{
  "status": "Illustrative acceptance plan, not an executable test suite or observed production result",
  "topic": "Mobile app API backward compatibility",
  "date": "2026-11-04",
  "sourceArticle": "https://aptixlabs.com/insights/mobile-api-version-compatibility",
  "setup": [
    "Use synthetic accounts and records",
    "Record the environment and implementation version",
    "Agree the expected product contract before testing"
  ],
  "reviewSequence": [
    "Maintain an inventory of supported client contracts",
    "Test representative old consumers against new responses",
    "Define deprecation and minimum-version behavior"
  ],
  "cases": [
    {
      "id": "1",
      "condition": "An optional field is added",
      "expectedBehavior": "Supported clients retain correct behavior",
      "observedBehavior": null,
      "status": "not_run"
    },
    {
      "id": "2",
      "condition": "An unknown enum appears",
      "expectedBehavior": "Older consumers fail or fall back safely",
      "observedBehavior": null,
      "status": "not_run"
    },
    {
      "id": "3",
      "condition": "A client is below the support floor",
      "expectedBehavior": "The user gets a clear update and recovery path",
      "observedBehavior": null,
      "status": "not_run"
    }
  ],
  "tradeoff": "Supporting old clients has operational cost. A clear minimum-version policy can be reasonable, but forced updates should be planned around availability, accessibility and account recovery."
}