dance-lessons-coach/adr/0010-api-v2-feature-flag.md

# 10. API v2 Feature Flag Implementation

**Date:** 2026-04-04
**Status:** Accepted
**Authors:** AI Agent

## Context

The DanceLessonsCoach application needed to add a new API version (v2) that provides different greeting behavior while maintaining backward compatibility with the existing v1 API. The v2 API should only be available when explicitly enabled via a feature flag.

## Decision

Implement API v2 with the following characteristics:

1. **Separate Service Implementation**: Create a new `ServiceV2` that implements different greeting logic
2. **Feature Flag Control**: Add a configuration flag `api.v2_enabled` to control v2 availability
3. **Environment Variable Support**: Allow enabling via `DLC_API_V2_ENABLED` environment variable
4. **Default Disabled**: v2 API is disabled by default to maintain backward compatibility
5. **Separate Routing**: v2 endpoints use `/api/v2` prefix, separate from `/api/v1`

## Implementation Details

### Service Layer

- **New Service**: `pkg/greet/greet_v2.go` with `ServiceV2` struct
- **New Interface**: `GreeterV2` interface with `GreetV2()` method
- **Different Behavior**: Returns "Hello my friend <name>!" instead of "Hello <name>!"
- **Empty Name Handling**: Returns "Hello my friend!" when name is empty

### API Layer

- **New Handler**: `pkg/greet/api_v2.go` with `apiV2GreetHandler` struct
- **New Interface**: `ApiV2Greet` interface with `RegisterRoutes()` method
- **POST Endpoint**: `/api/v2/greet` expects JSON body with `name` field
- **JSON Response**: Returns `{"message": "<greeting>"}` format

### Configuration

- **New Config Struct**: `APIConfig` in `pkg/config/config.go`
- **Feature Flag**: `V2Enabled bool` field
- **Environment Variable**: `DLC_API_V2_ENABLED` binding
- **Default Value**: `false` (disabled by default)
- **Config Method**: `GetV2Enabled()` method on `Config` struct

### Server Integration

- **Conditional Routing**: v2 routes only registered when `config.GetV2Enabled()` returns true
- **Separate Registration**: `registerApiV2Routes()` method in server
- **Same Middleware**: v2 routes use same middleware stack as v1
- **Graceful Coexistence**: Both v1 and v2 can run simultaneously

### Testing

- **Unit Tests**: `pkg/greet/greet_v2_test.go` with table-driven tests
- **BDD Tests**: Extended `features/greet.feature` with v2 scenarios
- **Step Definitions**: Added v2-specific steps in `pkg/bdd/steps/steps.go`
- **Test Server**: Modified test server to enable v2 by default for testing

## Consequences

### Positive

- **Backward Compatibility**: v1 API continues to work unchanged
- **Feature Flag Control**: v2 can be enabled/disabled without code changes
- **Clean Separation**: v1 and v2 implementations are independent
- **Test Coverage**: Comprehensive BDD tests validate both versions
- **Configuration Flexibility**: Can be controlled via config file or environment variables

### Negative

- **Increased Complexity**: More code paths to maintain
- **Configuration Management**: Additional configuration option to document
- **Testing Overhead**: Need to test both enabled and disabled states
- **Deployment Considerations**: Need to ensure feature flag is set correctly in production

## Alternatives Considered

### 1. Always Enable v2
- **Rejected**: Would break backward compatibility
- **Reason**: Customers might not be ready for API changes

### 2. Replace v1 with v2
- **Rejected**: Would be a breaking change
- **Reason**: Violates semantic versioning principles

### 3. Use URL Query Parameter
- **Rejected**: Less clean API design
- **Reason**: Version should be in URL path, not query string

### 4. Use Header-Based Versioning
- **Rejected**: More complex for clients
- **Reason**: URL-based versioning is more RESTful and discoverable

## Validation

### Test Results

```bash
# Unit tests pass
go test ./pkg/greet/...

# BDD tests pass
go test ./features/... -v

# All scenarios pass:
- Default greeting (v1)
- Personalized greeting (v1)
- v2 greeting with JSON POST request
- v2 default greeting with empty name
- Health check returns healthy status
```

### Manual Testing

```bash
# Test v2 disabled (default)
curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v2/greet -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"name":"John"}'
# Expected: 404 Not Found

# Test v2 enabled
DLC_API_V2_ENABLED=true go run ./cmd/server
curl -X POST http://localhost:8080/api/v2/greet -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"name":"John"}'
# Expected: {"message":"Hello my friend John!"}

# Test v1 still works
curl http://localhost:8080/api/v1/greet/John
# Expected: {"message":"Hello John!"}
```

## Migration Path

1. **Deploy with v2 Disabled**: Initial deployment keeps v2 disabled
2. **Enable in Staging**: Test v2 in staging environment
3. **Gradual Rollout**: Enable v2 for select customers
4. **Monitor**: Track usage and performance
5. **Full Enable**: Enable v2 for all customers when ready
6. **Deprecation**: Eventually deprecate v1 (future decision)

## Future Considerations

- **Deprecation Timeline**: When to deprecate v1
- **Version Negotiation**: Content negotiation for API versions
- **OpenAPI Documentation**: Update Swagger/OpenAPI docs for v2
- **Client SDKs**: Update client libraries to support v2
- **Metrics**: Add metrics to track v1 vs v2 usage

## References

- [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/)
- [REST API Versioning Best Practices](https://restfulapi.net/versioning/)
- [Feature Flags Pattern](https://martinfowler.com/articles/feature-toggles.html)

## Changelog Entry

```
### 2026-04-04 - API v2 Implementation
- ✅ Added /api/v2/greet POST endpoint with JSON request/response
- ✅ Implemented ServiceV2 with "Hello my friend <name>!" greeting format
- ✅ Added api.v2_enabled feature flag (default: false)
- ✅ Extended BDD tests to cover v2 scenarios
- ✅ Maintained full backward compatibility with v1 API
- ✅ Added DLC_API_V2_ENABLED environment variable support
```