Changes to Release Numbering and Update Policies for Composable Storefront Starting in February 2024

Starting with the release of composable storefront in February 2024, the release numbering changes from Major.Minor to 2211.x, with the actual number "x" being set to the same number as the SAP Commerce Cloud release of the same month. The January 6.8 release of composable storefront is the last release following the old numbering.

For example, the SAP Commerce Cloud release in February 2024 is 2211.19, and accordingly, the February composable storefront release is 2211.19. Note that if a patch needs to be published for SAP Commerce Cloud, the numbering for the release is incremented by one. As a result, the actual release number for a given month is not set ahead of time.

It is generally recommended that you update SAP Commerce Cloud and composable storefront at the same time. This means that, starting with the February 2024 releases, you should migrate to the back end and front end with the same version number.

Since June 2023, composable storefront has been publishing new minor updates every month. This will continue with some small changes, as follows:

• A new release is planned for every month (currently, this usually takes place on the second Tuesday of the month, at the same time as SAP Commerce Cloud). These releases often include new features, though sometimes just bug fixes.

• Urgent bug fixes may be published between monthly releases, though usually, bug fixes will be planned for the following month's release. An out-of-sync bug fix will use a third number (such as 2211.19.1, for example).

Composable storefront uses the Angular framework, which publishes new major versions twice a year. These major versions of Angular have 18-month long-term support windows. In the past, composable storefront was updated twice a year with the new Angular framework. This is changing, as follows:

• The Angular framework update for composable storefront will take place once a year, in February, starting with the release in February 2024.

• Updates to the Angular framework require updates to customer storefronts because framework updates include breaking changes.

• Composable storefront may also include backwards-incompatible changes to the storefront architecture, only when necessary.

• Feature updates after the February update will normally be backwards compatible, using feature flags or by triggering them through the presence of page components.

The following is a summary of the new release cadence:

• February: Angular framework update, with changes to your storefront usually required, due to unavoidable breaking changes introduced in this release.

• March to November: New release every month, usually with new features, usually backwards compatible.

• December to January: Bug fix releases only because the next framework update is being worked on.

The February 2024 update release uses Angular 17. The following planned framework update will be in February 2025, likely with Angular 19. Final plans will be confirmed near the release date.

Similar to SAP Commerce Cloud, composable storefront uses feature flags so that changes are backwards-compatible. Compatibility can also be achieved through the presence of specific data or components, making feature flags sometimes unnecessary. The compatibility strategy is described in the documentation.

Starting with the February 2024 release, composable storefront will implement the same feature flag policies, as follows:

• New features are introduced from March to November

• New features are normally backwards-compatible

• The feature flag mechanism is used if a feature cannot be data-driven or activated through CMS.

Feature flags will normally follow the 12-month policy, as follows:

• If a feature uses a feature flag, the feature is disabled at the time of release and for the following six months.

• After six months, the feature is enabled by default, but you can disable it.

• After 12 months, the feature is enabled, and the flag is normally removed.

In certain cases, the ability to disable a feature is part of the feature itself; in that case, the feature flag remains. In other cases, removal of a feature flag may be delayed until the next framework release to allow consolidation of breaking changes related to Angular.

Composable storefront documentation used to be organized according to minor update releases. For example, a new complete documentation set was published for 6.5, 6.6, and 6.7.

Starting with the February 2024 release, a single "2211" documentation set will be available. Changes to the documentation are recorded in various places, such as the What's New Viewer, the "Updating" documentation, and in the feature documentation itself. The release history summary will also continue to be updated.

Support timeframes and testing policies have not changed. As stated in Update Release Policy and Publication Frequency for Composable Storefront Libraries:

• New releases are current and supported for six months. For example, a June update release is supported until December.

• New update releases are tested with the newest release and the previous five months of SAP Commerce Cloud. For example, the February 2024 update release of composable storefront (2211.19) was tested with SAP Commerce Cloud update releases from September 2023 (2211.12) onward.

Starting with the February 2024 release, new update releases of composable storefront only support the latest version of Node.js that is available in SAP Commerce Cloud cloud hosting services. For example, the latest version of Node.js that is supported by SAP Commerce Cloud cloud hosting as of this writing is Node.js v20. Accordingly, the February 2024 (2211.19) update release of composable storefront supports only Node.js v20.

The changes to the release numbering and update policies of composable storefront are made for the following reasons:

• They offer better predictability:

  • You can more easily plan the minimum two updates per year (which is to say, every six months).

  • The framework update is in the first half of the year, after the end-of-year holiday period.

  • Update releases between March and November are backwards-compatible.

• They simplify the yearly update requirements:

  • Only one backwards-incompatible framework update per year (which is a required update because Angular long-term support is 18 months).

  • Data-driven or feature flagged features are used during the rest of the year, which gives you control for when you want to enable new features.

• They simplify the release policies:

  • The same numbering makes it easier to understand which releases of composable storefront support which releases of SAP Commerce Cloud.

  • Synchronization of standards with SAP Commerce Cloud (feature flags, numbering, policies) helps with understanding the mechanics of the product as a whole.

• They strengthen SAP Commerce's commitment to continuous innovation.