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docs(apis): add client and API compatibility section#8361

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nicpupa/client-forward-compatibility
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docs(apis): add client and API compatibility section#8361
nicpuppa wants to merge 1 commit intomainfrom
nicpupa/client-forward-compatibility

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@nicpuppa nicpuppa commented Mar 24, 2026

Description

Adds documentation explaining the forward and backward compatibility guarantees between Camunda clients/SDKs and the Orchestration Cluster.

When should this change go live?

  • This is a bug fix, security concern, or something that needs urgent release support. (add bug or support label)
  • This is already available but undocumented and should be released within a week. (add available & undocumented label)
  • This is on a specific schedule and the assignee will coordinate a release with the Documentation team. (create draft PR and/or add hold label)
  • This is part of a scheduled alpha or minor. (add alpha or minor label)
  • There is no urgency with this change (add low prio label)

PR Checklist

  • My changes are for an upcoming minor release and are in the /docs directory (version 8.9).
  • My changes are for an already released minor and are in a /versioned_docs directory.

closes camunda/camunda#41938

- Add "Client and API compatibility" section to public-api.md with
  forward/backward compatibility table for clients, SDKs, CPT, and
  REST APIs
- Add compatibility note in 8.9 announcements (APIs & tools section)
- Add compatibility summary with link in working-with-apis-tools.md
@nicpuppa nicpuppa requested review from megglos and mesellings March 24, 2026 11:01
@nicpuppa nicpuppa self-assigned this Mar 24, 2026
@nicpuppa nicpuppa added deploy Stand up a temporary docs site with this PR target:8.9 Issues included in the 8.9 release labels Mar 24, 2026
@camunda-docs-pr-automation camunda-docs-pr-automation bot moved this to 👀 In Review in Documentation Team Mar 24, 2026
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👋 🤖 🤔 Hello, @nicpuppa! Did you make your changes in all the right places?

These files were changed only in docs/. You might want to duplicate these changes in versioned_docs/version-8.8/.

  • docs/apis-tools/working-with-apis-tools.md
  • docs/reference/announcements-release-notes/890/890-announcements.md
  • docs/reference/public-api.md

You may have done this intentionally, but we wanted to point it out in case you didn't. You can read more about the versioning within our docs in our documentation guidelines.

@nicpuppa nicpuppa added the 8.9.0 label Mar 24, 2026
@github-actions github-actions bot temporarily deployed to camunda-docs March 24, 2026 11:11 Destroyed
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The preview environment relating to the commit 2c73957 has successfully been deployed. You can access it at https://preview.docs.camunda.cloud/pr-8361/

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@megglos megglos left a comment

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My understanding is that SDKs/clients are only forward-comaptible, while the API is generally backwardscompatible - old requests are processable still.

Clients are not backwardscompatible, as they may contain new functionality not present on the previous OC release. A new client may send requests the server is not capable to handle properly. E.g. a new endpoint and/or property.

That's why the upgrade path should be cluster first, then clients.

Let's align on what I might be getting wrong.

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Screenshot 2026-03-26 at 15 15 25

@megglos this is the backward/forward compatibility of the client.

here the explanation case by case

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[docs] Explain forward compatibility of the public API

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