SQL Server Data Tools for VS 2015 - Anyone using for SSIS development to multiple versions?

According to this link, https://www.mssqltips.com/sqlservertip/4253/backwards-compatibility-in-sql-server-data-tools-for-integration-services/
the newest version of SQL Server Data Tools - "SSDT for Visual Studio 15" (16.5) is compatible with SQL 2016 AND older versions as well. In previous incarnations of the software, whether it was called "SQL Server Data Tools", "SQL Server Data Tools - Business Intelligence", or "Business Intelligence Development Studio", we always seemed to run into version incompatibility issues when deploying.

If I'm reading this correctly, we could uninstall all older versions of the tools, and just install SSDT 16.5 for development of SSIS packages for SQL 2012 and newer. Due to many issues I've seen in past versions of the tools, I am hesitant to develop new projects in this.

Is anyone successfully deploying SSIS packages to SQL 2016 AND older versions with SSDT 16.5? Obviously, tasks that are only supported in newer versions wouldn't work in older versions.

Visual studio 2015 SSDT work with SQL Server 2016 and has a backward compatibility to SQL server 2014 and 2012 only.

Target version of SQL Server    |   Development environment for SSIS packages
2016    |   SQL Server Data Tools for Visual Studio 2015
2014    |   SQL Server Data Tools for Visual Studio 2015 or SQL Server Data Tools - Business Intelligence for Visual Studio 2013
2012    |   SQL Server Data Tools for Visual Studio 2015 or SQL Server Data Tools - Business Intelligence for Visual Studio 2012
2008    |   Business Intelligence Development Studio from SQL Server 2008

The following link contains very helpful informations:

For SQL Server 2008 /R2 editions

• Integration Services versions Side by side

You have to install Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 to deploy package for SQL Server 2008 or SQL Server 2008 R2 by default. (newer versions will not work correctly)

There are a lot of links saying that newer versions of visual studio cannot deploy SSIS 2008 packages correctly:

• https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10451053/can-sql-server-data-tools-work-with-sql-server-2008-ssis

• https://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/sqlserver/en-US/bff5e145-1c63-4221-b2ba-009ea96a9e05/can-i-use-vs2012-to-create-and-deploy-ssis-for-sql2008r2?forum=sqlintegrationservices

• https://www.sqlservercentral.com/Forums/Topic1560322-364-1.aspx

StackExchange Database Administrators Q#171037, answer score: 4