API Versioning - 💧 Mizu

The mobile package provides robust API versioning middleware that supports version detection from headers, query parameters, and URL paths, with built-in deprecation warnings and graceful migration paths.

Quick Start

import "github.com/go-mizu/mizu/mobile"

app := mizu.New()

// Add version middleware
app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported:  []mobile.Version{{2, 0}, {1, 0}},
    Deprecated: []mobile.Version{{1, 0}},
    Default:    mobile.Version{Major: 2},
}))

app.Get("/api/users", func(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    version := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)

    if version.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, v2Response)
    }
    return c.JSON(200, v1Response)
})

The Version Type

type Version struct {
    Major int
    Minor int
}

Creating Versions

// Major version only
v1 := mobile.Version{Major: 1}        // v1
v2 := mobile.Version{Major: 2}        // v2

// Major.Minor versions
v1_5 := mobile.Version{Major: 1, Minor: 5}  // v1.5
v2_1 := mobile.Version{Major: 2, Minor: 1}  // v2.1

Version Methods

version := mobile.Version{Major: 2, Minor: 1}

// String representation
version.String()  // "v2.1"

// Check if zero/unset
version.IsZero()  // false

// Compare versions
version.Compare(mobile.Version{Major: 2, Minor: 0})  // 1 (greater)
version.Compare(mobile.Version{Major: 2, Minor: 1})  // 0 (equal)
version.Compare(mobile.Version{Major: 3, Minor: 0})  // -1 (less)

// Convenience comparisons
version.AtLeast(2, 0)  // true
version.AtLeast(2, 1)  // true
version.AtLeast(2, 2)  // false

version.Before(3, 0)   // true
version.Before(2, 1)   // false

Parsing Versions

// Parse from string
v, err := mobile.ParseVersion("v2.1")   // Version{2, 1}
v, err := mobile.ParseVersion("v2")     // Version{2, 0}
v, err := mobile.ParseVersion("2.1")    // Version{2, 1}
v, err := mobile.ParseVersion("2")      // Version{2, 0}

Version Middleware

Configuration Options

type VersionOptions struct {
    // Header is the version header name
    // Default: "X-API-Version"
    Header string

    // QueryParam is an alternative query parameter for version
    // Default: "" (disabled)
    QueryParam string

    // PathPrefix enables extraction from URL path prefix (e.g., /v1/...)
    // Default: false
    PathPrefix bool

    // Default is the default version when none specified
    // Default: Version{Major: 1}
    Default Version

    // Supported lists all supported versions
    // Empty means no validation
    Supported []Version

    // Deprecated lists deprecated versions (still work but warn)
    Deprecated []Version

    // OnUnsupported handles unsupported version requests
    OnUnsupported func(c *mizu.Ctx, v Version) error

    // EchoVersion includes X-API-Version in response
    // Default: true
    EchoVersion bool
}

Basic Setup

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported:  []mobile.Version{{3, 0}, {2, 0}, {1, 0}},
    Deprecated: []mobile.Version{{1, 0}},
    Default:    mobile.Version{Major: 3},
}))

Version Detection Sources

The middleware checks version from multiple sources: 1. Header (default)

curl -H "X-API-Version: v2" http://localhost:3000/api/users

2. Query Parameter

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    QueryParam: "version",
}))

curl "http://localhost:3000/api/users?version=v2"

3. URL Path Prefix

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    PathPrefix: true,
}))

curl http://localhost:3000/v2/api/users

Priority order: Header > Query > Path > Default

Supported Versions

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported: []mobile.Version{
        {3, 0},  // v3 - latest
        {2, 0},  // v2 - still supported
        {1, 0},  // v1 - deprecated but works
    },
}))

Unsupported versions return 400 Bad Request:

{
  "code": "invalid_request",
  "message": "Unsupported API version: v4",
  "details": {
    "requested": "v4",
    "supported": ["v3", "v2", "v1"]
  }
}

Deprecated Versions

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported:  []mobile.Version{{3, 0}, {2, 0}, {1, 0}},
    Deprecated: []mobile.Version{{1, 0}},
}))

Deprecated versions work but add response header:

X-API-Deprecated: true

Custom Unsupported Handler

app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported: []mobile.Version{{2, 0}},

    OnUnsupported: func(c *mizu.Ctx, v mobile.Version) error {
        return c.JSON(400, map[string]any{
            "error":     "Version not supported",
            "requested": v.String(),
            "available": []string{"v2"},
            "docs":      "https://api.example.com/docs/migration",
        })
    },
}))

Using Version Context

Access in Handlers

func handler(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    version := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)

    // Returns zero Version if middleware not applied
    if version.IsZero() {
        version = mobile.Version{Major: 1} // Default
    }

    return c.JSON(200, map[string]any{
        "api_version": version.String(),
    })
}

Version-Aware Logic

func getUsers(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    version := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)
    users := fetchUsers()

    // v3: New response format
    if version.AtLeast(3, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, V3Response{
            Data:    users,
            Meta:    getMeta(),
            Links:   getLinks(),
        })
    }

    // v2: Added pagination
    if version.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, V2Response{
            Data:       users,
            Total:      len(users),
            Page:       1,
            PerPage:    20,
        })
    }

    // v1: Simple array
    return c.JSON(200, users)
}

Switch-Based Routing

func handler(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    version := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)

    switch {
    case version.AtLeast(3, 0):
        return handleV3(c)
    case version.AtLeast(2, 0):
        return handleV2(c)
    default:
        return handleV1(c)
    }
}

Field-Level Versioning

type User struct {
    ID        int    `json:"id"`
    Name      string `json:"name"`
    Email     string `json:"email"`
    Username  string `json:"username,omitempty"` // v2+
    Avatar    string `json:"avatar,omitempty"`   // v3+
}

func getUser(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    version := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)
    user := fetchUser(c.Param("id"))

    // Create versioned response
    response := User{
        ID:    user.ID,
        Name:  user.Name,
        Email: user.Email,
    }

    if version.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        response.Username = user.Username
    }

    if version.AtLeast(3, 0) {
        response.Avatar = user.Avatar
    }

    return c.JSON(200, response)
}

Migration Patterns

Adding New Fields (Non-Breaking)

// v1 response
type UserV1 struct {
    ID   int    `json:"id"`
    Name string `json:"name"`
}

// v2 adds email (backward compatible)
type UserV2 struct {
    ID    int    `json:"id"`
    Name  string `json:"name"`
    Email string `json:"email"` // New field
}

func getUser(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    v := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)
    user := fetchUser()

    if v.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, UserV2{
            ID:    user.ID,
            Name:  user.Name,
            Email: user.Email,
        })
    }

    return c.JSON(200, UserV1{
        ID:   user.ID,
        Name: user.Name,
    })
}

Renaming Fields (Breaking)

// v1: uses "fullname"
type UserV1 struct {
    ID       int    `json:"id"`
    Fullname string `json:"fullname"`
}

// v2: renamed to "name"
type UserV2 struct {
    ID   int    `json:"id"`
    Name string `json:"name"`
}

func getUser(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    v := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)
    user := fetchUser()

    if v.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, UserV2{ID: user.ID, Name: user.Name})
    }

    // v1: Use old field name
    return c.JSON(200, UserV1{ID: user.ID, Fullname: user.Name})
}

Changing Data Types (Breaking)

// v1: role is a string
type UserV1 struct {
    ID   int    `json:"id"`
    Role string `json:"role"` // "admin", "user"
}

// v2: role is an object
type UserV2 struct {
    ID   int      `json:"id"`
    Role RoleInfo `json:"role"`
}

type RoleInfo struct {
    ID          int      `json:"id"`
    Name        string   `json:"name"`
    Permissions []string `json:"permissions"`
}

func getUser(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
    v := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)
    user := fetchUser()

    if v.AtLeast(2, 0) {
        return c.JSON(200, UserV2{
            ID:   user.ID,
            Role: getRoleInfo(user.RoleID),
        })
    }

    return c.JSON(200, UserV1{
        ID:   user.ID,
        Role: user.RoleName,
    })
}

Deprecation Workflow

// Step 1: Mark as deprecated
app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported:  []mobile.Version{{3, 0}, {2, 0}, {1, 0}},
    Deprecated: []mobile.Version{{1, 0}},
}))

// Step 2: Log usage of deprecated versions
func deprecationLogger() mizu.Middleware {
    return func(next mizu.Handler) mizu.Handler {
        return func(c *mizu.Ctx) error {
            v := mobile.VersionFromCtx(c)

            if v.Before(2, 0) {
                log.Warn("Deprecated API version used",
                    "version", v.String(),
                    "path", c.Request().URL.Path,
                    "device", mobile.DeviceFromCtx(c).DeviceID,
                )
            }

            return next(c)
        }
    }
}

// Step 3: Remove support (after migration period)
app.Use(mobile.VersionMiddleware(mobile.VersionOptions{
    Supported: []mobile.Version{{3, 0}, {2, 0}}, // v1 removed
}))

Client Implementation

iOS (Swift)

class APIClient {
    let apiVersion = "v2"

    func request(_ endpoint: String) -> URLRequest {
        var request = URLRequest(url: URL(string: baseURL + endpoint)!)
        request.setValue(apiVersion, forHTTPHeaderField: "X-API-Version")
        return request
    }

    func handleResponse(_ response: HTTPURLResponse) {
        if response.value(forHTTPHeaderField: "X-API-Deprecated") == "true" {
            // Warn user about deprecated API
            NotificationCenter.default.post(
                name: .apiDeprecated,
                object: nil
            )
        }
    }
}

Android (Kotlin)

class VersionInterceptor(private val apiVersion: String = "v2") : Interceptor {

    override fun intercept(chain: Interceptor.Chain): Response {
        val request = chain.request().newBuilder()
            .header("X-API-Version", apiVersion)
            .build()

        val response = chain.proceed(request)

        if (response.header("X-API-Deprecated") == "true") {
            // Handle deprecation warning
            EventBus.post(ApiDeprecatedEvent())
        }

        return response
    }
}

Flutter (Dart)

class ApiClient {
  static const apiVersion = 'v2';

  Future<Response> request(String endpoint) async {
    final response = await http.get(
      Uri.parse('$baseUrl$endpoint'),
      headers: {'X-API-Version': apiVersion},
    );

    if (response.headers['x-api-deprecated'] == 'true') {
      // Show deprecation warning
      showDeprecationWarning();
    }

    return response;
  }
}

Best Practices

Version Naming

Use semantic versioning: v1, v1.1, v2
Major versions for breaking changes
Minor versions for backward-compatible additions

Deprecation Timeline

Announce: Notify developers of upcoming deprecation
Warn: Add to deprecated list (X-API-Deprecated header)
Monitor: Track usage of deprecated versions
Remove: Remove from supported list

Documentation

Document all supported versions
Maintain migration guides
Provide changelogs per version

Next Steps

Structured Errors

Return consistent error responses

Pagination

Page and cursor-based pagination

Offline Sync

Delta synchronization

API Reference

Complete API documentation

Getting Started

Core Concepts

Backend Features

Native Platforms

Cross-Platform

Web & Games

Deployment

Templates

Reference

​Quick Start

​The Version Type

​Creating Versions

​Version Methods

​Parsing Versions

​Version Middleware

​Configuration Options

​Basic Setup

​Version Detection Sources

​Supported Versions

​Deprecated Versions

​Custom Unsupported Handler

​Using Version Context

​Access in Handlers

​Version-Aware Logic

​Switch-Based Routing

​Field-Level Versioning

​Migration Patterns

​Adding New Fields (Non-Breaking)

​Renaming Fields (Breaking)

​Changing Data Types (Breaking)

​Deprecation Workflow

​Client Implementation

​iOS (Swift)

​Android (Kotlin)

​Flutter (Dart)

​Best Practices

​Version Naming

​Deprecation Timeline

​Documentation

​Next Steps