What Is API And API Getaway

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a set of rules that allows one software application to interact with another. It defines how different software components should interact, and it often involves a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software and applications.

1) Web APIs (HTTP APIs): These are APIs that can be accessed over the web using the HTTP protocol. They are commonly used for web development and are often referred to as web services.

2) Library APIs: These are APIs provided by programming libraries or frameworks. They define the functions and procedures that developers can use when building applications using that library or framework.

3) Operating System APIs: These APIs allow applications to interact with the underlying operating system. For example, the Windows API provides a set of functions for Windows applications.

4) Database APIs: These APIs allow applications to interact with databases. For example, the Java Database Connectivity (JDBC) API allows Java applications to interact with databases.

5) An API Gateway is a server that acts as an API front-end, receiving API requests, enforcing throttling and security policies, passing requests to the back-end service, and then passing the response back to the requester. It acts as an intermediary between clients and servers.

Key functions of an API Gateway include:

1) Request Routing: The API Gateway routes incoming requests to the appropriate backend service based on the request URL.

Protocol Translation: It can translate between client requests and the protocols used by the backend services.

Load Balancing: Distributing incoming network traffic across multiple servers to ensure no single server bears too much demand.

Authentication and Authorization: Enforcing access control policies and authenticating users before passing requests to the backend services.

Rate Limiting: Controlling the rate of requests that clients can make to the backend services.

Logging and Monitoring: Capturing and logging detailed information about API requests and responses for analysis and monitoring.

API Gateways are commonly used in microservices architectures to manage and secure interactions between microservices. They simplify the client-side experience and decouple the client from the microservices architecture, making it easier to make changes to the microservices without affecting clients. Popular API Gateway tools include AWS API Gateway, Kong, Apigee, and others.