HTTP methods

Pranav Bakare - Sep 8 - - Dev Community

Image description

Here are the most commonly used HTTP methods, explained with examples from a blog application:

1. GET

  • Purpose: Retrieve data from the server.
  • Example: Fetch a list of blog posts or a specific blog post.

Use Case:

  • Get all blog posts:

    GET /api/posts
    

    Response:

    [
      {
        "id": 1,
        "title": "First Blog Post",
        "content": "This is my first post.",
        "author": "John Doe"
      },
      {
        "id": 2,
        "title": "Second Blog Post",
        "content": "This is my second post.",
        "author": "Jane Smith"
      }
    ]
    
  • Get a single blog post:

    GET /api/posts/1
    

    Response:

    {
      "id": 1,
      "title": "First Blog Post",
      "content": "This is my first post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

2. POST

  • Purpose: Create new data on the server.
  • Example: Create a new blog post.

Use Case:

  • Create a new blog post:

    POST /api/posts
    Content-Type: application/json
    
    {
      "title": "My New Blog Post",
      "content": "This is the content of my new blog post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

    Response (Success):

    {
      "id": 3,
      "title": "My New Blog Post",
      "content": "This is the content of my new blog post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

3. PUT

  • Purpose: Update an existing resource completely. Typically, the entire object must be sent with the update.
  • Example: Update the content of an existing blog post.

Use Case:

  • Update an existing blog post:

    PUT /api/posts/1
    Content-Type: application/json
    
    {
      "title": "Updated Blog Post",
      "content": "This is the updated content of the blog post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

    Response (Success):

    {
      "id": 1,
      "title": "Updated Blog Post",
      "content": "This is the updated content of the blog post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

4. PATCH

  • Purpose: Update part of an existing resource, instead of replacing the entire resource (like PUT).
  • Example: Update only the title of a blog post.

Use Case:

  • Update the title of an existing blog post:

    PATCH /api/posts/1
    Content-Type: application/json
    
    {
      "title": "Partially Updated Blog Post Title"
    }
    

    Response (Success):

    {
      "id": 1,
      "title": "Partially Updated Blog Post Title",
      "content": "This is the content of the blog post.",
      "author": "John Doe"
    }
    

5. DELETE

  • Purpose: Delete a resource from the server.
  • Example: Delete a specific blog post.

Use Case:

  • Delete a blog post:

    DELETE /api/posts/1
    

    Response (Success):

    {
      "message": "Blog post deleted successfully."
    }
    

6. OPTIONS

  • Purpose: Describe the communication options for the target resource. It's used to check which HTTP methods are supported by the server for a given resource.
  • Example: Check which HTTP methods are allowed on blog posts.

Use Case:

  • Request:

    OPTIONS /api/posts
    
  • Response:

    Allow: GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE
    

7. HEAD

  • Purpose: Similar to GET, but it only retrieves the headers of the response, not the body. Used to check if a resource exists or to retrieve meta-information like content type or length.
  • Example: Check if a blog post exists.

Use Case:

  • Request:

    HEAD /api/posts/1
    
  • Response (headers only):

    HTTP/1.1 200 OK
    Content-Type: application/json
    Content-Length: 345
    

Example Summary for Blog Application:

  • GET: Retrieve blog posts or details of a single blog post.
  • POST: Create a new blog post.
  • PUT: Fully update an existing blog post (e.g., changing both title and content).
  • PATCH: Partially update a blog post (e.g., change only the title).
  • DELETE: Remove a blog post.
  • OPTIONS: Check allowed HTTP methods.
  • HEAD: Check if a blog post exists without retrieving its content.

Each method serves a specific purpose, allowing RESTful APIs to be efficient and maintain the correct behavior across different actions.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .