BackwardsCompatibilityStrategies Hub

APIs evolve. Consumers depend on them. Breaking changes are sometimes necessary; gratuitous breaking changes destroy trust. This cluster covers the patterns for evolving APIs while maintaining compatibility for as long as practical.

Foundations

- [BackwardsCompatibilityStrategies](BackwardsCompatibilityStrategies) — The full pattern catalog

- [ApiDesignBestPractices](ApiDesignBestPractices) — Designing for evolution from the start

- [SemanticVersioning](SemanticVersioning) — Communicating compatibility via version numbers

Adjacent

- [Web Services and APIs Hub](WebServicesAndApisHub) — API design context

- [ApiProtocolComparison](ApiProtocolComparison) — Different protocols, different evolution patterns

- [Refactoring Strategies](RefactoringStrategies) — Internal evolution patterns