| layout | group | subgroup | title | menu_title | menu_order | version | github_link | redirect_from |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
default |
extension-dev-guide |
99_Module Development |
Public interfaces & APIs |
Public interfaces & APIs |
3 |
2.0 |
extension-dev-guide/api-concepts.md |
/guides/v1.0/extension-dev-guide/api-concepts.html |
##{{page.menu_title}}
A public interface is a set of code that third-party developers can call, implement, or build as a plug-in. Magento guarantees that this code will not change in subsequent releases without a major version change.
Public interfaces for a module reside in the Api folder for a module. For example, the public interfaces for the `Customer` module reside in the `vendor/magento/module-customer/Api directory.
Third-party developers should use only these interfaces, that is, interfaces with the `@api` annotation. You can use other interfaces but those may be modified or removed in subsequent Magento releases. For more information, see Backward compatibility.
An application programming interface (API) is a set of interfaces and their implementations that a module provides to other modules.
The following items are considered types of APIs:
- Directory structure
- Configuration files structure
- Events
- Client API
- Provider API (SPI)
Directory structure and configuration file structure are types of APIs because extension developers use them. Developers write configurations, and place their static files in specified folders; so if the configuration file structure or directory structure changes in subsequent releases, modules and extensions may break.