Deprecate an API endpoint with a migration guide
Plans the deprecation of an API endpoint or field and writes the timeline, announcement, and migration guide for its consumers.
The prompt
Help me deprecate part of an API without breaking the people who depend on it.
What's being deprecated: [ENDPOINT, FIELD, SDK METHOD, OR VERSION]
Replacement: [NEW ENDPOINT OR BEHAVIOR, WITH EXAMPLE REQUEST AND RESPONSE]
Why: [REASON IN USER TERMS]
Who uses it: [INTERNAL TEAMS / EXTERNAL CUSTOMERS / PUBLIC DEVELOPERS - and usage data if known]
Constraints: [CONTRACTUAL NOTICE PERIODS, MOBILE APPS THAT CAN'T FORCE UPGRADES, VERSIONING POLICY]
Produce:
1. Timeline: announce, deprecation warnings live, brownouts (optional, short planned outages to surface remaining callers), sunset date. Justify the length based on who the consumers are; use [CONFIRM NOTICE PERIOD] for anything contractual.
2. Technical signals: deprecation headers or response warnings, logs to identify remaining callers, docs changes, and SDK warnings.
3. Migration guide: what's changing, before/after code examples, field-by-field mapping, behavior differences and edge cases, and an FAQ.
4. Announcement: a short message for a changelog, email, or developer forum, plus a reminder message for 30 days and 7 days before sunset.
5. Tracking: how to measure remaining usage and who to contact directly when sunset nears.
6. Rollback: what we do if a critical consumer can't migrate in time.
Don't invent current usage numbers; mark them [ADD USAGE DATA].
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Software Development prompts
What to fill in
- ENDPOINT, FIELD, SDK METHOD, OR VERSION
- NEW ENDPOINT OR BEHAVIOR, WITH EXAMPLE REQUEST AND RESPONSE
- REASON IN USER TERMS
- CONFIRM NOTICE PERIOD
- ADD USAGE DATA
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the RTF structure (Role, Task, Format). RTF tells the model who to be, what to do and what shape the answer should take. It is the quickest structure that still gives noticeably better results than a bare request.
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