+repositories with replacement directives pinning this fork's
+`v1.7.1-tlabs.0` or `v1.7.1-tlabs.1`, plus operational repository inventories.
+Their owners must classify each use as an active maintained build or a retained
+historical snapshot. The detailed inventory is tracked privately.
+
+For active keep-core forks, prefer carrying forward the reviewed release
+candidate's in-tree packages and generators through their normal release merge.
+For independent tools, review actual imports and tests before pruning unused
+requirements or choosing maintained alternatives. Historical snapshots may keep
+their exact pins and checksums; deprecation is not a reason to modify recorded
+release inputs.
+
+Default-branch code search is not an exhaustive dependency graph. Check
+maintained branches, nested Go modules, build scripts, and automation before
+closing the consumer review. A consumer of original Keep upstream or another
+organization's fork is not automatically a consumer of this Threshold fork.
+
+## Retirement sequence
+
+The checklist and owner decisions are tracked in
+[issue #33](https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common/issues/33).
+
+1. Confirm the keep-core release candidate has landed on main and that neither
+   runtime code nor generators reacquire this external dependency.
+2. Record retain/migrate decisions for every remaining maintained consumer and
+   historical snapshot. Validate changed consumers with their normal release
+   inputs and tests; record the support expectations for intentionally retained
+   pins.
+3. Keep this repository and all tags, commits, and releases available. Do not
+   rename it, delete/reuse tags, hand-edit checksums, or retract valid versions
+   solely to announce retirement.
+4. Keep CI and dependency monitoring active while the review is open. Any
+   maintenance release must be agreed with the affected consumer owners; new
+   development of the absorbed code belongs in keep-core.
+5. Once the release and consumer decisions are complete, resolve outstanding
+   work and adjust external repository inventories/monitoring. An administrator
+   can then archive the repository. Archiving is separate from merging this
+   documentation and retains the Git contents for existing builds.
+
+## Go tooling and publication
+
+This repository contains one root Go module, including the generators; there is
+no separate npm, Python, Rust, or container publication configured here. The
+release workflow creates GitHub releases from `v*` tags.
+
+A new release is not required for this documentation notice. Because this fork
+still declares the original upstream module path and consumers commonly reach
+it through `replace`, do not assume that a `Deprecated:` comment here would
+advertise this fork's status to every consumer of the original module. If a
+Go-tool-visible notice is wanted, verify its behavior for the actual replacement
+and version-selection paths and agree any final maintenance tag separately.
+Do not publish a new module identity merely to deprecate it.
+
+References: [Go module deprecation and replacement rules](https://go.dev/ref/mod),
+[GitHub archive behavior](https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/archiving-a-github-repository/archiving-repositories).

README.adoc

@@ -1,12 +1,32 @@
 = `keep-common`
 
-https://github.com/keep-network/keep-common/actions/workflows/client.yml[image:https://img.shields.io/github/actions/workflow/status/keep-network/keep-common/client.yml?branch=main&event=push&label=Go build[Go build status]]
+https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common/actions/workflows/client.yml[image:https://img.shields.io/github/actions/workflow/status/threshold-network/keep-common/client.yml?branch=main&event=push&label=Go build[Go build status]]
 https://docs.threshold.network[image:https://img.shields.io/badge/docs-website-green.svg[Docs]]
 https://discord.gg/threshold[image:https://img.shields.io/badge/chat-Discord-5865f2.svg[Chat with us on Discord]]
 
-Common libraries and tools used across Keep repositories. This repository is a
-fork of https://github.com/keep-core/keep-common[`keep-core/keep-common`],
-continuing independently from the upstream `v1.7.0` tag.
+== Deprecation
+
+This standalone Threshold fork is being retired. Its runtime packages and code
+generators have been incorporated into
+https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-core/tree/dev[`keep-core`'s release candidate]
+by https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-core/pull/4327[PR #4327]. The release
+candidate no longer depends on this module, including for code generation.
+
+The existing repository name, Go module path, tags, and releases will be retained
+for pinned builds. No `threshold-common` replacement module is planned. The
+in-tree packages in `keep-core` are not a drop-in standalone replacement.
+
+See link:DEPRECATION.md[Deprecation plan] for release timing, remaining-consumer
+review, and the conditions for archiving. CI remains active during that review.
+This notice applies to the Threshold fork only, not to the separate
+https://github.com/keep-network/keep-common[`keep-network/keep-common`] upstream
+or other organizations' forks.
+
+== Background
+
+Common Go libraries and tools originally used across Keep repositories. This
+Threshold fork preserves the upstream history through `v1.7.0` and its subsequent
+fork releases.
 
 See link:RELEASE.md[Release guide] and link:CHANGELOG.md[Changelog] for versioning,
 tagging, and history.
@@ -21,7 +41,7 @@ go test ./...
 
 == Toolchain & CI
 
-- Go: 1.26.8 or newer (CI uses `actions/setup-go@v6` with the version from `go.mod` and module cache).
+- Go: 1.26.8 or newer (CI uses `actions/setup-go@v7` with the version from `go.mod` and module cache).
 - Checks: `go generate` (enforced clean), `go vet`, `go build`, `go test` via `gotestsum`.
 - Security: `govulncheck` (blocking in CI and releases), `gosec` pinned version.
 - Lint: `golint` installed via `go install`.

RELEASE.md

@@ -1,6 +1,15 @@
 # Release Guide
 
-Process for publishing tagged Go module releases for this fork of `keep-common`.
+This standalone fork is being deprecated; see [DEPRECATION.md](DEPRECATION.md).
+Deprecation does not require a new release. Preserve all existing tags, module
+paths, and checksums so pinned consumers remain reproducible. Do not publish a
+renamed module or retract otherwise valid releases as part of retirement.
+
+The workflow remains available for maintenance releases while consumers are
+reviewed. Use the process below only for maintenance work agreed in
+[the retirement tracker](https://github.com/threshold-network/keep-common/issues/33).
+Do not archive the repository until that review and the release-candidate rollout
+are complete.
 
 ## Versioning
 1) Use SemVer tags on `main`: `vX.Y.Z` when matching upstream versions; append `-tlabs.N` for fork-only releases (increment `N` for subsequent fork tags at the same base version).