What is an API? Simply explained!
API interfaces: A digression in the modern data communication
Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) are an indispensable part of our digital (business)world: thanks to you, different applications can talk to each other “” – regardless of the Software, or programming language for their development. APIs allow us to easily navigate Websites, Online services, and to send messages in a matter of seconds via the Internet.
No wonder, then, that APIs play in any modern enterprise, an important role in system integration in the development of Apps in the E-Commercein the Reporting, or customer service.
This Blog post takes you on a trip into the world of the API interfaces and explains the basics of the functioning of the APIs and their importance in modern software development and Integration.
Definition API
An API (Application Programming Interface) is an interface – more precisely, a Application programming interface. An API defines a set of rules and protocols, which ensures that Software applications communicate with each other and to certain functions or data can be accessed. It acts as a mediator between different applications or services, by providing a defined set of methods, data structures, and conventions willing, over which requests are sent and replies are received.
For developers, this means that you can functionality from one application to another without the entire Source code re-implement must. APIs offer a standardized way to access services and data exchange, which, in turn, makes Software development easier and more efficient.
Why do we need APIs?
In addition to their capacity to associate different applications and to enable the data communication between them, wear API-interfaces to the development of high-quality Web Services in. As Bridge between different applications, APIs can help your end-users*the inside, and different functions, without major technical obstacles to care.
A look at the most important API-Benefits for companies:
- Extending the product functionality: Using APIs to integrate companies, for example, additional functions and services of third-party media break free in their own products. This allows you to expand your range without having all the necessary resources to develop or major Changes to your existing infrastructure.
- Accelerated DevelopmentThrough the use of APIs, developers can:*access the interior of the existing functionalities and do not need to reinvent the wheel every Time a new. Thus, the development time for new products and applications is shortened, of course, and consequently leads to a faster time to market and a competitive edge.
- Positive Customer experience: API integrations means for companies to offer their customers a streamlined user experience, by enabling them to seamlessly interact with other Apps and services, inter. Practical example: A a Online Shop that passes through an API, payment processing to an external payment service providers. Thus, both the company and the customer saves time. APIs are also used to enhance the quality of customer service and ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Efficient Data IntegrationBecause APIs to facilitate the secure exchange of data between different systems and applications, companies can collect data more efficiently analyze and use to make informed business decisions. From the data analysis, findings also come back to the customer service to be Good, but also to promote innovation: to Convince you with tailor-made solutions that are precisely tailored to the individual needs of their customers.
- Development of new markets and customersThrough the provision of APIs, companies can make their products and services for developers*accessible, which may incorporate them in your own applications. This opens up new distribution channels and allows companies to reach new markets and customers.
We can see, API interfaces, provide businesses the opportunity to optimise their services and products, to accelerate their development, to expand its reach in order to win in order to competitiveness. They are an essential building block for the digital Transformation and Innovation in today's business world.
API management
APIs require a certain Care and prudent care in order to work effectively, efficiently and safely: Here is the API Management comes into play. Means: APIs need to be carefully created and saved to be monitored, in an organized and controlled environment. A number of Tools, processes, and policies that serve to manage APIs effectively and to improve it.
The three most important aspects of API Management, security, Governance, and the analysis we want to see here in a little more detail:
APIs and security
Without it, nothing works: API-security forms the basic Foundation of API management and is essential to protect APIs against unauthorized access and potential threats. For an authentication and authorization of user access to play on the API a special role: often is in the case of the API security token-based authentication methods used. In this case, the authenticated user will receive a Token that must be sent with every API call, to confirm your identity. These Tokens have a limited validity period and can be cancelled, in General, are also reflected.
Furthermore, the encryption of data, which are transmitted via API calls, important for the security. Through the use of SSL/TLS data can be encrypted during Transmission, which ensures the confidentiality and integrity of the data.
In principle, it is of crucial importance, clear Standards and guidelines set in place to protect sensitive data and ensure that they are not threatened or compromised. Through the use of API management platforms, companies can help to define a single set of security policies for your APIs. In addition, the API Management enables the effective management of the traffic to the back-end systems.
APIs and Governance
While the API management to provide a consistent user experience, which includes the API Governance aspects such as the traceability of APIs, Lifecycle Management, and reusability. The API Governance, and also supports developers*the inside to the fact that each of the API program proactively and in accordance with the Compliance Guidelines is created, and specific objectives, which provide added value for the entire company.
Special attention should be paid to the documentation of the APIs so that developers*understand this fully, and integrate your the applications can use.
In many cases, API Governance also includes the management of partnerships and collaborations with external developers*indoor or organizations. This may include the development of guidelines for the common use of the APIs, as well as the provision of Support and resources.
API-analysis
Finally, the API-analysis provides valuable insight into the usage and performance of your APIs. Due to the Central collection and analysis of API metrics, companies can measure exactly how your APIs are used, including requests per second, active users, and data transfer rates. This analysis is, in turn, are very helpful in order to identify Trends in user behavior and to identify bottlenecks or problems in real time.
Through the continuous Monitoring and analysis of API usage, companies can also improve the user experience by optimizing capabilities and the needs of your target audience to adjust. In addition, the API-analysis helps to use your resources more prudently, and to identify inefficient processes. The findings also serve as a basis for meaningful business decisions, such as the optimization of the strategy, the development of new products and the promotion of the growth of the business.
APIs in the practical application
APIs werden in Unternehmen in einer Vielzahl von Anwendungsfällen und Bereichen eingesetzt. Sie erleichtern die Integration von Systemen und Diensten, unterstützen die Entwicklung von Anwendungen, sowie den Datenaustausch und ermöglichen die Automatisierung verschiedener Geschäftsprozesse.
Examples of API usage:
- Integration of systems: APIs enable companies to integrate different systems with each other, regardless of whether it's internal systems such as CRM-, ERPor accounting software, or to external third-party services like payment processing or shipping logistics.
- Development of Apps/applicationsDevelopers*use APIs to integrate functions and data platforms, or services in your own applications. For example, companies can Google Maps API use the map to incorporate data into their mobile Apps or web applications.
- E-Commerce Integration: APIs play a big role in E-Commerce, by contributing to the Integration of payment processing services, shipping, logistics, warehouse management systems and other services, to ensure the smooth operation of E-Commerce platforms.
- Data exchange: APIs are often used to facilitate the exchange of data between internal departments or external partners. For example, APIs can be used by customer or product information between a CRM System and a Marketing-sync automation tool.
- Analytics and Reporting: Unternehmen nutzen APIs, um auf Daten von Analyseplattformen wie Google Analytics, Salesforce or HubSpot to access and create custom analyses and reports that are tailored to your specific requirements.
- Customer service and Support: APIs come in customer service and support systems to retrieve customer data, manage Tickets and to send notifications via various communication channels such as E-Mail, Chat, or social media, and receive.
These examples illustrate how APIs help in practice to integrate a variety of features and services in applications, and the development of innovative solutions to accelerate.
What are the types of APIs are there?
There are, in principle, four different groups of API interfaces, which are chosen depending on the application area:
- Function-Oriented APIs are quite complex interfaces, which allow, for example, the access to the Hardware components, where only the functions called.
- File-Oriented APIs create a connection to the file level, it can be accessed on single files or file functions. However, due to the access rights of the Operating system be observed.
- Protocol-Oriented APIs the standardized communication between programs, and are independent of operating systems or Hardware.
- Object-Oriented APIs have a scoreboard on the so-called Interface and are, especially in comparison to the function-oriented APIs that can be used flexibly.
In addition, APIs according to their accessibility to distinguish:
- Private API-interfaces only within a company, and companies often own functionalities via private networks.
- Public API-interfaces on the contrary, are available and can be used by software developers*very practical. Google, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter und PayPal to provide public interfaces. Some manufacturers, such as Google, encourage even active Developer, to contribute to their API development.
The REST API
When it has to do with APIs are REST APIs, not far: REST stands for in this context REpresentational State Ttransfer. This is a kind of Software architecture for interfacesin General, the HTTP Protocol for your communication. In this way, can communicate two computer systems over the Internet.
In principle, a REST-API (also RESTful API) but with any type of Protocol, and data format compatible, which makes it an extremely versatile and popular interface.
As we already know, APIs serve the purpose of Information between users and applications to share the REST API. As soon as you call, for example, a website that communicates your Client using an API to the Server: The API sends the request to the Server (the call to the website), and forwards the response back to you (you will be directed to the site).
A REST API must meet certain parameters, so you can call REST:
- Client-Server Model: The architecture of a REST API always includes a Client and a Server, and both are strictly separated from each other. That is to say, both can be set independently of each other, and modified, developed, without affected the other leg. Therefore, REST APIs, are characterized by a particularly high level of flexibility and scalability.
- Statelessness: RESTful APIs are stateless, which means that each request from the Client to the Server, all information for the processing of this request. The Server stores no information about the state of the client between the requests. This also promotes scalability, and the horizontal Integration of systems.
- Layer system: Everyone makes being in a layered System, the Client and the Server work clearly separated. A Client makes a request to a Server endpoint URL, it does not need to take care of him, which is the Server its request was processed. A multi-layer System can also include a variety of Server, all of which have a separate task, such as Load Balancing, Caching etc. For the Client, in turn, is negligible, what is happening on the server side. The layer system creates, therefore, above all, safety, since attacks from within the individual layers can be isolated and contained. Such attacks threaten never the whole architecture.
- Uniform Interface: A uniform interface defines the interaction between the Client and the Server in a REST API. This includes the use of standardized HTTP methodsunique resources-URLs MIME-types for the representation of data and the use of Hyperlinks for Navigation between resources. Everyone REST said:-Client can access the Server in the same manner and to the resources, access, regardless of whether the Client is a Browser or for example to a mobile App.
- Cache-able: REST APIs support the resource caching data on the Client side, in order to improve the performance and reduce the network load. This is done through the use of HTTP Cache headers, such as Cache-Control and ETag.
A Bonus to the function Code-on-DemandHere is given to the Client the Option Code to download and use for yourself.
Web API vs REST APIs
“This is not somehow both the same?” You may ask. Admittedly, in the realm of information technology it comes to frustration-time users.
Yes, sort of the same there. No, actually, not quite.
Although a REST API also a Web API, but there are still significant differences between the two:
- Architecture: REST is based on the use of Standard HTTP methods such as GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE. The created APIs are easy to translate to understand and easy to use. The term Web API assumes, by contrast, basically any API that is accessible over the Internet. Different architecture styles, such as REST, SOAP, GraphQL etc.
- Data formats: REST APIs can handle loads of different formats, such as JSON, XML, etc., during ordinary Web APIs with XML to work. Therefore, one should have in the selection of the API is always the data requirements in the view format.
- Protocols: REST-APIs arbeiten vorwiegend mit dem HTTP/HTTPS-Protokoll, Web-APIs hingegen nutzen außer HTTP/HTTPS auch andere Protokolle wie SOAP oder BEEP. Weil die Auswahl eines Protokolls sowohl Geschwindigkeit , als auch Sicherheit beeinflusst, gilt auch hier wieder, sich Gedanken darüber zu machen, bevor Sie sich für ein API-Modell entscheiden.
- Communication via HTTP: REST APIs use Standard HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE) to the execution of CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations to resources.Web APIs can use different methods to perform operations on resources to run. You are not limited to, the use of the Standard HTTP methods, and can implement their own custom methods.
Interested in an API?
Now that you have learn so many exciting things about APIs, you are certainly the one or the other idea, as you can with appropriate APIs new momentum in your business.
API interfaces are a Booster for modern software development and bring together various applications and systems. By the standard method of communication between software components, it will be exchange with APIs much easier, data, use functions and to develop new, innovative solutions. From simple connection to external services to the development of complex platforms, APIs, software developers*open up new possibilities to create stable and scalable applications.
We recommend that APIs in their digitization strategy the primary consideration, especially in customer service, a wide range of opportunities to provide real added value and a positive impact of competition on offer.
APIs connect to us in the digital world to break Silos and create new synergies. We will use your potential to the limits of what is feasible to expand in the software development and to shape a connected future!
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