API governance
As part of Qlik's API strategy, the API governance policy include guidelines around the stability of the APIs and how to handle deprecation of existing APIs.
The API strategy is to be fully transparent and predictable because partners and customers need to be able to plan and rely in their investments on top of the Qlik Sense APIs.
Developers maintaining and extending the APIs need to be able to introduce new APIs that are not yet fully proven, and to retire old APIs when they are no longer optimal or supported by the underlying platform.
For this, the stability index and the deprecation policy has been introduced.
Stability index
The stability index indicates how stable or mature an API is. There are three levels:
- Experimental
- Stable
- Locked
| State | Description |
|---|---|
| Experimental | This API is under development. Do not rely on it. It may change or be removed in future versions. |
| Stable | Stable APIs are reliable and breaking changes are unlikely. |
| Locked | Locked APIs are extremely reliable and will not be broken unless absolutely necessary. |
Deprecation policy
The deprecation policy defines when an API is considered deprecated. The deprecation period starts when the deprecation has been officially published to the API consumer, together with an available API replacement.
The API replacement must be announced at the time of deprecation, so you can start adapting your custom solution and start preparing it for the removal of the API.
The deprecation period varies depending on the maturity of the API. The following deprecation periods are set for each stability index:
| State | Description |
|---|---|
| Experimental | No deprecation period |
| Stable | Deprecation period of 6 months |
| Locked | Deprecation period of 12 months |