first cut at API checking

The API files are empty in this commit, and will hopefully be
filled in in later (to be squashed or amended) commits.

.github/workflows/check-api.yml

@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+name: Check API
+
+on:
+  push:
+    paths-ignore:
+      - "doc/**"
+      - "**/README.md"
+      - "CONTRIBUTING.md"
+    branches:
+      - master
+  pull_request:
+    paths-ignore:
+      - "doc/**"
+      - "**/README.md"
+      - "CONTRIBUTING.md"
+  release:
+    types:
+      - created
+  workflow_call:
+
+jobs:
+  check-api:
+    name: Check API using ${{ matrix.sys.os }} ghc-${{ matrix.ghc }}
+    runs-on: ${{ matrix.sys.os }}
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        # we check API only on one platform and ghc release, since it shouldn't
+        # vary elsewhere and the API tracer is sensitive to both
+        sys:
+          - { os: ubuntu-latest }
+        ghc:
+          [
+            # print-api only supports a small subset of ghc versions
+            "9.6.6",
+          ]
+
+    steps:
+
+      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - uses: haskell-actions/setup@v2
+        id: setup-haskell
+        with:
+          ghc-version: ${{ matrix.ghc }}
+          cabal-version: 3.12.1.0 # see https://github.com/haskell/cabal/pull/10251
+          ghcup-release-channel: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haskell/ghcup-metadata/master/ghcup-prereleases-0.0.8.yaml
+
+      # I was going to use the canned action, but it only supports a single package and reinstalls the same binary each time
+      - name: Install print-api
+        shell: bash
+        run: |
+          wget -q https://github.com/Kleidukos/print-api/releases/download/v0.1.0.1/print-api-0.1.0.1-Linux-static-${{ matrix.ghc }}-x86_64.tar.gz
+          tar -xzvf print-api-0.1.0.1-Linux-static-${{ matrix.ghc }}-x86_64.tar.gz
+          chmod +x print-api
+
+      # print-api needs environment files. It also doesn't make a lot of sense to use the cached builds, sadly,
+      # since they're special in different ways (bootstrap and validate) and we want a vanulla build. And there
+      # isn't enough cache space to make a third cache, even though this is a very limited build.
+      - name: Build Cabal with environment files
+        shell: bash
+        run: cabal build Cabal-syntax Cabal --write-environment-files=always --project-file=cabal.release.project
+
+      - name: Check Cabal-syntax and Cabal APIs
+        run: |
+          ./print-api --package-name Cabal-syntax > Cabal-syntax.api
+          ./print-api --package-name Cabal > Cabal.api
+          diff Cabal-syntax.api Cabal-syntax/Cabal-syntax-${{ matrix.ghc }}-${{ matrix.sys.os }}.api
+          diff Cabal.api Cabal/Cabal-${{ matrix.ghc }}-${{ matrix.sys.os }}.api