Hands-on: Designing HTTP APIs

HTTP APIs can now be found almost everywhere. Unfortunately, the design of many APIs is not optimal, which will sooner or later result in unpleasant consequences for their providers. In this hands-on workshop, we will practice designing a typical HTTP API together. We will discuss the most important decisions that usually occur during the design process. These include URL paths, the use of HTTP request types and status codes, error handling, versioning and much more. The implementation of frequently needed API features, such as searching, filtering or limiting the detail in API responses, is also addressed. The gradually emerging interface is transformed into a formal specification with the help of OpenAPI. Finally, we’ll take a look at existing proposals for API designs that can serve as templates for our own interfaces.