diff --git a/dev-tools/deploy b/dev-tools/deploy
index 819f543a8b60..fca9274cebae 100755
--- a/dev-tools/deploy
+++ b/dev-tools/deploy
@@ -7,14 +7,19 @@ from subprocess import check_call
 def main():
     parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(
         description="Builds all the Beats artifacts")
-    parser.parse_args()
+    parser.add_argument("--no-snapshot", action="store_true",
+                        help="Don't append -SNAPSHOT to the version.")
+    args = parser.parse_args()
 
     dir = os.path.dirname(os.path.realpath(__file__))
     os.chdir(dir + "/packer")
     check_call("make deps", shell=True)
     check_call("make clean", shell=True)
     check_call("make images", shell=True)
-    check_call("make", shell=True)
+    if args.no_snapshot:
+        check_call("make SNAPSHOT=no", shell=True)
+    else:
+        check_call("make SNAPSHOT=yes", shell=True)
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":
     main()
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/Makefile b/dev-tools/packer/Makefile
index 0abd062fb34e..5aa406ff3dc0 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/Makefile
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/Makefile
@@ -1,6 +1,4 @@
-DATE:=$(shell date +%y%m%d%H%M%S)
-BUILDID?=$(DATE)
-
+BUILDID=$(shell git rev-parse HEAD)
 
 .PHONY: all
 all: packetbeat/deb packetbeat/rpm packetbeat/darwin packetbeat/win packetbeat/bin \
@@ -8,21 +6,31 @@ all: packetbeat/deb packetbeat/rpm packetbeat/darwin packetbeat/win packetbeat/b
 	filebeat/deb filebeat/rpm filebeat/darwin filebeat/win filebeat/bin \
 	metricbeat/deb metricbeat/rpm metricbeat/darwin metricbeat/win metricbeat/bin \
 	winlogbeat/win \
-	build/upload/build_id.txt latest
+	build/upload/build_id.txt
 
 .PHONY: packetbeat topbeat filebeat metricbeat winlogbeat
 packetbeat topbeat filebeat metricbeat winlogbeat: build/upload
 	# cross compile on ubuntu
-	cd build && xgo -image=tudorg/beats-builder \
-		-before-build=../xgo-scripts/before_build.sh \
-		-pkg $@ \
-		-source ../../.. \
+	docker run --rm \
+		-v $(abspath build):/build \
+		-v $(abspath xgo-scripts):/scripts \
+		-v $(abspath ../..):/source \
+		-e PACK=$@ \
+		-e BEFORE_BUILD=before_build.sh \
+		-e SOURCE=/source \
+		-e BUILDID=${BUILDID} \
+		tudorg/beats-builder \
 		github.com/elastic/beats
 	# linux builds on debian 6
-	cd build && xgo -image=tudorg/beats-builder-deb6 \
-		-before-build=../xgo-scripts/before_build.sh \
-		-pkg $@ \
-		-source ../../.. \
+	docker run --rm \
+		-v $(abspath build):/build \
+		-v $(abspath xgo-scripts):/scripts \
+		-v $(abspath ../..):/source \
+		-e PACK=$@ \
+		-e BEFORE_BUILD=before_build.sh \
+		-e SOURCE=/source \
+		-e BUILDID=${BUILDID} \
+		tudorg/beats-builder-deb6 \
 		github.com/elastic/beats
 
 include ./scripts/Makefile
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/build.sh
index 37418c305d12..188aef8e54eb 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/build.sh
@@ -12,8 +12,8 @@ cat beats/$BEAT.yml ${ARCHDIR}/archs/$ARCH.yml version.yml > build/settings-$run
 gotpl ${BASEDIR}/run.sh.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/run-$runid.sh
 chmod +x build/run-$runid.sh
 
-docker run -v `pwd`/build:/build -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e RUNID=$runid --name build-image tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
-docker cp build-image:/build/upload `pwd`/build/binary
-docker rm -v build-image
+docker run --rm -v `pwd`/build:/build \
+    -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e SNAPSHOT=$SNAPSHOT -e RUNID=$runid \
+    tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
 
 rm build/settings-$runid.yml build/run-$runid.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/run.sh.j2 b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/run.sh.j2
index be56768b5cfd..c6de5cb9d04f 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/run.sh.j2
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/binary/run.sh.j2
@@ -1,19 +1,25 @@
-#!/bin/sh
+#!/bin/bash
 
 # this is executed in the docker fpm image
 set -e
 cd /build
 
-mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}
-cp -r homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/* /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}/
-cp {{.beat_name}}-linux-{{.arch}} /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}/{{.beat_name}}
-cp {{.beat_name}}-binary.yml /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}/{{.beat_name}}.yml
-cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}/
+# add SNAPSHOT if it was requested
+VERSION={{.version}}
+if [ "$SNAPSHOT" = "yes" ]; then
+    VERSION="${VERSION}-SNAPSHOT"
+fi
+
+mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}
+cp -a homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/. /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}/
+cp {{.beat_name}}-linux-{{.arch}} /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}/{{.beat_name}}
+cp {{.beat_name}}-binary.yml /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}/{{.beat_name}}.yml
+cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}/
 
 mkdir -p upload/{{.beat_name}}
-tar czvf upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz"
+tar czvf upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz"
 
 cd upload/{{.beat_name}}
-sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz > {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz.sha1.txt
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz.sha1.txt"
+sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz > {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz.sha1.txt
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.bin_arch}}.tar.gz.sha1.txt"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/build.sh
index 5e4ada51d92b..a47f2d500c52 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/build.sh
@@ -14,8 +14,8 @@ gotpl ${BASEDIR}/init.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/$runid.init
 gotpl ${BASEDIR}/systemd.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/$runid.service
 chmod +x build/run-$runid.sh
 
-docker run -v `pwd`/build:/build -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e RUNID=$runid --name build-image tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
-docker cp build-image:/build/upload `pwd`/build/binary
-docker rm -v build-image
+docker run --rm -v `pwd`/build:/build \
+    -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e SNAPSHOT=$SNAPSHOT -e RUNID=$runid \
+    tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
 
 rm build/settings-$runid.yml build/run-$runid.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/run.sh.j2 b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/run.sh.j2
index 5b125b781cd6..cd0796efd042 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/run.sh.j2
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/centos/run.sh.j2
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-#!/bin/sh
+#!/bin/bash
 
 # this is executed in the docker fpm image
 set -e
@@ -10,9 +10,18 @@ cp ${RUNID}.init /tmp/{{.beat_name}}.init
 # create script to reload systemd config
 echo "#!/bin/bash\nsystemctl daemon-reload 2> /dev/null || true" > /tmp/systemd-daemon-reload.sh
 
+# add SNAPSHOT if it was requested
+VERSION="{{.version}}"
+if [ "$SNAPSHOT" = "yes" ]; then
+    VERSION="${VERSION}-SNAPSHOT"
+fi
+
+# replace - with ~ to allow the GA versions to be installed over alpahs/betas/snapshots
+RPM_VERSION=`echo ${VERSION} | sed 's/-/~/'`
+
 # create rpm
 fpm --force -s dir -t rpm \
-        -n {{.beat_name}} -v {{.rpm_version}} \
+        -n {{.beat_name}} -v ${RPM_VERSION} \
         --architecture {{.rpm_arch}} \
         --vendor "Elastic" \
         --license "ASL 2.0" \
@@ -31,10 +40,10 @@ fpm --force -s dir -t rpm \
 
 # rename so that the filename respects semver rules
 mkdir -p upload/{{.beat_name}}
-mv {{.beat_name}}-{{.rpm_version}}-1.{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm"
+mv {{.beat_name}}-${RPM_VERSION}-1.{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm"
 
 # create sha1 file
 cd upload/{{.beat_name}}
-sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm > {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm.sha1.txt
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm.sha1.txt"
+sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm > {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm.sha1.txt
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-{{.rpm_arch}}.rpm.sha1.txt"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/build.sh
index 6d162f6aa15b..9d6c820c3032 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/build.sh
@@ -12,8 +12,8 @@ cat beats/$BEAT.yml ${ARCHDIR}/archs/$ARCH.yml version.yml > build/settings-$run
 gotpl ${BASEDIR}/run.sh.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/run-$runid.sh
 chmod +x build/run-$runid.sh
 
-docker run -v `pwd`/build:/build -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e RUNID=$runid --name build-image tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
-docker cp build-image:/build/upload `pwd`/build/binary
-docker rm -v build-image
+docker run --rm -v `pwd`/build:/build \
+    -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e SNAPSHOT=$SNAPSHOT -e RUNID=$runid \
+    tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
 
 rm build/settings-$runid.yml build/run-$runid.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/run.sh.j2 b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/run.sh.j2
index b72104990e4c..9f9690c11b5a 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/run.sh.j2
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/darwin/run.sh.j2
@@ -1,19 +1,25 @@
-#!/bin/sh
+#!/bin/bash
 
 # this is executed in the docker fpm image
 set -e
 cd /build
 
-mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin
-cp -r homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/* /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin/
-cp {{.beat_name}}-darwin-amd64 /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin/{{.beat_name}}
-cp {{.beat_name}}-darwin.yml /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin/{{.beat_name}}.yml
-cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin/
+# add SNAPSHOT if it was requested
+VERSION={{.version}}
+if [ "$SNAPSHOT" = "yes" ]; then
+    VERSION="${VERSION}-SNAPSHOT"
+fi
+
+mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin
+cp -a homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/. /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin/
+cp {{.beat_name}}-darwin-amd64 /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin/{{.beat_name}}
+cp {{.beat_name}}-darwin.yml /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin/{{.beat_name}}.yml
+cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin/
 
 mkdir -p upload/{{.beat_name}}
-tar czvf upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin.tgz /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin.tgz"
+tar czvf upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin.tgz /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin.tgz"
 
 cd upload/{{.beat_name}}
-sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin.tgz > {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin.tgz.sha1.txt
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-darwin.tgz.sha1.txt"
+sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin.tgz > {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin.tgz.sha1.txt
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-darwin.tgz.sha1.txt"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/build.sh
index ff68919308d3..61bd677733ab 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/build.sh
@@ -14,8 +14,8 @@ gotpl ${BASEDIR}/init.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/$runid.init
 gotpl ${BASEDIR}/systemd.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/$runid.service
 chmod +x build/run-$runid.sh
 
-docker run -v `pwd`/build:/build -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e RUNID=$runid --name build-image tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
-docker cp build-image:/build/upload `pwd`/build/binary
-docker rm -v build-image
+docker run --rm -v `pwd`/build:/build \
+    -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e SNAPSHOT=$SNAPSHOT -e RUNID=$runid \
+    tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
 
 rm build/settings-$runid.yml build/run-$runid.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/run.sh.j2 b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/run.sh.j2
index 447707be8a35..09f920e9e25a 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/run.sh.j2
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/debian/run.sh.j2
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-#!/bin/sh
+#!/bin/bash
 
 # this is executed in the docker fpm image
 set -e
@@ -10,9 +10,18 @@ cp ${RUNID}.init /tmp/{{.beat_name}}.init
 # create script to reload systemd config
 echo "#!/bin/bash\nsystemctl daemon-reload 2> /dev/null || true" > /tmp/systemd-daemon-reload.sh
 
+# add SNAPSHOT if it was requested
+VERSION="{{.version}}"
+if [ "$SNAPSHOT" = "yes" ]; then
+    VERSION="${VERSION}-SNAPSHOT"
+fi
+
+# replace - with ~ to allow the GA versions to be installed over alpahs/betas/snapshots
+DEB_VERSION=`echo ${VERSION} | sed 's/-/~/'`
+
 # create deb
 fpm --force -s dir -t deb \
-        -n {{.beat_name}} -v {{.deb_version}} \
+        -n {{.beat_name}} -v ${DEB_VERSION} \
         --vendor "Elastic" \
         --license "ASL 2.0" \
         --architecture {{.deb_arch}} \
@@ -30,10 +39,10 @@ fpm --force -s dir -t deb \
 
 # move and rename so that the filename respects semver rules
 mkdir -p upload/{{.beat_name}}
-mv {{.beat_name}}_{{.deb_version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_{{.version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_{{.version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb"
+mv {{.beat_name}}_${DEB_VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_${VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_${VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb"
 
 # create sha1 file
 cd upload/{{.beat_name}}
-sha1sum {{.beat_name}}_{{.version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb > {{.beat_name}}_{{.version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb.sha1.txt
-echo "Created upload//{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_{{.version}}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb.sha1.txt"
+sha1sum {{.beat_name}}_${VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb > {{.beat_name}}_${VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb.sha1.txt
+echo "Created upload//{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}_${VERSION}_{{.deb_arch}}.deb.sha1.txt"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/build.sh
index 22068e1ed3c9..88cde26cfd39 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/build.sh
@@ -14,8 +14,8 @@ gotpl ${BASEDIR}/install-service.ps1.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/inst
 gotpl ${BASEDIR}/uninstall-service.ps1.j2 < build/settings-$runid.yml > build/uninstall-service-$BEAT.ps1
 chmod +x build/run-$runid.sh
 
-docker run -v `pwd`/build:/build -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e RUNID=$runid --name build-image tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
-docker cp build-image:/build/upload `pwd`/build/binary
-docker rm -v build-image
+docker run --rm -v `pwd`/build:/build \
+    -e BUILDID=$BUILDID -e SNAPSHOT=$SNAPSHOT -e RUNID=$runid \
+    tudorg/fpm /build/run-$runid.sh
 
 rm build/settings-$runid.yml build/run-$runid.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/run.sh.j2 b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/run.sh.j2
index 68720d96a468..82937fa06482 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/run.sh.j2
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/platforms/windows/run.sh.j2
@@ -1,22 +1,28 @@
-#!/bin/sh
+#!/bin/bash
 
 # this is executed in the docker fpm image
 set -e
 cd /build
 
-mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows
-cp -r homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/* /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/
-cp {{.beat_name}}-windows-{{.arch}}.exe /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/{{.beat_name}}.exe
+# add SNAPSHOT if it was requested
+VERSION={{.version}}
+if [ "$SNAPSHOT" = "yes" ]; then
+    VERSION="${VERSION}-SNAPSHOT"
+fi
+
+mkdir /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows
+cp -a homedirs/{{.beat_name}}/. /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/
+cp {{.beat_name}}-windows-{{.arch}}.exe /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/{{.beat_name}}.exe
 unix2dos {{.beat_name}}-win.yml
-cp {{.beat_name}}-win.yml /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/{{.beat_name}}.yml
-cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/
-cp install-service-{{.beat_name}}.ps1 /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/
-cp uninstall-service-{{.beat_name}}.ps1 /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows/
+cp {{.beat_name}}-win.yml /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/{{.beat_name}}.yml
+cp {{.beat_name}}.template.json /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/
+cp install-service-{{.beat_name}}.ps1 /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/
+cp uninstall-service-{{.beat_name}}.ps1 /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows/
 
 mkdir -p upload/{{.beat_name}}
-zip -r upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip /{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows.zip"
+zip -r upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip /{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows.zip"
 
 cd upload/{{.beat_name}}
-sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip > {{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip.sha1.txt
-echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-{{.version}}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip.sha1.txt"
+sha1sum {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip > {{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip.sha1.txt
+echo "Created upload/{{.beat_name}}/{{.beat_name}}-${VERSION}-windows-{{.win_arch}}.zip.sha1.txt"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/scripts/Makefile b/dev-tools/packer/scripts/Makefile
index ca332e126766..c14b48277c4e 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/scripts/Makefile
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/scripts/Makefile
@@ -1,32 +1,31 @@
-DATE:=$(shell date +%y%m%d%H%M%S)
-BUILDID?=$(DATE)
+BUILDID=$(shell git rev-parse HEAD)
+SNAPSHOT?=yes
 
 makefile_abspath:=$(abspath $(lastword $(MAKEFILE_LIST))/..)
 packer_absdir=$(shell dirname ${makefile_abspath})
 
 
 %/deb: % build/god-linux-386 build/god-linux-amd64 fpm-image
-	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/debian/build.sh
-	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/debian/build.sh
+	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/debian/build.sh
+	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/debian/build.sh
 
 %/rpm: % build/god-linux-386 build/god-linux-amd64 fpm-image
-	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/centos/build.sh
-	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/centos/build.sh
+	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/centos/build.sh
+	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/centos/build.sh
 
 %/darwin: %
-	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/darwin/build.sh
+	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/darwin/build.sh
 
 %/win: %
-	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/windows/build.sh
-	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/windows/build.sh
+	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/windows/build.sh
+	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/windows/build.sh
 
 %/bin: %
-	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/binary/build.sh
-	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/binary/build.sh
+	ARCH=386 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/binary/build.sh
+	ARCH=amd64 BEAT=$(@D) BUILDID=$(BUILDID) SNAPSHOT=$(SNAPSHOT) $(packer_absdir)/platforms/binary/build.sh
 
 .PHONY: deps
 deps:
-	go get -u github.com/tsg/xgo
 	go get -u github.com/tsg/gotpl
 
 .PHONY: xgo-image
@@ -117,9 +116,3 @@ clean-images:
 clean:
 	rm -rf build/ || true
 	$(call rm-image,build-image)
-
-# Creates a latest file for the most recent build
-.PHONY: latest
-latest:
-	BUILDID=${BUILDID} \
-	$(packer_absdir)/xgo-scripts/latest.sh
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/version.yml b/dev-tools/packer/version.yml
index 408e1677f84a..807afc7e3623 100644
--- a/dev-tools/packer/version.yml
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/version.yml
@@ -1,3 +1 @@
-version: "5.0.0-nightly${BUILDID}"
-rpm_version: "5.0.0~nightly${BUILDID}"
-deb_version: "5.0.0~nightly${BUILDID}"
+version: "5.0.0"
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/before_build.sh b/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/before_build.sh
index 13889aa0c1bb..e996385315b9 100755
--- a/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/before_build.sh
+++ b/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/before_build.sh
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@
 set -e
 
 BEATS_PATH=/go/src/${1}
-
 # BEATNAME is in the $PACK variable
 BEATNAME=$PACK
 
@@ -17,17 +16,16 @@ else
     BEAT_PATH=$BEATS_PATH
 fi
 
-echo $BEAT_PATH
-
 cd $BEAT_PATH
 
 PREFIX=/build
 
-echo $PREFIX
-
 # Add data to the home directory
 mkdir -p $PREFIX/homedirs/$BEATNAME
 make install-home HOME_PREFIX=$PREFIX/homedirs/$BEATNAME
+if [ -n "BUILDID" ]; then
+    echo "$BUILDID" > $PREFIX/homedirs/$BEATNAME/.build_hash.txt
+fi
 
 # Copy template
 cp $BEATNAME.template.json $PREFIX/$BEATNAME.template.json
diff --git a/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/latest.sh b/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/latest.sh
deleted file mode 100755
index c1ea955d1fb8..000000000000
--- a/dev-tools/packer/xgo-scripts/latest.sh
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,15 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/bash
-
-FILES=$(find `pwd`/build/binary/* -type f)
-echo $BUILDID
-
-for currentfile in ${FILES}; do
-	latestfile=${currentfile/$BUILDID/latest}
-	cp -f $currentfile $latestfile
-
-	# Replace buildid through latest in sha1 file
-	if [ `echo $latestfile | grep -c "sha1" ` -gt 0 ]; then
-		sed -i.bak -e s/$BUILDID/latest/g $latestfile
-		rm $latestfile.bak
-	fi
-done
diff --git a/dev-tools/set_version b/dev-tools/set_version
index f8421dc3bc83..5e74d7794d17 100755
--- a/dev-tools/set_version
+++ b/dev-tools/set_version
@@ -9,8 +9,6 @@ const defaultBeatVersion = "{}"
 
 template_packer = '''
 version: "{version}"
-rpm_version: "{rpm_version}"
-deb_version: "{deb_version}"
 '''
 
 
@@ -29,8 +27,6 @@ def main():
     with open(dir + "/packer/version.yml", "w") as f:
         f.write(template_packer.format(
             version=version,
-            rpm_version=version.replace("-", "~"),
-            deb_version=version.replace("-", "~")
         ))
 
 if __name__ == "__main__":