REST API Is It a Winning API Strategy
REST API Is It a Winning API Strategy
REST API stands for Representational State Transfer Application Program Interface. It relies on stateless, client-server, and cacheable communications protocols. As an architecture style for designing networked applications, it uses a simple HTTP protocol to make calls between machines. Today, there are no applications or projects without REST API, as the World Wide Web itself can be viewed as a rest-based design since it is based on HTTP.
REST API Features
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Stateless Client/Server Protocol
This means the client/server does not need to remember any previous state to satisfy it, that is because each HTTP contains all necessary information. As a result, the client can run the same response to the same HTTP requests in the future.
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Data transactions
There are four of them in any HTTP specification and REST system: POST (create), GET (read and consult), PUT (edit), and DELETE.
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Manipulated from the URL
Objects in REST are manipulated from the URL, which is the sole identifier for each resource in the system. In the same manner, the URL allows access to information in order to edit or delete it or share the exact location with third parties.
- Uniform Interface
In order to transfer data, the REST system applies specific data transactions on the resources. Subsequently, making it easier to get a uniform interface that organizes the process with information.
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Layer System
The REST API has a hierarchical architecture between components. Hence, every layer has specific functions in the system.
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Use of Hypermedia
An extension of hypertext, hypermedia is an app development interface’s capacity to provide adequate links in order to run specific actions on data.
What Makes REST API a Winning Strategy
Here are three main advantages of using REST for development:
- The separation between client and server
- Dependency on type of platform or languages
- Visibility, scalability, reliability
Separation from the server and data storage improves the portability of the interface to other types of platforms, likewise, it also increases visibility, scalability, and reliability, making the apps more flexible to work with. Furthermore, it adapts to the syntax or platforms used. You can have PHP, Java, Node.js, or Python servers.
Figuring out a winning API strategy is a great challenge for most companies, they need to develop the requirements to start building the actual software. A company needs three or more teams to develop a REST API project.
The modern enterprise needs hundreds to thousands of mobile applications, so the API building process goes on for over a few years with various contractors, consultants, and developers. That’s why many companies are running hundreds of internal APIs that lack management. These are hard to discover and use by their partners, existing apps, and internal developers.
If you want to learn more, click here to find out how cloud APIs can help.