Understanding the Differences Between API Documentation, Specifications, and Definitions

Web APIs are a service accessed from client devices (Mobile Phones, Laptop, etc.) to a web server using the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). Client devices send a request in the form of an HTTP request, and are met with a response message usually in JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) or Extensible Markup Language (XML) format. Developers typically use Web APIs to query a server for a specific set of data from that server. The state of a resource at any particular instant, or timestamp, is known as the resource representation. This information can be delivered to a client in virtually any format including JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), HTML, XLT, Python, PHP, or plain text.

api specification

Registered API Spec Q1 companies demonstrate to their customers that they have the ability to consistently provide reliable products and manufacturing-related processes that meet customer and legal requirements. API Monogram is a voluntary licensing program that facilitates the consistent manufacturing of product that conforms to applicable API Specifications. Licensed manufacturers are given the authority to apply the API Monogram registered mark to equipment that meets the requirements. You can publish assets to the public Exchange, your internal Exchange, or your public developer portal.

Tools that work with OpenAPI

The Compass platform provides organization-wide access to all the API standards and specifications needed to ensure safety, compliance and interoperability. Security Requirement Objects that contain multiple schemes require that all schemes MUST be satisfied for a request to be authorized. This enables support for scenarios where multiple query parameters or HTTP headers are required to convey security information. The Link object represents a possible design-time link for a response. The presence of a link does not guarantee the caller’s ability to successfully invoke it, rather it provides a known relationship and traversal mechanism between responses and other operations. The following example shows a callback where the server is hard-coded, but the query string parameters are populated from the id and email property in the request body.

  • You can view the latest version of this specification (3.0.1) on GitHub.
  • With backing from tech giants like Google, IBM, eBay, Microsoft, and Mulesoft, it seems OpenAPI is here to stay.
  • Find out how Swagger can help you design and document your APIs at scale.
  • APIs can be represented differently too, since as of v3.1, OpenAPI now supports defining only paths, webhooks, or components, or any combination of the three.
  • The applicant is required to maintain at least one copy of the official, current edition of the English language version of the API Spec Q1 and API Product Specification(s) under which it is seeking licensure.
  • The state of a resource at any particular instant, or timestamp, is known as the resource representation.

Each Media Type Object provides schema and examples for the media type identified by its key. A self-contained or composite resource which defines or describes an API or elements of an API. The OpenAPI document MUST contain at least one paths field, a components field or a webhooks field. Formerly known as Swagger, Smartbear donated OpenAPI in 2015 with the formation of the OpenAPI Initiative (OAI), an industry consortium governed by about 40 participating members representing some major tech interests. This means you and your customers can power digital apps and spur innovation in real time. IBM API Connect is also available with other capabilities as part of IBM Cloud Pak for Integration, which can help you automate application modernization and API management as part of your journey to cloud.

What is an API Specification?

Just as APIs provide added protection within a network, they can also provide another layer of protection for personal users. When a website requests a user’s location, which is provided via a location API, the user can then decide whether to allow or deny this request. Many web browsers and mobile operating systems, like iOS, have permission structures built-in when APIs request access to applications and their data. When the app must access files What is API through an API, file systems such as windows, Mac and Linux use permissions for that access. Application programming interfaces, or APIs, simplify software development and innovation by enabling applications to exchange data and functionality easily and securely. The API Standard 18LCM defines the requirements of a management system for organizations performing life cycle management of products used in the petroleum and natural gas industry.

api specification

The OpenAPI Specification allows combining and extending model definitions using the allOf property of JSON Schema, in effect offering model composition. AllOf takes an array of object definitions that are validated independently but together compose a single object. Computing a link from a request operation where the $request.path.id is used to pass a request parameter to the linked operation. Unlike dynamic links (i.e. links provided in the response payload), the OAS linking mechanism does not require link information in the runtime response. The following examples show how the various expressions evaluate, assuming the callback operation has a path parameter named eventType and a query parameter named queryUrl.