{"id":21827,"date":"2018-09-06T08:51:20","date_gmt":"2018-09-06T13:51:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stackify.com\/?p=21827"},"modified":"2024-03-04T06:58:34","modified_gmt":"2024-03-04T06:58:34","slug":"rest-api-tutorial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stackify.com\/rest-api-tutorial\/","title":{"rendered":"REST API: Your Guide to Getting Started Quickly"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>\u00a0What is REST?<\/h2>\n

Even though REpresentational State Transfer, also known as REST, is often referred to as a protocol, it\u2019s an architectural style. It defines how applications communicate over the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). Applications that use REST are loosely-coupled and transfer information quickly and efficiently. While REST doesn\u2019t define data formats, it\u2019s usually associated with exchanging JSON or XML documents between a client and a server.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re going to use a simple service and a web browser to learn about the fundamentals of REST.<\/p>\n

REST Setup<\/h3>\n

For this tutorial, you\u2019ll need a system with Docker<\/a> installed. You can find the instructions for your computer here.<\/a><\/p>\n

First, follow the instructions and install Docker<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Then, once you\u2019ve completed the installation, you can download and run our sample REST server.<\/p>\n

Finally, start the server with this command:<\/p>\n

$ docker run -p 8080:8080 -d -\u2013name tutorial ericgoebelbecker\/resttutorial\n\nUnable to find image \u2018ericgoebelbecker\/resttutorial:latest\u2019 locally\nlatest: Pulling from ericgoebelbecker\/resttutorial\nff3a5c916c92: Pull complete\n2b5d1cea6e31: Pull complete\nd9ca82731633: Pull complete\n20f20395d7e6: Pull complete\nDigest: sha256:0969a50cbf9511d441c406e0c4e63ea1396aad4dde7729b92747dfae05ed32e2\nStatus: Downloaded newer image for ericgoebelbecker\/resttutorial:latest\n0d971fd363ebe82f9d14ddee84d40dd8f4d7ff42e92d06d07a343c096e4ee37b\n$<\/pre>\n
Docker<\/a> downloads the server image and runs it. The command tells it to make the web server available on port 8080.<\/p>\n
If everything is working, you\u2019ll see a web page like this:<\/p>\n
\"REST<\/p>\n
This is a Swagger page<\/a> that documents the REST API published by this server. We\u2019ll use it to demonstrate how REST APIs are consumed by applications.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Introduction to Swagger and REST<\/h3>\n
Click on the word tutorial-controller<\/strong> toward the bottom of the page. It will expand, and you\u2019ll see this:<\/p>\n
\"REST<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s try a simple request before we start examining each aspect of the API.<\/p>\n
Next, click on the blue GET box under tutorial-controller.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n
\"REST<\/p>\n
This is a description of the Get All Employees<\/strong> API method. The box documents the status codes it returns, content type, and API path. We\u2019ll cover this in detail as we go. Let\u2019s make a request.<\/p>\n
Click the Try it out!<\/strong> button at the bottom right of the blue shaded area.<\/p>\n
\"REST<\/p>\n
Swagger made an API request for us and provides a detailed description of the result. We see three employee records.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s get to work!<\/p>\n
<\/a>CRUD!<\/h3>\n
The name REpresentational State Transfer implies exchanging data. The server acts as a data store, and the client retrieves and stores data. The server transfers object states to the client. The client can update these states too.<\/p>\n
Most REST APIs implement CRUD<\/a>: Create, Retrieve, Update, and Delete.<\/p>\n
Go back to the Swagger page and click on the blue GET box so it collapses. Here’s a quick tip: at the top of the page, there is the List Operations<\/strong> option. Clicking there will collapse the operations into a list again.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s look at the list of operations again.<\/p>\n
On the left-hand side of the page we see GET, POST, DELETE, GET, PATCH, and PUT. These are HTTP methods that correspond to operations.<\/p>\n
We can map these operations into CRUD.<\/p>\n