Deprecation Process

Deprecating features or interfaces is a delicate process, and must be handled with care and empathy for end-user. This page lists the steps to take in order to manage a successful deprecation.

To this effect, we follow a timeline of 4 releases, during which we gradually roll out the deprecated feature.

flowchart TD
   A1(Decision to start deprecation)
   A2(Inform the community of the timeline)
   B1(Include deprecation notice in the changelog)
   B2(Show a warning when the command is used)
   B3(Remove code paths from the code base but keep interface)
   B4(Remove legacy interface)


   C1[Introduce alternative]
   C2[Alternative is recommended]
   C3[Alternative implements the old interface when applicable]
   C4[Alternative takes over]
   subgraph Preparation
   A1 --> A2
   end
   subgraph Release N
   A2 --> B1 
   A2 --> C1
   end
   subgraph Release N+1
   B1 --> B2
   C1 --> C2
   end
   subgraph Release N+2
   B2 --> B3
   C2 --> C3
   end
   subgraph Release N+3
   B3 --> B4
   C3 --> C4
   end

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