8 Thotaakkal(Bullets) of API Architectures in 2023
1. REST (Representational State Transfer)
REST is a widely used architectural style for designing networked applications. It uses standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE) and emphasizes stateless communication. Resources are represented as URLs, and the API uses these URLs to interact with the resources. REST APIs are simple and scalable, making them popular for web applications. Read more…
2. Webhooks
Webhooks are a design pattern used in API architecture to enable real-time communication and data synchronization between different systems or services. Unlike traditional APIs where a client makes requests to a server to retrieve or send data, with webhooks, the server initiates communication by sending data to a predefined endpoint (URL) on the client’s side when a specific event occurs. This allows the client to react and process the data in real-time. Read more…
3. GraphQL
GraphQL is an alternative to REST that provides more flexibility in data retrieval. Instead of multiple endpoints, GraphQL APIs have a single endpoint that allows clients to request exactly the data they need. This helps reduce over-fetching and under-fetching of data, making APIs more efficient and improving client experience. Read more…
4. SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol)
SOAP is a protocol for exchanging structured information in the implementation of web services. It uses XML for message formatting and relies on other protocols such as HTTP, SMTP, and more for message negotiation. SOAP APIs tend to be more rigid and complex compared to REST or GraphQL. Read more…
5. WebSockets
WebSocket is a protocol that provides full-duplex communication channels over a single TCP connection. It allows real-time, bidirectional communication between clients and servers, making it suitable for applications that require constant updates or notifications. Read more…
6. gRPC (Remote Procedure Call)
RPC APIs allow programs to execute functions or procedures on a remote server as if they were local. Examples include gRPC and XML-RPC. gRPC, for instance, uses protocol buffers for data serialization and HTTP/2 for transport, making it efficient and suitable for high-performance applications. And JSON-RPC, which uses JSON. Read more…
7. MQTT (Message Queing Telemetry Transport)
MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport) is a lightweight publish-subscribe messaging protocol designed for efficient communication between devices and systems, particularly in scenarios with low bandwidth, high latency, or unreliable networks. While MQTT is not a traditional API architecture style, it is often used as a communication protocol in various IoT (Internet of Things) and real-time messaging architectures. Read More…
8. AMQP (Advanced Message Queuing Protocol)
AMQP is a messaging protocol that is commonly used for building robust and scalable communication systems, especially in scenarios where reliable and asynchronous messaging between different components or services is crucial. While not a traditional API architecture style like REST or GraphQL, AMQP is an important communication protocol used within various architectural patterns.Read More…
Key principles and concepts of REST in API architecture:
Client-Server Architecture: REST separates the client and server components, allowing them to evolve independently. Clients make requests to servers, which process those requests and send back responses.
Statelessness: Each client request to the server must contain all the necessary information for the server to fulfill the request. The server doesn’t store any client state between requests, which simplifies scalability and improves reliability.
Cacheability: Responses from the server can be cached on the client side to improve performance. Servers can include caching-related headers in responses to control how clients cache the data.
- Uniform Interface: REST APIs have a uniform and consistent interface that is made up of four key constraints:
- Resource Identification: Resources are uniquely identified by URIs (Uniform Resource Identifiers).
- Resource Manipulation through Representations: Clients interact with resources using representations (such as JSON or XML). These representations contain the data and state of the resource.
- Self-Descriptive Messages: Each message (request or response) includes enough information for the recipient to understand how to process it.
- Hypermedia as the Engine of Application State (HATEOAS): Responses from the server include links to related resources, guiding clients on how to navigate the API.
Layered System: REST allows for the use of intermediaries, such as proxy servers, load balancers, and gateways, between clients and servers. These intermediaries can provide additional features without affecting the overall system architecture.
- Code on Demand (optional): Servers can optionally provide executable code (such as JavaScript) to clients. This constraint is rarely used in practice.
RESTful APIs are typically implemented using HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, etc.) and resources represented as URLs. Clients use these methods to perform operations on resources, and servers respond with appropriate status codes and data representations.
It’s important to note that while REST provides a set of architectural principles and constraints, the term “RESTful” is often used more loosely to describe APIs that follow these principles to varying degrees. Many APIs claim to be RESTful but might not strictly adhere to all the constraints.
Overall, REST has become a foundational architectural style for building APIs due to its simplicity, scalability, and wide adoption across various domains.
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