Why I Validate Angular Compatibility Using the Published npm Package (Not the Source Code)

I just published a new article on a lesson I learned while maintaining my open-source Angular library.

I used to validate compatibility against my workspace and dist/, but eventually realized that wasn’t what developers actually install from npm.

That led me to redesign the CI pipeline to validate the published package across multiple Angular versions instead.

The article covers:

• Why testing dist/ isn’t enough
• Angular partial compilation and the linker
• Why type-checking alone can miss compatibility issues
• Validating the packaged artifact with npm pack
• Building a compatibility matrix for Angular 17–22

If you maintain an Angular library (or any npm package), I’d love to hear how you approach compatibility testing.

📖 Why I Validate Angular Compatibility Using the Published npm Package (Not the Source Code)

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