What is API, REST API, and RESTFUL API


Introduction:

REST API and RESTfuI API are used in the modern state of client/server architecture in software development.

What is api, rest api, restful api


Table of content:

  • What is API?
  • Benefits of using APIs
  • What are a RESTfuI API and REST API?
  • Endpoints REST API and restful APIs.
  • Difference between REST API and RESTfuI API.

What is API?

Application Programme Interface abbreviated as API is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. Let’s look into an example to go through this topic. 

If the user wants to book train tickets, a web application shows the departure time and station-like information.

When we look at this from the developer side, the developer wants to display all the train schedule information in the web application, then the developer uses the APIs to get this train information from the web server where all the train details and information are stored.

Then developers can retrieve data from the web server using the APIs to display in the web application.

Benefits Of Using API

APIs are needed to make the connection between application functions to handle the data from predefined processes.

Ease of integration: APIs can be embedded with any type of software application, So they can easily integrate with the applications and functions between different websites.

Reduce software development effort: Using APIs to reduce development efforts, developers can implement APIs of Google Maps to provide the exact store location to website visitors.

Security: APIs provide a secure communication gateway for different app components to interact and exchange data.

REST API

Representational State Transfer abbreviated to" " REST. It is an API that follows a set of rules for an application and services to communicate with each other.

REST APIs work by fielding requests for a resource and returning all relevant information about the resource, translated into a format that clients can easily interpret (this format is determined by the API receiving requests). Clients can also modify items on the server and even add new items to the server through a REST API.

RESTFUL API

The restful API obeys the REST architecture constraints and interacts with RESTfuI web services. The RESTfuI API also follows the principles of REST API. RESTfuI APIs are more scalable and have a longer lifespan. The RESTfuI API uses HTTP requests to access and use data.

These four basic HTTP requests a client can make are:

  • GET — To retrieve a resource.
  • POST — To create a new resource.
  • PUT — To edit or update an existing resource.
  • DELETE- To delete a resource.