ifversion

Determine if the current version satisfies a version restriction

ifversion documentation

Table of contents

• Description section:
• • Description
• Matlab/Octave section:
• • Syntax
• • Output arguments
• • Input arguments
• • Examples
• • Compatibility, version info, and licence

Description

This minitool helps you determine the version of Matlab (or Octave) that is running your code. This is helpful when imposing a minimum version requirement, or when different versions need different methods to reach the same end result. By using persistent variables this will stay fast even with repeated calls.

You shouldn't use a logical test with v=version;v=str2double(v(1:3)); as it is incomplete for several releases (like e.g. 7.14 or 23.2). That also includes the potential for float rounding errors.

If you don't want to use a separate function, there are two built-in functions that may do what you need: verLessThan (introduced in R2007a) and isMATLABReleaseOlderThan (introduced in R2020b). The latter also allows filtering based on release type (pre-release vs normal release) and update number.

Matlab/Octave

Syntax

tf=ifversion(test,Rxxxxab)
tf=ifversion(test,Rxxxxab,'Octave',test_for_Octave,v_Octave)

Output arguments

Argument	Description
tf	If the current version satisfies the test this returns true. This works similar to verLessThan.

Input arguments

Argument	Description
test	Char array containing a logical test. The interpretation of this is equivalent to eval([current test Rxxxxab]). For examples, see below.
Rxxxxab	Char array containing a release description (e.g. 'R13', 'R14SP2' or 'R2019a') or the numeric version. Note that 9.10 is interpreted as 9.1 when using numeric input.
test_for_Octave	See the test parameter. If not provided, the same test will run on GNU Octave as on Matlab. This will also trigger a warning.
v_Octave	The numeric version of Octave. If not provided, the same test will run on GNU Octave as on Matlab. This will also trigger a warning.

Examples

A few examples of valid syntax options:

    ifversion('>=','R2009a')        % returns true when run on R2009a or later
    ifversion('<','R2016a')         % returns true when run on R2015b or older
    ifversion('==','R2018a')        % returns true only when run on R2018a
    ifversion('==',24.01)           % returns true only when run on R2024a
    ifversion('<',0,'Octave','>',0) % returns true only on Octave
    ifversion('<',0,'Octave','>=',6)% returns true only on Octave 6 and higher
    ifversion('==',9.10)            % !!! returns true only when run on R2016b (v9.1), not R2021a (v9.10) !!!

Compatibility, version info, and licence

Compatibility considerations:

• This is expected to work on all releases.

Test suite result	Windows	Linux	MacOS
Matlab R2024a	W11 : Pass		Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2023b		ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2023a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2022b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2022a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2021b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2021a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2020b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2020a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2019b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2019a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2018b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2018a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2017b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2016b	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Monterey : Pass
Matlab R2015a	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2013b	W11 : Pass
Matlab R2007b	W11 : Pass
Matlab 6.5 (R13)	W11 : Pass
Octave 8.4.0	W11 : Pass
Octave 8.2.0	W11 : Pass
Octave 7.2.0	W11 : Pass
Octave 6.2.0	W11 : Pass	ubuntu_22.04 : Pass	Catalina : Pass
Octave 5.2.0	W11 : Pass
Octave 4.4.1	W11 : Pass		Catalina : Pass

Version: 1.2.1.2
Date:    2024-03-23
Author:  H.J. Wisselink
Licence: CC by-nc-sa 4.0 ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0 )
Email = 'h_j_wisselink*alumnus_utwente_nl';
Real_email = regexprep(Email,{'*','_'},{'@','.'})

Test suite

The tester is included so you can test if your own modifications would introduce any bugs. These tests form the basis for the compatibility table above. Note that functions may be different between the tester version and the normal function. Make sure to apply any modifications to both.