REST APIs and HTTP Methods Flashcards

Flashcards covering REST APIs, HTTP methods, and related concepts for exam preparation.

What does REST stand for, and what is it?

Representational State Transfer; a standard for systems to communicate over the web using HTTP methods.

What does API stand for, and what does it do?

Application Programming Interface; a set of rules that allows different programs to communicate with each other.

What format do REST APIs typically send data in?

JSON (JavaScript Object Notation)

What does it mean that REST APIs are stateless?

No memory is stored; each request is brand new.

What characterizes the routes used by REST APIs?

Clear, predictable routes, such as /api/trucks.

What is commonly used on the frontend to send data in a REST API?

Axios

How does the backend (Spring Boot) receive data sent from the frontend in a REST API?

Matching @mapping annotations in the Spring Boot Controller class.

Which Spring annotation is used to handle HTTP GET requests?

@getMapping

Which Spring annotation is used to handle HTTP POST requests?

@postMapping

Which Spring annotation is used to handle HTTP PUT requests?

@putMapping

Which Spring annotation is used to handle HTTP DELETE requests?

@deleteMapping

What is the purpose of the axios.get() method and the corresponding @getMapping annotation?

To fetch data.

What is the purpose of the axios.post() method and the corresponding @postMapping annotation?

To create new data.

What is the purpose of the axios.put() method and the corresponding @putMapping annotation?

To update existing data.

What is the purpose of the axios.delete() method and the corresponding @deleteMapping annotation?

To remove/delete existing data.

What do HTTP requests from the frontend using Axios signify to the backend?

They let the backend know what Java method to run when the frontend sends data using specific HTTP methods.

What is routing in the context of APIs?

How API endpoints are organized, often starting with /api/.

What does the /api prefix in a route like /api/trucks indicate?

Signals that it's an API route.

In the route /api/trucks, what does /trucks refer to?

Refers to the truck entity (what is being created, read, updated, or deleted).

What does the @RequestBody annotation do in Spring?

Tells Spring to map the body of the HTTP request into a Java object.

When is the @RequestBody annotation typically used?

When expecting JSON input from the frontend (POST or PUT requests).

When is it not necessary to use the @RequestBody annotation?

A GET request with no body.