diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 78cf068..993fd81 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -24,32 +24,49 @@ jobs:
       - name: Generate checksums
         run: make checksums
 
-      - name: Create release
-        uses: softprops/action-gh-release@v2
-        with:
-          body: |
-            **Unofficial community tool.** `cbm-tool` is an independent community wrapper for `codebase-memory-mcp`. It is not maintained, endorsed, or supported by DeusData / the upstream `codebase-memory-mcp` project.
-
-            ## What's in this release
-
-            - `cbm` — Linux / macOS Bash entrypoint
-            - `cbm.ps1` — Windows PowerShell entrypoint
-            - `install/install.sh` — Linux / macOS installer
-            - `install/install.ps1` — Windows installer
-            - `share/cbm/rules/codebase-memory.md` — default rule template
-            - `SHA256SUMS` — SHA-256 checksum manifest for all assets
-            - `cbm.sha256`, `cbm.ps1.sha256` — per-asset checksums
-
-            ## Updater notes
-
-            - `cbm update self` downloads the latest `cbm-tool` release asset and verifies its SHA-256 checksum before replacing the installed script.
-            - `cbm update codebase-memory-mcp` runs the official upstream updater and is separate from cbm-tool's own update mechanism.
-          files: |
-            bin/cbm
-            bin/cbm.ps1
-            install/install.sh
-            install/install.ps1
-            share/cbm/rules/codebase-memory.md
-            SHA256SUMS
-            bin/cbm.sha256
+      - name: Create GitHub Release
+        env:
+          GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+        run: |
+          version="${GITHUB_REF_NAME}"
+          cat > release-notes.md <<'EOF'
+          **Unofficial community tool.** `cbm-tool` is an independent community wrapper for `codebase-memory-mcp`. It is not maintained, endorsed, or supported by DeusData / the upstream `codebase-memory-mcp` project.
+
+          ## What's in this release
+
+          - `cbm` — Linux / macOS Bash entrypoint
+          - `cbm.ps1` — Windows PowerShell entrypoint
+          - `install/install.sh` — Linux / macOS installer
+          - `install/install.ps1` — Windows installer
+          - `share/cbm/rules/codebase-memory.md` — default rule template
+          - `SHA256SUMS` — SHA-256 checksum manifest for all assets
+          - `cbm.sha256`, `cbm.ps1.sha256` — per-asset checksums
+
+          ## Updater notes
+
+          - `cbm update self` downloads the latest `cbm-tool` release asset and verifies its SHA-256 checksum before replacing the installed script.
+          - `cbm update codebase-memory-mcp` runs the official upstream updater and is separate from cbm-tool's own update mechanism.
+
+          ## Verify downloads
+
+          ```bash
+          sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS
+          ```
+
+          On Windows:
+
+          ```powershell
+          Get-FileHash -Path cbm.ps1 -Algorithm SHA256
+          ```
+          EOF
+          gh release create "${version}" \
+            --title "${version}" \
+            --notes-file release-notes.md \
+            bin/cbm \
+            bin/cbm.ps1 \
+            install/install.sh \
+            install/install.ps1 \
+            share/cbm/rules/codebase-memory.md \
+            SHA256SUMS \
+            bin/cbm.sha256 \
             bin/cbm.ps1.sha256