diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 5c4cfac55d69..8ea13ee6e4ee 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -98,9 +98,9 @@ The OpenAPI Specification has undergone 3 revisions since initial creation in 20
 OpenAPI Generator Version    | Release Date | Notes
 ---------------------------- | ------------ | -----
 5.0.0 (upcoming major release) [SNAPSHOT](https://oss.sonatype.org/content/repositories/snapshots/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/5.0.0-SNAPSHOT/)| 13.05.2020 | Major release with breaking changes (no fallback)
-4.1.0 (upcoming minor release) [SNAPSHOT](https://oss.sonatype.org/content/repositories/snapshots/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/4.1.0-SNAPSHOT/)| 31.07.2019 | Minor release (breaking changes with fallbacks)
+4.1.0 (upcoming minor release) [SNAPSHOT](https://oss.sonatype.org/content/repositories/snapshots/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/4.1.0-SNAPSHOT/)| 15.07.2019 | Minor release (breaking changes with fallbacks)
 4.0.3 (upcoming patch release) [SNAPSHOT](https://oss.sonatype.org/content/repositories/snapshots/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/4.0.3-SNAPSHOT/)| 04.07.2019 | Patch release (minor bug fixes, etc)
-[4.0.2](https://github.com/OpenAPITools/openapi-generator/releases/tag/v4.0.2) (latest stable release) | 20.06.2019 | Patch release (bug fixes, minor enhancements, etc)
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->[4.0.2](https://github.com/OpenAPITools/openapi-generator/releases/tag/v4.0.2) (latest stable release) | 20.06.2019 | Patch release (bug fixes, minor enhancements, etc)<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
 
 OpenAPI Spec compatibility: 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 2.0, 3.0
 
@@ -153,7 +153,7 @@ See the different versions of the [openapi-generator-cli](https://mvnrepository.
 * [Readme](https://github.com/OpenAPITools/openapi-generator/blob/master/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc)
 
 ### [1.3 - Download JAR](#table-of-contents)
-
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
 If you're looking for the latest stable version, you can grab it directly from Maven.org (Java 8 runtime at a minimum):
 
 JAR location: `http://central.maven.org/maven2/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/4.0.2/openapi-generator-cli-4.0.2.jar`
@@ -175,7 +175,7 @@ For Mac users, please make sure Java 8 is installed (Tips: run `java -version` t
 export JAVA_HOME=`/usr/libexec/java_home -v 1.8`
 export PATH=${JAVA_HOME}/bin:$PATH
 ```
-
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
 ### Launcher Script
 
 One downside to manual jar downloads is that you don't keep up-to-date with the latest released version. We have a Bash launcher script at [bin/utils/openapi-generator.cli.sh](./bin/utils/openapi-generator-cli.sh) which resolves this issue.
@@ -368,7 +368,8 @@ npm install @openapitools/openapi-generator-cli -g
 openapi-generator version
 ```
 
-Or install a particualar OpenAPI Generator version (e.g. v4.0.2):
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Or install a particular OpenAPI Generator version (e.g. v4.0.2):
 
 ```sh
 npm install @openapitools/openapi-generator-cli@cli-4.0.2 -g
@@ -379,7 +380,7 @@ Or install it as dev-dependency:
 ```sh
 npm install @openapitools/openapi-generator-cli -D
 ```
-
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
 ## [2 - Getting Started](#table-of-contents)
 
 To generate a PHP client for [petstore.yaml](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/openapitools/openapi-generator/master/modules/openapi-generator/src/test/resources/2_0/petstore.yaml), please run the following
@@ -394,7 +395,9 @@ java -jar modules/openapi-generator-cli/target/openapi-generator-cli.jar generat
 ```
 (if you're on Windows, replace the last command with `java -jar modules\openapi-generator-cli\target\openapi-generator-cli.jar generate -i https://raw.githubusercontent.com/openapitools/openapi-generator/master/modules/openapi-generator/src/test/resources/2_0/petstore.yaml -g php -o c:\temp\php_api_client`)
 
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
 You can also download the JAR (latest release) directly from [maven.org](http://central.maven.org/maven2/org/openapitools/openapi-generator-cli/4.0.2/openapi-generator-cli-4.0.2.jar)
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
 
 To get a list of **general** options available, please run `java -jar modules/openapi-generator-cli/target/openapi-generator-cli.jar help generate`
 
diff --git a/bin/utils/release/bump.sh b/bin/utils/release/bump.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..1afeffde16b9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/utils/release/bump.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,221 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+#
+# This script bumps from one version to another
+#
+# Copyright 2018 OpenAPI-Generator Contributors (https://openapi-generator.tech)
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+#
+
+declare -r version_regex="([0-9]+).([0-9]+).([0-9]+)-?(SNAPSHOT){0,1}"
+declare start="<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->"
+declare end="<!-- \/RELEASE_VERSION -->"
+declare from="${version_regex}"
+declare to=""
+declare debug=${debug:-false}
+declare -a from_parts=()
+declare -a to_parts=()
+declare -ar inc=(major minor build snapshot)
+
+USAGE="
+USAGE: $0 OPTIONS input_file
+
+  This script will bump a version number (or other value) between marker tags.
+
+OPTIONS:
+    -f The 'from' version
+    -t The 'to' version
+    -s The start tag regex
+       default: $start
+    -e The end tag regex
+       default: $end
+    -i Increase by one of: ${inc[@]}
+    -h Print this message
+
+EXAMPLES:
+
+Update to next snapshot version:
+    $0 -f 3.0.0 -t 3.0.1-SNAPSHOT pom.xml
+Update build version only (useful for docs)
+    $0 -f 3.0.0 -t 3.0.1 pom.xml
+Update from any version to any other version
+    $0 -f 1.2.3 -t 9.9.9-SNAPSHOT pom.xml
+Customize the start/end tags
+    $0 -f 1.0.0 1.0.1-SNAPSHOT -s \"<!-- START -->\" -e \"<!-- END -->\" pom.xml
+"
+
+
+## print an error message and exit
+err() {
+    >&2 echo -e "$1"
+    exit 1
+}
+
+## debug log messages. Run with debug=true ./bump.sh
+d() {
+    if [[ true = "${debug}" ]]; then
+        echo "$1"
+    fi
+}
+
+## outputs usage and exits
+usage()
+{
+    err "${USAGE}"
+    exit 1
+}
+
+## usage: version input extracted_array
+##   - Checks that 'input' is a valid version
+##   - Extracts the version parts into 'extracted_array'
+version()
+{
+    if [[ "$#" -ne 2 ]]; then
+        err "Call function version with two parameters: version string arr"
+    fi
+    local v=$1
+    if [[ "${v}" =~ $version_regex ]]; then
+        local major=${BASH_REMATCH[1]}
+        local minor=${BASH_REMATCH[2]}
+        local build=${BASH_REMATCH[3]}
+        local snapshot=false
+        if [[ "SNAPSHOT" = "${BASH_REMATCH[4]}" ]]; then
+            snapshot=true
+        fi
+
+        d "major=$major minor=$minor build=$build snapshot=$snapshot"
+
+        eval "$2=(${major} ${minor} ${build} ${snapshot})"
+    else
+        err "Invalid version: $v"
+    fi
+}
+
+while getopts "hf:t:s:e:i:" OPTION
+do
+  case ${OPTION} in
+    f)
+        from=${OPTARG}
+        ;;
+    t)
+        to=${OPTARG}
+        ;;
+    s)
+        start=${OPTARG}
+        ;;
+    e)
+        end=${OPTARG}
+        ;;
+    i)
+        increase=${OPTARG}
+        if [[ ! "${inc[@]}" =~ ${increase} ]];then
+            err "Only support increasing by one of: ${inc[@]}"
+        fi
+        ;;
+    h)
+        usage
+        ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+shift $((OPTIND-1))
+file=( "$@" )
+
+if [[ ${#file[@]} -eq 0 ]];then
+   echo "No file specified" >&2
+   usage
+fi
+
+if [[ -z "${from}" ]]; then
+   echo  "No 'from' version specified." >&2
+   usage
+fi
+
+# TODO: compare steps in from_parts and to_parts.
+version "${from}" from_parts
+
+if [[ -z "${to}" ]]; then
+   if [[ -z "${increase}" ]]; then
+    err "No 'to' version specified."
+   else
+    case ${increase} in
+        major)
+            to="$(( ${from_parts[0]} + 1 )).0.0"
+            version "$to" to_parts
+            ;;
+        minor)
+            to="${from_parts[0]}.$(( ${from_parts[1]} + 1 )).0"
+            version "$to" to_parts
+            ;;
+        build)
+            to="${from_parts[0]}.${from_parts[1]}.$(( ${from_parts[2]} + 1 ))"
+            version "$to" to_parts
+            ;;
+        snapshot)
+            if [[ true = ${from_parts[3]} ]]; then
+                err "Can't move from SNAPSHOT to SNAPSHOT (from=${from})."
+            else
+                to="${from_parts[0]}.${from_parts[1]}.$(( ${from_parts[2]} + 1 ))-SNAPSHOT"
+                version "$to" to_parts
+            fi
+            ;;
+    esac
+   fi
+else
+    version "${to}" to_parts
+fi
+
+if [[ ${from_parts[3]} = true && ${to_parts[3]} = true ]]; then
+    err "Moving from SNAPSHOT to SNAPSHOT is not supported."
+fi
+
+cat <<EOF > sedscript.sed
+/${start}/,/${end}/{
+    s/${from}/${to}/g
+}
+EOF
+
+d "Moving from=${from} to=${to}"
+
+trap 'rm -f sedscript.sed' EXIT
+
+sed_cross() {
+  # Cross-platform sed invocation. OSX has no option to show a version number in sed.
+  local target=$1
+  sed --version >/dev/null 2>&1 && sed -e -i '' -f sedscript.sed "$target" || sed -i '' -E -f sedscript.sed "$target"
+}
+
+update_file() {
+    local filename=$1
+    local error_message="ERROR: Failed to update $filename to target version ${to}"
+    local original_hash=$(ruby -r digest -e "p Digest::SHA2.file(\"$filename\").hexdigest")
+    local final_hash=""
+    if ! sed_cross ${filename}; then
+        # occurs if, for example, the file doesn't exist.
+        echo "ERROR: Failed to update $filename to target version ${to}" >&2
+    fi
+
+    local final_hash=$(ruby -r digest -e "p Digest::SHA2.file(\"$filename\").hexdigest")
+
+    if [[ "${original_hash}" = "${final_hash}" ]]; then
+        # occurs if, for example, the file doesn't have expected marker tags for replacement
+        echo "ERROR: $filename was not modified." >&2
+    else
+        echo "Updated $filename successfully!"
+    fi
+}
+
+for filename in "${file[@]}"; do
+    update_file ${filename}
+done
+
diff --git a/bin/utils/release/release_version_update.sh b/bin/utils/release/release_version_update.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..abc227a20278
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/utils/release/release_version_update.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+#
+# This script is used to update files to the "latest" version.
+#
+# usage: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh <from> <to>
+# example: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh 3.0.1-SNAPSHOT 3.0.1
+#
+# Copyright 2018 OpenAPI-Generator Contributors (https://openapi-generator.tech)
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+#
+
+declare cwd=$(cd $(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE}") && pwd)
+declare root=$(cd "$cwd" && cd ../../../ && pwd)
+
+USAGE="
+USAGE: $0 target
+
+  This script will convert the current version in target files to the specified 'target'
+  where target is one of:
+
+  major
+  minor
+  build
+  snapshot
+
+EXAMPLES:
+
+Update to new snapshot (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1-SNAPSHOT):
+    $0 snapshot
+Update build version (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
+    $0 build
+Update minor version (1.2.3 -> 1.3.0)
+    $0 minor
+Update major version (1.2.3 -> 2.0.0)
+    $0 major
+"
+
+version=$(ruby -r rexml/document -e 'include REXML;
+     p XPath.first(Document.new($stdin), "/project/version/text()")' < ${cwd}/../../../pom.xml | tr -d '"')
+
+if [[ -n "$1" ]]; then
+    case $1 in
+        --help|-h)
+            echo -e "$USAGE" >&2
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+        major|minor|build|snapshot)
+            inc="$1"
+            ;;
+        *)
+            echo "Invalid target.Must be one of: major minor build or snapshot" >&2
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+    esac
+else
+    inc="snapshot"
+fi
+
+echo "Release preparation: Moving from $version to next $inc version."
+
+# These files should wrap target version replacement blocks with <!-- RELEASE_VERSION --> and <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+# We can include xml and md files here.
+declare -a xml_files=(
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/multi-module/java-client/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/java-client.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java-invalid-spec.xml"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java.xml"
+    "${root}/samples/meta-codegen/lib/pom.xml"
+    "${root}/pom.xml"
+)
+
+# These files should wrap target version replacement blocks with # RELEASE_VERSION and # /RELEASE_VERSION
+declare -a properties_files=(
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/gradle.properties"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/gradle.properties"
+)
+
+${cwd}/bump.sh -f ${version} -i ${inc} ${xml_files[@]}
+${cwd}/bump.sh -f ${version} -t ${inc} -s '# RELEASE_VERSION' -e '# \/RELEASE_VERSION' ${properties_files[@]}
diff --git a/bin/utils/release/release_version_update_docs.sh b/bin/utils/release/release_version_update_docs.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000000..287b9a3e7dfc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/utils/release/release_version_update_docs.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+#
+# This script is used to update reference files to the "next" version.
+#
+# usage: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh <from> <to>
+# example: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh 3.0.1 3.0.2
+#
+# Copyright 2018 OpenAPI-Generator Contributors (https://openapi-generator.tech)
+#
+# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+# You may obtain a copy of the License at
+#
+#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+#
+# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+# limitations under the License.
+#
+
+declare cwd=$(cd $(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE}") && pwd)
+declare root=$(cd "$cwd" && cd ../../../ && pwd)
+
+USAGE="
+USAGE: $0 version target
+
+  This script will convert the specified version in DOC target files to the 'target'
+  where target is one of:
+
+      major
+      minor
+      build
+
+  or an explicitly defined version number.
+
+NOTE:
+
+  Files prepped by this script should never target SNAPSHOT, as the docs should refer to release artifacts.
+  If intending to update to/from snapshots, please add target files to release_version_update.sh instead.
+
+EXAMPLES:
+
+Update build version (1.0.0 -> 1.0.1)
+    $0 1.0.0 build
+Update minor version (1.2.3 -> 1.3.0)
+    $0 1.2.3 minor
+Update major version (1.2.3 -> 2.0.0)
+    $0 1.2.3 major
+"
+
+declare version=$(ruby -r rexml/document -e 'include REXML;
+     p XPath.first(Document.new($stdin), "/project/version/text()")' < ${cwd}/../../../pom.xml  | tr -d '"')
+
+declare target="${2:-build}"
+declare inc=""
+declare next_version=""
+declare ags=""
+
+if [[ -z "$1" ]]; then
+    echo "Missing argument." >&2
+    echo -e "$USAGE" >&2
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Get version number we're changing
+case $1 in
+    --help|-h)
+        echo -e "$USAGE" >&2
+        exit 1
+        ;;
+    *)
+        version="$1"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+# Get the target…
+case ${target} in
+    major|minor|build)
+        inc="$target"
+        ;;
+    snapshot)
+        echo -e "Files prepped by this script should never target SNAPSHOT, as the docs should refer to release artifacts.
+        If intending to update to/from snapshots, please add target files to release_version_update.sh instead.
+        " >&2
+        exit 1
+        ;;
+    *)
+        next_version="$target"
+        ;;
+esac
+
+ags="-f ${version}"
+
+if [[ -n "${next_version}" ]];then
+    echo "Release preparation: Moving from $version to ${next_version}."
+    ags="$ags -t ${next_version}"
+else
+    echo "Release preparation: Moving from $version to next $inc version."
+    ags="$ags -i ${inc}"
+fi
+
+declare -a xml_files=(
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/README.md"
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/README.md"
+    "${root}/README.md"
+)
+
+declare -a commented_files=(
+    "${root}/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc"
+)
+
+${cwd}/bump.sh ${ags} ${xml_files[@]}
+${cwd}/bump.sh ${ags} -s '# RELEASE_VERSION' -e '# \/RELEASE_VERSION' ${commented_files[@]}
diff --git a/bin/utils/release/testing.txt b/bin/utils/release/testing.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..300bdac6f68c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/utils/release/testing.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+This is a test simple:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->3.0.1<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with other data:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 1.2.3
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with -SNAPSHOT data:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 2.3.4-SNAPSHOT
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with a value not to be replaced:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 3.2.2
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
diff --git a/bin/utils/release/testing2.txt b/bin/utils/release/testing2.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..300bdac6f68c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/utils/release/testing2.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+This is a test simple:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->3.0.1<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with other data:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 1.2.3
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with -SNAPSHOT data:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 2.3.4-SNAPSHOT
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
+
+Testing with a value not to be replaced:
+<!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
+Version 3.2.2
+<!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
diff --git a/bin/utils/release_version_update.sh b/bin/utils/release_version_update.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index c485fc589c94..000000000000
--- a/bin/utils/release_version_update.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,62 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-#
-# usage: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh 3.0.1-SNAPSHOT 3.0.1
-#
-# Copyright 2018 OpenAPI-Generator Contributors (https://openapi-generator.tech)
-#
-# Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
-# you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
-# You may obtain a copy of the License at
-#
-#     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
-#
-# Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
-# distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
-# WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
-# See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
-# limitations under the License.
-#
-
-if [[ "$1" != "" ]]; then
-    FROM="$1"
-else
-    echo "Missing argument. Usage e.g.: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh 3.0.1-SNAPSHOT 3.0.1"
-    exit 1;
-fi
-
-if [[ "$2" != "" ]]; then
-    TO="$2"
-else
-    echo "Missing argument. Usage e.g.: ./bin/utils/release_version_update.sh 3.0.1-SNAPSHOT 3.0.1"
-    exit 1;
-fi
-
-echo "Release preparation: replacing $FROM with $TO in different files"
-
-# This script assumes the files defined here have a version surrounded by angle brackets within an xml node.
-# For example, >4.0.0< becomes >4.0.1-SNAPSHOT<.
-# Verify the sed command below against a file before adding here.
-declare -a files=("modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml"
-                  "modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml"
-                  "modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml"
-                  "modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml"
-                  "modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml"
-                  "modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml"
-                  "samples/meta-codegen/lib/pom.xml"
-                  "pom.xml")
-
-sedi () {
-  # Cross-platform version of sed -i that works both on Mac and Linux
-  sed --version >/dev/null 2>&1 && sed -i -e "$@" || sed -i "" "$@"
-}
-
-for filename in "${files[@]}"; do
-  # e.g. sed -i '' "s/3.0.1-SNAPSHOT/3.0.1/g" CI/pom.xml.bash
-  #echo "Running command: sed -i '' "s/$FROM/$TO/g" $filename"
-  if sedi "s/>$FROM</>$TO</g" $filename; then
-    echo "Updated $filename successfully!"
-  else
-    echo "ERROR: Failed to update $filename with the following command"
-    echo "sed -i '' \"s/$FROM/$TO/g\" $filename"
-  fi
-done
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml
index 41c13455d565..2849d23f715f 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-cli/pom.xml
@@ -3,7 +3,9 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
         <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
+        <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
     </parent>
     <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml
index a8c2deeb1344..a91ac2830f6f 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-core/pom.xml
@@ -5,7 +5,9 @@
   <parent>
     <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
     <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
+    <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+    <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
   </parent>
   <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc
index 78bccf0eddcb..a6680177ec01 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/README.adoc
@@ -40,6 +40,8 @@ compileJava.dependsOn tasks.openApiGenerate
 
 == Plugin Setup
 
+//# RELEASE_VERSION
+
 [source,group]
 ----
 plugins {
@@ -65,6 +67,7 @@ buildscript {
 
 apply plugin: 'org.openapi.generator'
 ----
+//# /RELEASE_VERSION
 
 == Configuration
 
@@ -597,6 +600,7 @@ Android Studio may experience a Windows-specific Guava dependency conflict with
 
 As a workaround, you may force exclude conflicting Guava dependencies.
 
+//# RELEASE_VERSION
 ```gradle
 buildscript {
     repositories {
@@ -618,5 +622,6 @@ configurations {
 // …
 apply plugin: 'org.openapi.generator'
 ```
+//# /RELEASE_VERSION
 
 See https://github.com/OpenAPITools/openapi-generator/issues/1818[OpenAPITools/openapi-generator#1818] for more details.
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/gradle.properties b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/gradle.properties
index 5fc12b69996e..467af36547f1 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/gradle.properties
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/gradle.properties
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
+# RELEASE_VERSION
 openApiGeneratorVersion=4.0.3-SNAPSHOT
+# /RELEASE_VERSION
 
 # BEGIN placeholders
 # these are just placeholders to allow contributors to build directly
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml
index d50d25be751e..2be575667bb4 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/pom.xml
@@ -3,7 +3,9 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
         <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
+        <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
     </parent>
     <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/gradle.properties b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/gradle.properties
index ff5fd0c2e049..c70502e281fa 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/gradle.properties
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-gradle-plugin/samples/local-spec/gradle.properties
@@ -1 +1,3 @@
+# RELEASE_VERSION
 openApiGeneratorVersion=4.0.3-SNAPSHOT
+# /RELEASE_VERSION
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/README.md b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/README.md
index 6aeeef9d7411..681b44f7f4c6 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/README.md
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/README.md
@@ -11,7 +11,9 @@ Add to your `build->plugins` section (default phase is `generate-sources` phase)
 <plugin>
     <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
     <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
+    <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+    <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <executions>
         <execution>
             <goals>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/java-client.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/java-client.xml
index 7be98ce94516..3b8655aeabd1 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/java-client.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/java-client.xml
@@ -12,7 +12,9 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
                 <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
+                <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+                <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <goals>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/multi-module/java-client/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/multi-module/java-client/pom.xml
index 7ce9ae62f486..d87a9cb43f80 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/multi-module/java-client/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/multi-module/java-client/pom.xml
@@ -18,7 +18,9 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
                 <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
+                <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+                <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <dependencies>
                     <dependency>
                         <groupId>${project.groupId}</groupId>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java-invalid-spec.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java-invalid-spec.xml
index bac384aa7d40..b1d3bfb37949 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java-invalid-spec.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java-invalid-spec.xml
@@ -12,7 +12,9 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
                 <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
+                <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+                <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <goals>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java.xml
index 74fab82198fd..d733b0ee6e6b 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/examples/non-java.xml
@@ -12,7 +12,9 @@
             <plugin>
                 <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
                 <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
+                <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+                <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
                 <executions>
                     <execution>
                         <goals>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml
index 65c682b2c756..c2c9eb6506d4 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-maven-plugin/pom.xml
@@ -4,7 +4,9 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
         <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
+        <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
     </parent>
     <artifactId>openapi-generator-maven-plugin</artifactId>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml
index 7da9adbe7ed9..2936f1364997 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator-online/pom.xml
@@ -3,7 +3,9 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
         <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
+        <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
     </parent>
     <artifactId>openapi-generator-online</artifactId>
diff --git a/modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml b/modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml
index 200d7dbc9f21..fb876816e28f 100644
--- a/modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml
+++ b/modules/openapi-generator/pom.xml
@@ -3,7 +3,9 @@
     <parent>
         <groupId>org.openapitools</groupId>
         <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
+        <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+        <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
         <relativePath>../..</relativePath>
     </parent>
     <modelVersion>4.0.0</modelVersion>
diff --git a/pom.xml b/pom.xml
index e47f6cedbf6f..ecb40eab0df8 100644
--- a/pom.xml
+++ b/pom.xml
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@
     <artifactId>openapi-generator-project</artifactId>
     <packaging>pom</packaging>
     <name>openapi-generator-project</name>
+    <!-- RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <version>4.0.3-SNAPSHOT</version>
+    <!-- /RELEASE_VERSION -->
     <url>https://github.com/openapitools/openapi-generator</url>
     <scm>
         <connection>scm:git:git@github.com:openapitools/openapi-generator.git</connection>