diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 16ede89..3fd8db2 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -2,6 +2,14 @@
 
 All notable changes to this project are documented in this file.
 
+## [0.4.5] - 2026-08-07
+
+### Changed
+
+- Expanded the supported Ruff test-tool range through 0.16 while explicitly preserving the pre-0.16 default lint rule set.
+
+[0.4.5]: https://github.com/stepanov1975/hermes-local-knowledge/compare/v0.4.4...v0.4.5
+
 ## [0.4.4] - 2026-08-07
 
 ### Added
diff --git a/hermes_local_knowledge/__init__.py b/hermes_local_knowledge/__init__.py
index b6344fc..4e38d3e 100644
--- a/hermes_local_knowledge/__init__.py
+++ b/hermes_local_knowledge/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 """Reusable local capability index for Hermes Agent."""
 
-__version__ = "0.4.4"
+__version__ = "0.4.5"
diff --git a/plugin.yaml b/plugin.yaml
index a55a434..3ffacf4 100644
--- a/plugin.yaml
+++ b/plugin.yaml
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 name: local_knowledge
-version: 0.4.4
+version: 0.4.5
 description: "Native Hermes tools for a configurable local capability index: search/get/neighbors plus local usage feedback/reporting."
 author: Alex Stepanov
 kind: standalone
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 7dbb3f3..0cb3ddc 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
 
 [project]
 name = "hermes-local-knowledge"
-version = "0.4.4"
+version = "0.4.5"
 description = "Reusable Hermes Agent plugin for local capability indexing"
 requires-python = ">=3.11"
 readme = "README.md"
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ test = [
     "mypy>=1.18,<3",
     "pytest>=8,<10",
     "PyYAML>=6,<7",
-    "ruff>=0.15,<0.16",
+    "ruff>=0.15,<0.17",
     "setuptools>=70.1",
 ]
 mutation = [
@@ -57,6 +57,9 @@ pythonpath = ["."]
 testpaths = ["tests"]
 addopts = "-q"
 
+[tool.ruff.lint]
+select = ["E4", "E7", "E9", "F"]
+
 [tool.mypy]
 python_version = "3.11"
 explicit_package_bases = true
diff --git a/tests/test_index.py b/tests/test_index.py
index 0e49f6d..ad627fa 100644
--- a/tests/test_index.py
+++ b/tests/test_index.py
@@ -186,7 +186,7 @@ def test_build_publishes_valid_format4_index_and_queries_it(tmp_path: Path) -> N
         assert connection.execute("PRAGMA integrity_check").fetchone() == ("ok",)
         metadata = dict(connection.execute("SELECT key, value FROM metadata"))
         assert metadata["format_version"] == "4"
-        assert metadata["plugin_version"] == "0.4.4"
+        assert metadata["plugin_version"] == "0.4.5"
         assert int(metadata["artifact_count"]) == len(artifacts)
         assert int(metadata["edge_count"]) == len(edges)
     assert index.index_source_root(db_path) == str(root.resolve())
diff --git a/tests/test_plugin.py b/tests/test_plugin.py
index e223963..33440d6 100644
--- a/tests/test_plugin.py
+++ b/tests/test_plugin.py
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ def test_version_metadata_stays_in_sync():
         if line.startswith("version:")
     )
 
-    assert hermes_local_knowledge.__version__ == "0.4.4"
+    assert hermes_local_knowledge.__version__ == "0.4.5"
     assert hermes_local_knowledge.__version__ == pyproject["project"]["version"]
     assert hermes_local_knowledge.__version__ == plugin_version
 
diff --git a/tests/test_release_notes.py b/tests/test_release_notes.py
index ecb62db..c37e2a5 100644
--- a/tests/test_release_notes.py
+++ b/tests/test_release_notes.py
@@ -305,10 +305,10 @@ def test_release_workflow_uses_exact_changelog_notes_for_create_repair_and_verif
 
 
 def test_repository_release_notes_exclude_changelog_reference_definition() -> None:
-    rendered = render_release_notes(REPO_ROOT / "CHANGELOG.md", "0.4.4")
-    assert "[0.4.4]:" not in rendered
-    assert "local_knowledge.router_skill_path" in rendered
+    rendered = render_release_notes(REPO_ROOT / "CHANGELOG.md", "0.4.5")
+    assert "[0.4.5]:" not in rendered
+    assert "preserving the pre-0.16 default lint rule set" in rendered
     assert rendered.endswith(
-        "**Full changelog:** [v0.4.3...v0.4.4]"
-        "(https://github.com/stepanov1975/hermes-local-knowledge/compare/v0.4.3...v0.4.4)\n"
+        "**Full changelog:** [v0.4.4...v0.4.5]"
+        "(https://github.com/stepanov1975/hermes-local-knowledge/compare/v0.4.4...v0.4.5)\n"
     )