REST Architectural Constraints: A Complete Guide

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REST (Representational State Transfer) is an architectural style used for designing scalable, stateless web services. To be considered RESTful, an API must follow a set of architectural constraints defined by Roy Fielding in his dissertation.

These constraints ensure that RESTful services are scalable, reliable, and efficient.

🔹 The 6 Key REST Architectural Constraints

To be a RESTful API, the following six constraints must be followed:

1️⃣ Client-Server Architecture
2️⃣ Statelessness
3️⃣ Cacheability
4️⃣ Uniform Interface
5️⃣ Layered System
6️⃣ Code on Demand (Optional)

Let’s explore each one in detail! 🚀

1️⃣ Client-Server Architecture

✅ What It Means

• The client (e.g., web browser, mobile app) and server (e.g., backend API) are separate.
• The client only requests data, and the server processes requests and sends responses.

📌 Why It’s Important