API Versioning Strategy
Implements API versioning using URL paths, headers, or query parameters with backward compatibility and deprecation strategies. Use when managing multiple API versions, planning breaking changes, or designing migration paths.
Specification
- Skill ID
- secondsky/claude-skills/api-versioning-strategy
- Publisher
- secondsky
- Repository
- claude-skills
- Installs
- 0
- Files
- 1
- License
- MIT
- Synced
- Sep 23, 2026
How to use it
Open any RiverX project, open the Skills panel in the chat, and search for this identifier. The files are fetched from the source repository at install time.
secondsky/claude-skills/api-versioning-strategyInstalls these files- SKILL.md
What this skill tells the agent
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)
const v1Router = require('./routes/v1');
const v2Router = require('./routes/v2');
app.use('/api/v1', v1Router);
app.use('/api/v2', v2Router);Version Adapter Pattern
// Transform between versions
const v1ToV2 = (v1Response) => ({
data: {
type: 'user',
id: v1Response.user_id,
attributes: {
name: v1Response.user_name,
email: v1Response.email
}
}
});Deprecation Headers
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 months | Add headers, docs |
| Sunset Announced | 3 months | Email users |
| Read-Only | 1 month | Disable writes |
| Shutdown | - | Return 410 Gone |
Best Practices
- Support N-1 versions minimum
- Provide 6+ months migration window
- Include migration guides with code examples
- Monitor version usage to inform deprecation
More from secondsky
Use this skill in a project
Open any RiverX project, search the Skills panel for secondsky/claude-skills/api-versioning-strategy, and install it in one click.