langfuse-upgrade-migration

What this skill does

# Langfuse Upgrade & Migration

## Current State

!`npm list langfuse @langfuse/client @langfuse/tracing @langfuse/otel 2>/dev/null | head -10 || echo 'No langfuse packages found'`
!`pip show langfuse 2>/dev/null | grep -E "Name|Version" || echo 'Python langfuse not installed'`

## Overview

Step-by-step guide for upgrading the Langfuse SDK across major versions. Covers v3 to v4 (OTel rewrite), v4 to v5, breaking changes, and automated codemods.

## Prerequisites

- Existing Langfuse integration
- Test suite covering traced operations
- Git branch for the upgrade

## Version Roadmap

| SDK | Package | Architecture | Status |
|-----|---------|-------------|--------|
| v3 | `langfuse` (single) | Custom, `Langfuse` class | Legacy |
| v4 | `@langfuse/client`, `@langfuse/tracing`, `@langfuse/otel` | OpenTelemetry-based | Stable |
| v5 | `@langfuse/client`, `@langfuse/tracing`, `@langfuse/otel` | OpenTelemetry + improvements | Latest |

## Instructions

### Step 1: Check Current Version and Plan

```bash
set -euo pipefail
# Check what you have
npm list langfuse @langfuse/client @langfuse/tracing 2>/dev/null

# Check latest available
npm info @langfuse/client version
npm info @langfuse/tracing version
npm info langfuse version

# Python
pip show langfuse 2>/dev/null | grep Version
pip index versions langfuse 2>/dev/null | head -3
```

### Step 2: v3 to v4 Migration (TypeScript)

This is the biggest migration -- v4 rewrites tracing on OpenTelemetry.

**2a. Install new packages:**

```bash
set -euo pipefail
# Install v4+ packages
npm install @langfuse/client @langfuse/tracing @langfuse/otel @opentelemetry/sdk-node

# Keep langfuse v3 temporarily for comparison
# Remove after migration: npm uninstall langfuse
```

**2b. Update initialization:**

```typescript
// BEFORE (v3):
import { Langfuse } from "langfuse";
const langfuse = new Langfuse({
  publicKey: process.env.LANGFUSE_PUBLIC_KEY,
  secretKey: process.env.LANGFUSE_SECRET_KEY,
  baseUrl: process.env.LANGFUSE_HOST,
});

// AFTER (v4+):
import { LangfuseClient } from "@langfuse/client";
import { LangfuseSpanProcessor } from "@langfuse/otel";
import { NodeSDK } from "@opentelemetry/sdk-node";

// OTel setup (once at entry point)
const sdk = new NodeSDK({
  spanProcessors: [new LangfuseSpanProcessor()],
});
sdk.start();

// Client for prompts, datasets, scores
const langfuse = new LangfuseClient();
```

**2c. Update tracing calls:**

```typescript
// BEFORE (v3): Manual trace/span/generation
const trace = langfuse.trace({ name: "my-op", input: data });
const span = trace.span({ name: "step-1", input: data });
await doWork();
span.end({ output: result });
const gen = trace.generation({ name: "llm", model: "gpt-4o" });
gen.end({ output: response, usage: { promptTokens: 10 } });
await langfuse.flushAsync();

// AFTER (v4+): startActiveObservation with auto-nesting
import { startActiveObservation, updateActiveObservation } from "@langfuse/tracing";

await startActiveObservation("my-op", async () => {
  updateActiveObservation({ input: data });

  await startActiveObservation("step-1", async () => {
    updateActiveObservation({ input: data });
    const result = await doWork();
    updateActiveObservation({ output: result });
  });

  await startActiveObservation({ name: "llm", asType: "generation" }, async () => {
    updateActiveObservation({ model: "gpt-4o" });
    const response = await callLLM();
    updateActiveObservation({ output: response, usage: { promptTokens: 10 } });
  });
});
```

**2d. Update OpenAI wrapper:**

```typescript
// BEFORE (v3):
import { observeOpenAI } from "langfuse";

// AFTER (v4+):
import { observeOpenAI } from "@langfuse/openai";
// npm install @langfuse/openai
```

**2e. Update environment variable:**

```bash
# BEFORE: LANGFUSE_HOST or LANGFUSE_BASEURL
# AFTER:  LANGFUSE_BASE_URL (LANGFUSE_BASEURL still works in v4 but not v5)
```

**2f. Update prompt management:**

```typescript
// BEFORE (v3):
const prompt = await langfuse.getPrompt("my-prompt", 2); // version as positional arg

// AFTER (v4+):
const prompt = await langfuse.prompt.get("my-prompt", {
  version: 2, // version in options object
  type: "text", // explicit type
});
```

**2g. Update shutdown:**

```typescript
// BEFORE (v3):
await langfuse.shutdownAsync();

// AFTER (v4+):
await sdk.shutdown(); // Shuts down OTel SDK + flushes spans
```

### Step 3: Python SDK Migration (v2 to v3)

```python
# BEFORE (v2):
from langfuse import Langfuse
langfuse = Langfuse()

@langfuse.observe()
def my_function():
    pass

# AFTER (v3):
from langfuse.decorators import observe, langfuse_context

@observe()
def my_function():
    langfuse_context.update_current_observation(
        metadata={"key": "value"}
    )
```

### Step 4: Run Tests and Verify

```bash
set -euo pipefail
# Run existing test suite
npm test

# Verify traces appear in dashboard
node -e "
  const { startActiveObservation, updateActiveObservation } = require('@langfuse/tracing');
  startActiveObservation('upgrade-verify', async () => {
    updateActiveObservation({ input: { test: true }, output: { migrated: true } });
  }).then(() => console.log('Migration verified'));
"
```

### Step 5: Remove Old Package

```bash
set -euo pipefail
# After all tests pass
npm uninstall langfuse

# Verify no lingering imports
grep -rn "from ['\"]langfuse['\"]" src/ || echo "No old imports found"
```

## Breaking Changes Quick Reference

| Change | v3 | v4+ |
|--------|-------|-------|
| Package | `langfuse` | `@langfuse/client` + `@langfuse/tracing` + `@langfuse/otel` |
| Client class | `Langfuse` | `LangfuseClient` |
| Base URL env | `LANGFUSE_HOST` | `LANGFUSE_BASE_URL` |
| Tracing | `langfuse.trace()` / `.span()` / `.generation()` | `startActiveObservation()` / `observe()` |
| Flush | `langfuse.flushAsync()` | `sdk.shutdown()` |
| Prompt version | `getPrompt(name, version)` | `prompt.get(name, { version })` |
| OpenAI | `import { observeOpenAI } from "langfuse"` | `import { observeOpenAI } from "@langfuse/openai"` |

## Error Handling

| Error | Cause | Solution |
|-------|-------|----------|
| `Cannot find module '@langfuse/tracing'` | Package not installed | `npm install @langfuse/tracing @langfuse/otel @opentelemetry/sdk-node` |
| `langfuse.trace is not a function` | Using v4 `LangfuseClient` for tracing | Use `startActiveObservation` from `@langfuse/tracing` |
| Flat traces (no nesting) | OTel SDK not started | Register `LangfuseSpanProcessor` with `NodeSDK` |
| `LANGFUSE_HOST` ignored | v5 dropped legacy env var | Rename to `LANGFUSE_BASE_URL` |

## Resources

- [v3 to v4 Migration Guide](https://langfuse.com/docs/observability/sdk/upgrade-path/js-v3-to-v4)
- [v4 to v5 Migration Guide](https://langfuse.com/docs/observability/sdk/upgrade-path/js-v4-to-v5)
- [Python v3 to v4 Migration](https://langfuse.com/docs/observability/sdk/upgrade-path/python-v3-to-v4)
- [TypeScript SDK v4 Changelog](https://langfuse.com/changelog/2025-08-28-typescript-sdk-v4-ga)