REST is an acronym for "Representational State Transfer." It is a style of software architecture used for querying and delivering data in client/server systems.
The most popular way to implement a REST architecture is by using the HTTP protocol: REST over HTTP. The best-known implementation of REST over HTTP is the World Wide Web. You probably use REST every day!
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RESTful Web Services
A RESTful Web service is a set of services that are implemented over HTTP using REST principles. Rather than using the complicated interactions of SOAP and WSDL, RESTful Web services accept simple requests on a known URI and return simple output via XML or JSON.
The foundation of a RESTful Web service request consists of:
- Sending a message (in a format accepted by the Web service, usually XML or JSON)...
- to a resource URI (for example: http://localhost/api.ashx/v2/users.xml)...
- using a specific HTTP method (such as GET, POST, PUT, DELETE).
The Web service processes a request and returns a message using a predetermined output type and format.
While there is no standard method for sending a message in REST, most RESTful Web services (including the Telligent Community platform's REST services) use HTTP methods such as:
- GET - Used for LIST and SHOW requests
- POST - Used for CREATE requests
- PUT - Used for UPDATE requests
- DELETE - Used for DELETE requests
- Making Requests#get
Using REST
Standard date format
The standard date format for REST v2 requests and responses is the ISO format of
yyyy-MM-ddTHH:mm:ss. When using .NET's DateTime.ToString() method there is a shortcut for this format: dateTime.ToString("o").
Currently, the dates in JSON responses are formatted by default using the following
"\/Date(1273255122713-0400)\/" . Beginning with the 5.5.2 release, there is an option on all requests to format dates in the ISO format using the parameter of UseIsoDateFormat. Setting it to true will use the ISO date format. Setting it to false or not setting it will use the older style format. These defaults will remain in place through the 6.0 release. Following the 6.0 release, the default will be changed to use the ISO date format. This will align the standard date formats across Telligent Community platform REST v2 Web services.
The Telligent Community platform REST v2 Web services framework will parse any valid DateTime input format that the .NET framework DateTime.Parse() method recognizes (if sending data as XML then it has to be a format the XML Serializer recognizes as well). However, we recommend using the ISO date format standard of yyyy-mm-ddThh:mm:ss for consistency across requests and responses.
API Documentation
For a list of all REST endpoint, view the REST API Documentation.