Old PhoneGap Versions Being Retired from PhoneGap Build

On October 1st, 2017 we’ll be retiring support for all PhoneGap versions below cli-6.0.0 on PhoneGap Build (PGB). In terms of specific platforms, this means the retirement of PhoneGap iOS 3.x, PhoneGap Android 4.x, and PhoneGap Winphone 3.x (and below).

Why?

Security updates are a regular occurrence in PhoneGap and the Cordova project. By retiring old versions, we’re hoping to encourage adoption of a more stable and secure platform. It’s quite likely that many of these older versions wouldn’t even be accepted to the app stores due to security updates.

In addition, the fewer PhoneGap versions we have to support on PGB, the less complex our code is. Less complexity means higher stability, and gives us more time to focus on features.

How to update

Depending on how old the version of PhoneGap you’re currently using is, this could be trivial or a bit more involved. Either way, the first step is to up the version in your config.xml:

<preference name='phonegap-version' value='cli-6.5.0' />

If you’re using plugins and have them locked to older versions, you’ll want to bring those up to date as well. Then test, test, test. We recommend reading through the release notes of your supported platforms (iOS, Android, Windows).

We’ll also be pushing support for the latest version of PhoneGap onto PGB in the next couple of weeks, so you may want to wait and choose that as your upgrade point. PGB’s currently supported PhoneGap versions are listed here.

Questions?

Ping us on the PhoneGap Build support forum. 🍻