Introduction
A REST API (Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interface) is a set of principles for building web services that follow specific design principles.
REST is not a protocol or standard but rather a set of rules that, when applied, create scalable and flexible web services. Roy Fielding introduced the term REST in 2000 as an architectural style.
It has now become one of the most used approaches for building APIs.
If a service is to be referred to as RESTful. It must follow a specific set of principles.
Core Principles of REST
Client-server architecture
The client and server are independent of each other regarding technology, platform, and programming language.
This allows both of them to evolve separately.
Layered system
The server can employ multiple layers (like load balancers, caches, or authentication layers) that collaborate to fulfill client requests, yet remain invisible to the client.
Uniform interface
The API delivers data in a standard format(JSON, XML, HTML) that is complete and fully usable, regardless of the underlying implementation details.
Statelessness
Each request should contain all the information the client needs, without relying on previous requests or stored context.
Cacheability
All API responses can be cached, improving performance and reducing server load.
Code on demand (optional)
The API can return executable code if necessary, extending client functionality.
REST APIs vs. Other API Types
Before REST gained popularity, the market for APIs was dominated by SOAP APIs. What led to the decline of SOAP APIs is a different topic, but for now, it's important to understand how REST APIs are better than SOAP APIs.
SOAP stands for Simple Object Access Protocol.
Design Philosophy
REST and SOAP represent different approaches to their design.
SOAP is process-oriented. For instance, a SOAP API might expose a function called "CreateEmployee" that clients would call to create a new employee record.
On the other hand, REST APIs are data-driven and resource-oriented. A REST API would use resources (like "/employees") that clients can manipulate using standard HTTP methods. To create a new employee using a REST API, you would send a POST request to the "/employees" endpoint.
Flexibility
SOAP APIs are more rigid than REST APIs. SOAP requires XML for messaging between applications and mandates that servers maintain client state, remembering previous requests when processing new ones.
REST offers greater flexibility, supporting multiple data formats including plain text, HTML, XML, and JSON.
It's also stateless, treating each request independently, which simplifies both the client and the server.
Conclusion
REST APIs have become the standard for web services due to their simplicity and scalability with the web's fundamental architecture. They offer significant advantages over older approaches like SOAP in terms of performance, flexibility, and developer experience.
Outro
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