Anthropic SDK Upgrader Skill for Claude

You are an expert at upgrading Anthropic SDK packages in the vscode-copilot-chat project.

Packages

| Package | Description |

|---------|-------------|

| @anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk | Official Claude Agent SDK - provides the core agent runtime, tools, hooks, sessions, and message streaming |

| @anthropic-ai/sdk | Anthropic API SDK - provides base types, API client, and message structures used by the agent SDK |

Upgrade Process

Follow these steps exactly:

1. Check Current Versions and Changelog

Before upgrading, review the current versions in package.json and check the release notes:

• Claude Agent SDK Releases: https://github.com/anthropics/claude-agent-sdk-typescript/releases
• Anthropic SDK Releases: https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-typescript/releases

2. Summarize All Changes

Create a consolidated summary of changes between the current version and the target version. Group changes by category, not by individual version:

Summary Format:

### `@anthropic-ai/package-name` (oldVersion → newVersion)

#### Features
- **Category:** Description of new feature or capability

#### Bug Fixes
- Description of what was fixed

#### Breaking Changes
- **Old API → New API**: Description of what changed and how to migrate

How to Create the Summary:

• Read the GitHub Release Notes: Go through each release between your versions
• Consolidate by Category: Group all features together, all bug fixes together, etc.
• Identify Breaking Changes: Look for:
• Removed or renamed exports
• Changed function signatures
• Modified type definitions
• Deprecated APIs that have been removed
• Document Migration Steps: For breaking changes, include the old and new patterns
• Check Peer Dependencies: Note if the new version requires different peer dependencies

3. List Important Changes

Categorize changes by impact level:

Critical (Must Address Before Merge):

• Breaking API changes that will cause compilation errors
• Removed types or functions currently in use
• Changed behavior of core functionality (sessions, streaming, tools)

Important (Should Address):

• Deprecated APIs that should be migrated
• New recommended patterns replacing old ones
• Performance improvements that require code changes

Nice to Have (Can Address Later):

• New optional features
• Additional type exports
• Enhanced error messages

4. Update Package Versions

# Update to latest
npm install @anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk @anthropic-ai/sdk

5. Detect API Surface Changes

After updating, diff the old and new type definitions to detect API changes that may not cause compilation errors but are important to know about (new parameters, new functions, deprecated APIs, etc.).

Steps:

• Snapshot before upgrading: Before running npm install in step 4, copy the current type definitions to a temp directory:

   mkdir -p /tmp/anthropic-sdk-old
   cp -r node_modules/@anthropic-ai/sdk/*.d.ts node_modules/@anthropic-ai/sdk/resources/*.d.ts /tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/ 2>/dev/null
   cp -r node_modules/@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk/*.d.ts /tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/ 2>/dev/null

> Important: This snapshot must be taken *before* step 4's npm install.

• Diff the type definitions: After npm install, compare the old and new .d.ts files:

   # Diff the Anthropic SDK types
   for f in node_modules/@anthropic-ai/sdk/*.d.ts node_modules/@anthropic-ai/sdk/resources/*.d.ts; do
     base=$(basename "$f")
     if [ -f "/tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/$base" ]; then
       diff -u "/tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/$base" "$f"
     else
       echo "+++ NEW FILE: $f"
     fi
   done

   # Diff the Agent SDK types
   for f in node_modules/@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk/*.d.ts; do
     base=$(basename "$f")
     if [ -f "/tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/$base" ]; then
       diff -u "/tmp/anthropic-sdk-old/$base" "$f"
     else
       echo "+++ NEW FILE: $f"
     fi
   done

• Analyze the diff and produce a report with the following categories:

New Exports — Functions, classes, types, or constants that were added:

• New exported functions or methods
• New type/interface definitions
• New enum values

New Parameters — Optional or required parameters added to existing functions:

• New optional fields on existing option/config types
• New required parameters (these are breaking changes — flag them as critical)
• New overloads of existing functions

Changed Signatures — Modifications to existing function/method signatures:

• Parameter type changes (e.g., string → string | string[])
• Return type changes
• Generic type parameter changes

Removed or Renamed — Items that were removed or renamed:

• Removed exports (breaking — flag as critical)
• Renamed types/functions (breaking — flag as critical)
• Removed fields from interfaces

Deprecations — Items newly marked as @deprecated:

• Functions or types with new @deprecated JSDoc tags

• Cross-reference with our usage: For each change found, check whether the codebase currently uses the affected API:

   # Example: if `createSession` gained a new parameter, check our usage
   grep -rn "createSession" src/extension/agents/claude/

Flag changes that affect APIs we actively use as higher priority.

• Summarize opportunities: Identify new APIs or parameters that could improve the codebase. These become candidates for follow-up work after the upgrade is complete.

• Clean up:

   rm -rf /tmp/anthropic-sdk-old

6. Fix Compilation Errors

After updating, check for compilation errors:

npm run compile

Address any type errors in the following key files:

• src/extension/agents/claude/node/claudeCodeAgent.ts - Session and message handling
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/claudeCodeSdkService.ts - SDK wrapper
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/sessionParser/claudeCodeSessionService.ts - Session persistence
• src/extension/agents/claude/common/claudeTools.ts - Tool type definitions
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/hooks/*.ts - Hook implementations
• src/extension/agents/claude/vscode-node/slashCommands/*.ts - Slash command handlers
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/toolPermissionHandlers/*.ts - Permission handlers

7. Run Tests

After upgrading, run the Claude-related unit tests to verify nothing is broken:

# Run all Claude agent tests
npm run test:unit -- --testPathPattern="agents/claude"

Fix any test failures before proceeding. Common test files to check:

• src/extension/agents/claude/node/test/claudeCodeAgent.spec.ts
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/test/claudeCodeSessionService.spec.ts
• src/extension/agents/claude/node/sessionParser/test/*.spec.ts

8. Update Documentation

If needed, update documentation in the codebase:

• Update src/extension/agents/claude/AGENTS.md if any architectural changes occurred
• Update type definitions in common/claudeTools.ts if tools changed
• Document any new features or capabilities added
• Update the "Official Claude Agent SDK Documentation" links if URLs changed

9. Commit with a Detailed Message

Create a commit message that documents the upgrade clearly. Include:

• Package version changes - Both old and new versions
• Features - Notable new capabilities added
• Bug fixes - Important fixes included
• Breaking changes - What changed and how it was addressed in the code

Example commit message:

Update Anthropic SDK packages

### `@anthropic-ai/sdk` (0.71.2 → 0.72.1)

#### Features
- Structured Outputs support in Messages API
- MCP SDK helper functions

#### Breaking Changes
- `output_format` → `output_config` parameter migration

### `@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk` (0.2.5 → 0.2.31)

#### Features
- **Query interface:** Added `close()` method, `reconnectMcpServer()`, `toggleMcpServer()` methods
- **Sessions:** Added `listSessions()` function for discovering resumable sessions
- **MCP:** Added `config`, `scope`, `tools` fields and `disabled` status to `McpServerStatus`

#### Bug Fixes
- Fixed `mcpServerStatus()` to include tools from SDK and dynamically-added MCP servers
- Fixed PermissionRequest hooks in SDK mode

#### Breaking Changes
- `KillShellInput` → `TaskStopInput`: Updated type mapping in claudeTools.ts

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Type Errors After Upgrade:

• Check if types were renamed (common: Message → ContentBlock, etc.)
• Look for removed type exports that need new imports
• Verify generic type parameters haven't changed

Session Loading Failures:

• Session file format may have changed between major versions
• Check ClaudeCodeSessionService for compatibility issues
• May need to clear old session files during major upgrades

Hook Registration Failures:

• Hook event names may have changed
• Check HookEvent type for valid event strings
• Verify hook callback signatures match new SDK expectations

Tool Execution Errors:

• Tool input schemas may have changed
• Check tool result handling for new error types
• Verify tool confirmation flow hasn't changed