API Specific Terminology

Discover the key terms and concepts that empower your automation. Navigate the world of APIs with ease and leverage their full potential in your Rewst workflows!

General Terms

• API (Application Programming Interface): A set of protocols that allow actions on a platform in a programmatic manner. APIs power Rewst's integrations, enabling the actions that your workflows perform.

• HTTP Request Method: Specifies the action to be performed on a resource within an API. E.g., GET (retrieve data), POST (create or query data), PUT (update data), DELETE (remove data).

• Header: Additional information sent with an HTTP request. E.g., content type.

• Endpoint: A specific path added to the URL where an API can call back specific object's properties. E.g., https://api.example.com/users/123

• Path Parameter: A unique identifier in the URL that identifies specific data, such as an ID in API calls. E.g., the 123 in /users/123.

• Query Parameter: An optional parameter available to be added to the Endpoint to filter the API call for some endpoints. E.g., ?status=active.

• Body: The part of an HTTP request containing data sent to the API, typically structured in formats like JSON or XML. Example JSON body: {"username": "john_doe", "password": "secret"}.

• Cookies: Small pieces of data stored on a user's computer by a web server, used by APIs to manage sessions or track user behavior.

• Timeout: The maximum time allowed for a request to be processed

• Status Codes: Numeric codes returned by a server to indicate the result of an HTTP request. E.g., 200 (success), 404 (not found), and 500 (server error).

• Output: Content returned by a server in response to a request, including messages, data objects, or other information. E.g., {"status": "success", "token": "abc123"}.

• Redirects: The automatic forwarding of an HTTP request from one URL to another. E.g., redirecting from http://example.com to https://example.com to enforce use of HTTPS.

Authentication

• Authentication Method: The process of verifying the identity of a user or application. The required authentication method will depend on the API you're attempting to access.

• API Key: A unique identifier used during integration setup, allowing secure communication between platforms without re-entering the key for each action.

• Basic Authentication: A method that requires a username and password, often used for web server login.

• OAuth: An open standard for access delegation, often used to grant token-based authentication and authorization.

For more detail, or information on more complex authentication methods check out Mozilla's Developer Network (MDN) documentation on HTTP authentication methods.

Data Formats and Media Types

• Content-Type: A specific header used in HTTP requests to indicate the media type, such as application/json for JSON data.

• XML (Extensible Markup Language): A markup language used to encode data in a format that is both human-readable and machine-readable.

• JSON (JavaScript Object Notation): A format designed for human readability and quick editing, JSON allows you to structure complex data in a way that's both accessible and efficient. It's a go-to choice for sending and receiving data with APIs, making it a vital part of Rewst's functionality.

• Multipart/Form-Data: A media type used to send files as part of an HTTP request, allowing for the uploading of files along with textual data.

• File Upload: The process of sending files such as images, documents, or other binary data as part of an HTTP request to an API. Typically used with the content type multipart/form-data when passing files within form submissions.

For more information on sending form data, including file uploads, see MDN Web Docs - Sending Form Data.