How do I keep my API backward-compatible?
API compatibility tips
- Never change the behavior of HTTP response codes. You should never change the behavior of HTTP response codes in your API.
- Never change parameters. Avoid creating a new version of the API when you make only minor changes, as it might be overkill.
- Version your API.
- Other API best practices.
What’s the meaning of backward compatible?
: compatible with older equipment or previous versions of software Dolby Digital is backward compatible and supports earlier versions of Dolby such as Pro Logic. — Consumer Reports.
What makes an API backward compatible with a client?
In other words, you should ensure that the existing functionality of the API will remain intact while the new functionality is added. An API is backward compatible if a client (a program written to consume the API) that can work with one version of the API can work the same way with future versions of the API.
Why is it good to change AWS API gateway?
This makes the API more scalable and allows the API consumers to handle large lists of orders by paging through them with a token. This is a good design change but it breaks backward compatibility.
When to use API gateway mapping templates to handle changes?
Changes to APIs are always risky, especially if changes are made in ways that are not backward compatible. In this blog post, we show you how to use Amazon API Gateway mapping templates to isolate your API consumers from API changes. This enables your API consumers to migrate to new API versions on their own schedule.
Why is versioning of APIs a good practice?
Versioning of APIs is a good practice. Versioning helps make your API more flexible and adaptable to changes while keeping the functionality intact. It also helps you manage changes to the code better and more easily revert back to old code if the new code causes problems.