The document presents the results of a systematic mapping study on API deprecation. It describes the systematic mapping process, including database searches, study selection, and data extraction. It identifies several research gaps, such as a focus on Java APIs, lack of studies on preventing deprecation, and few studies of remote/REST APIs. Finally, it provides examples of research directions studied, such as usage of deprecation features, reactions to deprecation, updating calls to deprecated APIs, and deprecation of REST APIs.

1. Leif Bonorden & Matthias Riebisch
API Deprecation:
A Systematic Mapping Study

2. Overview
▪ API Deprecation
▪ Systematic Mapping Process & Results
▪ Research Gaps
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3. Application Programming Interface
boundary across which a software application uses
facilities of programming languages to invoke software services
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API
[ISO/IEC 13522-6]

4. request
response
API
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API
client
API
supplier

5. request
response
API: static
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client
library,
framework
SDK
same environment
(e.g., programming language)

6. request
response
API: remote
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client
web service,
microservice
means of
network communication

7. dep·re·cate
to express disapproval of
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[Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary]
Deprecation

8. Deprecation
Programmers are sometimes discouraged from using
certain program elements
(modules, classes, interfaces, fields, methods, and constructors)
because they are considered dangerous or
because a better alternative exists.
The annotation interface Deprecated allows a compiler
to warn about uses of these program elements.
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[Java Language Specification]

9. request
response
API
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API
client
API
supplier

10. Deprecation
terminally deprecated
intended to be removed in a future release
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[Java Language Specification]

11. Overview
▪ API Deprecation
▸ Systematic Mapping Process & Results
▪ Research Gaps
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12. Systematic Mapping Process
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13. State of Research: Years of Publication
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14. State of Research: Beneficiaries (Who?)
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15. State of Research: Contribution (What?)
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16. State of Research: Research Strategies (How?)
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17. State of Research: API types
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18. State of Research: Deprecation aspects
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19. State of Research: Map
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20. Overview
▪ API Deprecation
▪ Systematic Mapping Process & Results
▸ Research Gaps
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21. Research Gaps: Uncharted Territory
only 1 of 36 publications studies
the deprecation of remote APIs
although common in modern systems
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22. Research Gaps: Out of Focus
26 of 36 publications study the deprecation of Java APIs
(maybe) because deprecation mechanisms
are quite comprehensive in Java
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23. Research Gaps: Unbridged Gap
only 4 of 36 publications consider suppliers and clients
often seen as opponent parties
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24. Research Gaps: Human-out-of-the-loop
only 1 of 36 publications studies real situations
research almost only with (open-source-)data
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25. Research Gaps: Prevention Better Than Cure
none of the 36 publications studies prevention/preparation
symptoms are treated, but causes are not addressed
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26. Overview
▪ API Deprecation
▪ Systematic Mapping Process & Results
▪ Research Gaps
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27. Research Gaps
Uncharted Territory: static vs. remote APIs
Out of Focus: only a few programming languages
Unbridged Gap: suppliers and clients
Human-out-of-the-Loop: data research
Prevention Better Than Cure: causes of deprecation
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28. State of Research
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SEAA 2022

29. Background
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30. The Who, What, How of SE Research
M.-A. Storey, N. A. Ernst, C. Williams, E. Kalliamvakou (2020)
The Who, What, How of Software Engineering Research:
A Socio-technical Framework
Empirical Software Engineering, 25(5), 4097–4129

31. The Who, What, How of SE Research: How?
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Empirical Strategies

32. The Who, What, How of SE Research: How?
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Non-Empirical Strategies
Formal Theory
Meta

33. Systematic Mapping Process
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34. Systematic Mapping Process
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35. Systematic Mapping Process: Database Search
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Search String: api AND deprecat*
Databases: ACM Digital Library, IEEE Xplore,
Microsoft Academic,
Elsevier ScienceDirect,
Web Of Science

36. Systematic Mapping Process
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37. Systematic Mapping Process: Study Selection
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Inclusion Criteria:
• journal, workshop, conference
• discussion of API deprecation
• English

38. Systematic Mapping Process: Study Selection
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Exclusion Criteria:
• not peer-reviewed
• no research of API deprecation
• no new results
• included in another study

39. Systematic Mapping Process
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40. Systematic Mapping Process: Snowballing
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S. A. Spoon (2007)
Fine-grained api evolution for method deprecation
and anti-deprecation
Int. Workshop on Foundations and Developments
of Object-Oriented Languages

41. Systematic Mapping Process
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42. Systematic Mapping Process: Data Extraction
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Data Extraction:
• data extraction form
• extraction by first author,
revision by second author
• disagreements solved by discussion

43. Research Directions: Examples
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44. Examples: Usage of Deprecation Features
D. Qiu, B. Li, H. Leung (2016)
Understanding the API usage in Java
G. Brito, A. Hora, M. Tulio Valente, R. Robbes (2018)
On the use of replacement messages in API deprecation: An empirical study
L. Li, J. Gao, T. F. Bissyandé, L. Ma, X. Xia, J. Klein (2020)
CDA: Characterising Deprecated Android APIs
R. Nascimento, E. Figueiredo, A. Hora (2021)
JavaScript API Deprecation Landscape: A Survey and Mining Study
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45. Examples: Reaction to Deprecation
R. Robbes, M. Lungu, D. Röthlisberger (2012)
How Do Developers React to API Deprecation?
The Case of a Smalltalk Ecosystem
A. A. Sawant, R. Robbes, A. Bacchelli (2018)
On the reaction to deprecation of clients of 4+1 popular Java APIs and the JDK
A. A. Sawant, G. Huang, G. Vilen, S. Stojkovski, A. Bacchelli (2019)
To react, or not to react: Patterns of reaction to API deprecation
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46. Examples: Updating Calls to Deprecated APIs
Y. Xi, L. Shen, Y. Gui, W. Zhao (2019)
Migrating Deprecated API to Documented Replacement: Patterns and Tool
S. Haryono, F. Thung, H. Kang, L. Serrano, G. Muller, J. Lawall, D. Lo, L. Jiang (2020)
Automatic Android Deprecated-API Usage Update
by Learning from Single Updated Example
F. Thung, S. Haryono, L. Serrano, G. Muller, J. Lawall, D. Lo, L. Jiang (2020)
Automated Deprecated-API Usage Update for Android Apps: How Far are We?
S. Haryono, F. Thung, D. Lo, L. Jiang, J. Lawall, H. Kang, L. Serrano, G. Muller (2021)
AndroEvolve: Automated Update for Android Deprecated-API Usages
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47. Examples: Deprecation of REST APIs
J. Yasmin, Y. Tian, J. Yang (2020)
A First Look at the Deprecation of RESTful APIs: An Empirical Study
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