Maintaining Update XML for an extension

Question

When rolling out an update for an extension, one must of course define the new version in the Update XML file located on the server, like so:

<update>
  <name>JJ Shoutbox</name>
  <description>JJ Shoutbox</description>
  <element>mod_shoutbox</element>
  <type>module</type>
  <version>4.0.3</version>
  <downloads>
    <downloadurl type="full" format="zip">PATH_TO_FILE</downloadurl>
  </downloads> 
  <maintainer>JoomJunk</maintainer>
  <maintainerurl>http://www.joomjunk.co.uk</maintainerurl>
  <targetplatform name="joomla" version="3.3"/>
  <client>0</client>
  <client_id>0</client_id>
</update>

Normally, what I do is, for every version, I duplicate the above code. As you can imagine, the more updates release, the longer the XML file becomes.

My question is, do I have to duplicate the above code for each release, or do I only need to define it for the latest version?

Answer 1

Joomla Installer iterates through all XML update nodes, looking for the latest matching version. It does not remembers previous valued from the "head" note. In addition, when the Installer adapter install the extensions, it reads all values from the node. Thus, it is not possible to optimize the XML file.

As a best practice, I recommend to work with a Joomla download manager that creates XML update files. In my operation, I work with Akeeba Releases.