Source URL: https://blog.scottlogic.com/2025/05/28/advice-on-transitioning-from-a-legacy-api.html
Source: Scott Logic
Title: Advice on transitioning from a legacy API
Feedly Summary: We have been helping a client migrate their trading platform to a new version of a third-party API. The migration is more interesting than usual for a number of reasons, so I thought it might be useful to share some insights from our experience.
AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: The text discusses the complexities and best practices of migrating a trading platform to a new, evolving version of a third-party API. It highlights the importance of keeping architectural components loosely coupled, verifying API behavior directly, and adopting an agile mindset to manage risks and uncertainties effectively.
Detailed Description: The article outlines practical insights from a real-world project involving the migration of a trading platform to a newer, more complex external API. The changes in the API include a transition from a legacy SOAP protocol to a modern RESTful approach, calling attention to several critical aspects of API integration. The main points are as follows:
– **Loose Coupling**:
– Emphasizes the importance of a clear separation of business logic between the internal platform and the external API.
– Advocates for maintaining abstraction layers to minimize dependencies on external API behavior and structure.
– The trading platform’s API serves as a translator, ensuring consistency in how data is processed and presented, irrespective of changes in external APIs.
– **Early Verification**:
– Recommends direct testing of each new release of the external API rather than solely relying on documentation to understand API behavior.
– Utilizes tools like Postman for interaction with the API to verify functionality across various use cases.
– Encourages testing a range of scenarios, including edge cases, to identify problems early,
– Employing WireMock to simulate the external API environment has aided in speeding up development and ensuring thorough testing.
– **Agile Adaptation**:
– Highlights the need for flexibility in project management, especially when dealing with evolving API specifications.
– Discusses how Agile methodologies may need adjustments, advocating for iterative planning and risk management.
– Stresses the importance of being responsive to new information from the external API owner, which influences project planning and development timelines.
This text serves as a critical reminder for professionals in the fields of software development and API management, emphasizing the necessity of structured yet adaptable approaches to API integration, ensuring robustness against unanticipated changes and minimizing technical debt for future iterations. The insights are particularly relevant for organizations operating within fast-paced, data-driven environments like financial services where trading applications must dynamically respond to changing market conditions and API specifications.