how do you develop and test components for all IDE versions?

Question

The following question has had me wondering for some time now as to how 3rd party component developers are able to ensure there components are compatible with all the various IDE versions?

I am just a single developer who uses Delphi XE and occasionally Lazarus, if I developed some components in Delphi XE how would I ensure they are compatible up to Delphi XE6 for example, and also compatible with older IDEs?

I don't mean in a coding sense because I believe you use the IFDEF flags when checking the Delphi version numbers. I mean if you don't have access to different Delphi versions how do you test the component?

It is not possible for me right now to purchase XE6 or a new Delphi IDE for a while - if it all, and even if I could I would not have previous IDE's like Delphi 5,6,7 etc.

So how do other component developers do it?

Purchase all the IDEs? which seems unlikely
Download Trials for the IDEs? which also seems unlikely
Get people to test the component if they have another IDE? Seems possible
Make it Open Source and let others test it? Also seems possible unless you want it Close Sourced

What it comes down to is I want to make a few simple components but I want them to be compatible with as many Delphi versions as possible should they ever be released to the public.

I don't have the means to get all the Delphi IDE versions and downloading trials may also not be possible. Even if I bought XE6 or the next release I would not be able to test with Delphi 8 for example.

So, how do 3rd party component developers make there components compatible and tested on various IDEs? Am I missing something obvious here, how can you have access to every Delphi IDE Version?

You should probably try to become a Technology Partner which will give you access to almost every Delphi version you can think of. The licenses although are only valid through the duration of you partnership. — Uwe Raabe
The most common approach seems to be to just release to the public, and wait for bug reports to flow in :) — Wouter van Nifterick
@WoutervanNifterick, isn't that the common approach for all software? — Uwe Raabe

Remy Lebeau Remy Lebeau · Accepted Answer · 2014-07-20T16:05:57

As a component vendor myself (I am the primary developer of Indy) who needs to support multiple versions, I can only speak for myself, but here is how I do it:

Purchase all the IDEs?

If possible, yes. I have a number of IDE versions installed in VMs, which I use for testing purposes. And for some versions that I do not have installed, I do have their RTL source code for reference purposes, at least. On the other hand, as a member of TeamB, I get free IDE licenses, which helps. Not everyone can afford to purchase every version, although newer versions do provide free licenses for older versions, so you should take advantage of that. I recently installed Delphi 7 through this. If a components works in Delphi 7 and Delphi XE6 then there is a good chance it will work in all versions in between (barring any version-specific RTL bugs, etc).

Download Trials for the IDEs?

N/A for me, but that might be a viable option for some people.

Get people to test the component if they have another IDE?

I do this with Indy. Although I do have several versions, I don't have every version. Other users who have versions I don't have myself do help. If nothing else, for setting up version-specific project files and testing install procedures.

Make it Open Source and let others test it?

This also helps. If you want to develop closed-source components, you could setup a private repository and give access to select users/volunteers. Most users want/need source code (to find and fix bugs when used in their projects, to satisfy corporate policy requirements, etc), so you should make sure you offer an option to pay for source code.

how do you develop and test components for all IDE versions?

3 Answers