api-versioning-strategylisted
Install: claude install-skill secondsky/claude-skills
# API Versioning Strategy
Choose and implement API versioning approaches with proper deprecation timelines.
## Versioning Methods
| Method | Example | Pros | Cons |
|--------|---------|------|------|
| URL Path | `/api/v1/users` | Clear, cache-friendly | URL clutter |
| Header | `API-Version: 1` | Clean URLs | Hidden, harder to test |
| Query | `?version=1` | Easy to use | Not RESTful |
## URL Path Versioning (Recommended)
```javascript
const v1Router = require('./routes/v1');
const v2Router = require('./routes/v2');
app.use('/api/v1', v1Router);
app.use('/api/v2', v2Router);
```
## Version Adapter Pattern
```javascript
// Transform between versions
const v1ToV2 = (v1Response) => ({
data: {
type: 'user',
id: v1Response.user_id,
attributes: {
name: v1Response.user_name,
email: v1Response.email
}
}
});
```
## Deprecation Headers
```javascript
app.use('/api/v1', (req, res, next) => {
res.setHeader('Deprecation', 'true');
res.setHeader('Sunset', 'Sat, 01 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT');
res.setHeader('Link', '</api/v2>; rel="successor-version"');
next();
});
```
## Safe vs Breaking Changes
**Safe Changes** (no version bump):
- Adding optional fields
- Adding new endpoints
- Adding optional parameters
**Breaking Changes** (requires new version):
- Removing fields
- Changing field types
- Restructuring responses
- Removing endpoints
## Deprecation Timeline
| Phase | Duration | Actions |
|-------|----------|---------|
| Deprecated | 3 m