Angular recently announced plans to release one final version of AngularJS followed by a 3-year Long Term Support period. The timeline for the release and support period are as follows:
• January 1 - June 30, 2018: AngularJS 1.7 Active Development During this time there will be patch releases that will include non-breaking changes and fixes.
• July 1, 2018 - June 30, 2021: Long Term Support period Bugs that will be fixed during this time period include security flaws in the 1.7 framework as well as any incompatibility issues with a new version of a major browser or jQuery library that causes production applications to malfunction.
The Angular team assured developers that “all AngularJS applications that work now, will continue to work in the future.” However, since bug fixes will seemingly cease in 3.5 years, one can assume applications running on the framework will be at risk for malfunction past that point. Therefore, if developers and product owners want to ensure longevity of their applications, it is best to utilize the Long Term Support period to either migrate from AngularJS to Angular or rewrite your application.
To migrate or rewrite, that is the question…
A complete rewrite may be a great option if you have the time and resources to do it. It can often be more cost-effective than migration, and it allows you to use best practices as recommended for Angular. But, a rewrite doesn’t work so well if your application needs to constantly have new features released in production, or if it’s a large application that would take years to rewrite. If your application falls into one of those categories than you will need to plan for a migration.
Migration 101
Be prepared for a bit of a learning curve, especially if you have never developed in TypeScript. For JavaScript developers the transition won’t be difficult and the advantages of writing in TypeScript will be clear to you as you get more comfortable with it.
Make a migration plan. You can migrate feature by feature, or route by route. Educate yourself about the two options and choose which works best for your app.
Learn how to bridge between the Angular and AngularJS pieces of your app.
Re-think your deployment process as many features that needed to be manually configured in AngularJS are provided in Angular through Angular CLI.
Refer to Upgrading from AngularJS throughout the process.
One Final Thought
Determining how best to proceed, in light of Angular’s recent announcement, may seem like a daunting task. However, teaming up with experienced developers who can transition your apps efficiently and effectively will simplify the process. Our team at Troy Web Consulting has years of development experience and a commitment to providing our clients with the best technological solutions available. Whether it's migration from AngularJS to Angular or a complete rewrite, Troy Web will work with you to ensure the longevity and functionality of your apps.