Deprecated APIs | Node.js v7.9.0 Documentation

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# Deprecated APIs#

Node.js may deprecate APIs when either: (a) use of the API is considered to be unsafe, (b) an improved alternative API has been made available, or (c) breaking changes to the API are expected in a future major release.

Node.js utilizes three kinds of Deprecations:

- Documentation-only
- Runtime
- End-of-Life

A Documentation-only deprecation is one that is expressed only within the Node.js API docs. These generate no side-effects while running Node.js.

A Runtime deprecation will, by default, generate a process warning that will be printed to `stderr` the first time the deprecated API is used. When the `--throw-deprecation` command-line flag is used, a Runtime deprecation will cause an error to be thrown.

An End-of-Life deprecation is used to identify code that either has been removed or will soon be removed from Node.js.

## Un-deprecation#

From time-to-time the deprecation of an API may be reversed. Such action may happen in either a semver-minor or semver-major release. In such situations, this document will be updated with information relevant to the decision. However, the deprecation identifier will not be modified.

## List of Deprecated APIs#

### DEP0062: node --debug#

Type: Runtime

`--debug` activates the legacy V8 debugger interface, which has been removed as of V8 5.8. It is replaced by Inspector which is activated with `--inspect` instead.

### DEP0063: ServerResponse.prototype.writeHeader()#

Type: Documentation-only

The `http` module `ServerResponse.prototype.writeHeader()` API has been deprecated. Please use `ServerResponse.prototype.writeHead()` instead.

Note: The `ServerResponse.prototype.writeHeader()` method was never documented as an officially supported API.