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api-versioning
Version REST and GraphQL APIs. Use when a user asks to version an API, handle breaking changes, implement API deprecation, manage multiple API versions, or design an API evolution strategy.
#api#versioning#rest#deprecation#backwards-compatibility
terminal-skillsv1.0.0
Works with:claude-codeopenai-codexgemini-clicursor
Usage
$
✓ Installed api-versioning v1.0.0
Getting Started
- Install the skill using the command above
- Open your AI coding agent (Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, or Cursor)
- Reference the skill in your prompt
- The AI will use the skill's capabilities automatically
Example Prompts
- "Review the open pull requests and summarize what needs attention"
- "Generate a changelog from the last 20 commits on the main branch"
Documentation
Overview
APIs evolve, but breaking changes break clients. This skill covers versioning strategies (URL path, headers, query params), deprecation workflows, backwards-compatible changes, and migration patterns for REST and GraphQL APIs.
Instructions
Step 1: URL Path Versioning (Recommended)
typescript
// routes/v1/projects.ts — Version 1 routes
import { Router } from 'express'
const v1Router = Router()
v1Router.get('/projects', async (req, res) => {
const projects = await db.project.findMany()
// V1 returns flat array
res.json(projects)
})
// routes/v2/projects.ts — Version 2 with pagination
const v2Router = Router()
v2Router.get('/projects', async (req, res) => {
const { cursor, limit = 20 } = req.query
const projects = await db.project.findMany({
take: Number(limit) + 1,
cursor: cursor ? { id: String(cursor) } : undefined,
})
const hasMore = projects.length > Number(limit)
if (hasMore) projects.pop()
// V2 returns paginated envelope
res.json({
data: projects,
pagination: {
nextCursor: hasMore ? projects[projects.length - 1].id : null,
hasMore,
},
})
})
// app.ts — Mount versions
app.use('/v1', v1Router)
app.use('/v2', v2Router)
Step 2: Backwards-Compatible Changes
These changes are SAFE (no version bump needed):
- Adding new optional fields to responses
- Adding new endpoints
- Adding new optional query parameters
- Adding new enum values (if clients handle unknown values)
These changes REQUIRE a new version:
- Removing or renaming fields
- Changing field types
- Making optional fields required
- Changing response structure (array → object)
- Changing authentication scheme
typescript
// Adding a field is backwards-compatible
// V1 response: { id, name, status }
// V1.1 response: { id, name, status, taskCount } ← safe, old clients ignore new field
// Changing structure is BREAKING
// V1 response: [{ id, name }]
// V2 response: { data: [{ id, name }], pagination: {} } ← new version required
Step 3: Deprecation Headers
typescript
// middleware/deprecation.ts — Warn clients about deprecated versions
export function deprecationMiddleware(version: string, sunsetDate: string) {
return (req, res, next) => {
res.set('Deprecation', 'true')
res.set('Sunset', sunsetDate) // RFC 8594
res.set('Link', `</v2${req.path}>; rel="successor-version"`)
console.log(`[DEPRECATION] ${req.method} /v${version}${req.path} from ${req.ip}`)
next()
}
}
// Usage
app.use('/v1', deprecationMiddleware('1', 'Sat, 01 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT'), v1Router)
Step 4: API Changelog
markdown
# API Changelog
## v2.0.0 (2025-03-01)
### Breaking Changes
- `GET /projects` now returns paginated response `{ data: [], pagination: {} }`
- Removed `GET /projects/all` (use pagination instead)
### Migration Guide
- Update response parsing to read `response.data` instead of `response` directly
- Implement cursor-based pagination for large datasets
- v1 sunset date: June 1, 2026
## v1.3.0 (2025-02-15)
### Added
- `taskCount` field in project responses
- `GET /projects/{id}/activity` endpoint
Guidelines
- URL path versioning (
/v1/,/v2/) is simplest and most widely adopted. - Only create new major versions for breaking changes — everything else is additive.
- Keep old versions running for 6-12 months minimum after deprecation.
- Monitor old version usage — don't sunset until traffic is near zero.
- Document every breaking change with a migration guide.
- Consider API gateways (Kong, AWS API Gateway) for routing versions independently.
Information
- Version
- 1.0.0
- Author
- terminal-skills
- Category
- Development
- License
- Apache-2.0