RESTful Services with ASP.NET Web API

Name: RESTful Services with ASP.NET Web API
Rating: 3.9 (73 reviews)

Get hands-on experience of building RESTful services for the modern Web using ASP.NET Web API

Created byPackt Publishing

Last updated 11/2014

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Understand the important features of ASP.NET Web API including its relationship to REST and WCF
Start building a real Web API from scratch to be consumed by any RESTful client
Learn about authentication and authorization, and applying security to the service over SSL
Explore extensibility options such as media type formatters to serve different file formats, message handlers to implement rate-limiting, filters for validation, dependency injection, and OData
Interact with clients by creating custom HTTP clients and wiring the service up to it
Leverage the power of automatic documentation generation to provide comprehensive usage information for your Web API
Evaluate the different hosting options and publish your service to the cloud on Azure

Course content

8 sections • 34 lectures • 2h 4m total length

Definition and Features3:47
Services interact with many devices and browsers. Use ASP.NET Web APIs to build scalable HTTP services for virtually any device with Internet connectivity.
Relationship with REST3:59
Services need to comply with specific constraints to be considered RESTful. Identify the REST constraints required for a service to be considered RESTful.
ASP.NET Web APIs versus WCF4:01
Why favor ASP.NET Web APIs over WCF in some scenarios. Identify the differences between WCF and Web APIs to know when to use which.

A Uniform Interface3:01
There are many (messy) ways to create APIs. Implement the Uniform Interface to conform to RESTful standards for simpler interaction.
The APIController1:36
Working with APIs requires access to specific request properties. The APIController includes all the properties needed to access and modify the request.
Implementation by Convention6:28
Avoid complex configurations. Use a convention-based approach for implementing the Uniform Interface in REST.
Verb to Attributes4:00
Override the convention model. Specify custom method names and routes by using the appropriate attributes.

An Overview1:14
Get a more hands-on experience with Web APIs. Prepare to build a real-world example using Web APIs.
Getting Started2:04
Get familiar with the project structure. Explore the project structure and add folders for future use.
Designing the Model2:51
Follow standard architectural patterns. Create models and interfaces to implement the repository and unit of work patterns.
Creating the Endpoints9:30
Understand how to create endpoints for the service. Create controllers as API endpoints for the service.
The Book Store: Service in Action4:40
Make sure all the API endpoints work as expected. Use Fiddler to debug the service.

Authentication and Authorization2:23
Control the access to your Web APIs. Secure your Web APIs from unauthorized users.
Types of Authentication2:43
Apply the right type of authentication for the scenario. Understand the differences between each type of authentication.
Applying Custom Basic Authentication6:50
Customize Basic Authentication in ASP.NET Web APIs. Create an HTTP message handler to validate the user's credentials.
Enabling SSL and Enforcing HTTPS3:59
Enhance the security of your API. Force the use of HTTPS and enable SSL.

Applying Media Formatter5:49
Serve and support many content types within your Web APIs. Add custom media type formatters to your service.
Message Handlers4:57
Prevent DoS attacks. Use message handlers to implement rate limiting.
Using Filters2:44
Prevent null values to be sent as responses. Make use of filters to intercept and check responses and return appropriate messages.
The Service Resolver4:09
Use the Service Locator pattern. Implement IDependencyResolver to pass instances for controllers.
Implementing OData3:49
Allow clients to perform dynamic queries on the data. Make use of and implement the Odata protocol.

The HttpClient4:02
Take the difficulty out of consuming HTTP services by using the HttpClient.
Using HttpClient Message Handlers2:25
Add custom headers to outgoing requests by creating a HttpClientHandler.
Creating a Custom Client3:41
Prevent repetitive complex code and create a custom HttpClient for consuming The Book Store service.
A Comprehensive Demo of The Book Store App1:52
Make the app interact with The Book Store and write the code to use the custom HttpClient for consuming the service.

Adding Help Pages2:39
Take the pain out of keeping documentation up-to-date by using automatic help pages.
Generating Additional Documentation4:37
Add additional information to documented endpoints. Use the XML documentation function to do this.
Adding a Test Client2:10
Allow users to take the APIs for a test drive. Include a test client for testing purposes.
Customizing Help Pages3:00
Customize your documentation by getting familiar with how Help Pages work.

Hosting Options2:28
Choose the best option for hosting a Web API solution. Understand the different hosting options available.
A Demo on Self-Hosting4:24
Host ASP.NET Web APIs independently by using self-hosting.
A Demo on OWIN Hosting3:03
Add true abstraction by using OWIN hosting to decouple a web application from the server.
Setting Up the Cloud with Azure1:38
Simplify your hosting by deploying to Azure.
Deploying Your Web APIs3:38
Mitigate complex configuration by using the publish profile from your website in the cloud to deploy.

Requirements

This video tutorial is structured to help you quickly work through the basics and ease into the more advanced topics. During the course of this tutorial, you will be actively involved in the building of a full service - by example and from scratch.

Description

This video course is a great starting point for any web developer who wants to create simple web APIs in minutes. By applying your knowledge of ASP.NET in conjunction with the information provided in this video tutorial, you will learn to master the art of building RESTful services by example.

The video course begins with a brief introduction that will soon get you up to speed with the framework, and will then get you building a fully-functional Web API from scratch during the course of the tutorial.

You will learn some of the important features of ASP.NET Web API and how it aligns to the REST standard. You will explore the different implementation strategies and get familiar with some security implementations and ways to extend your APIs, including how to wire up the client side to the service. The tutorial also contains information on automatic documentation generation and deployment strategies such as publishing to Azure.

This video tutorial provides you with a comprehensive, clear, and easy-to-follow guide to creating RESTful services with ASP.NET Web API.

About the Author

Fanie Reynders is a Microsoft Certified Professional from South Africa and a web Technology Evangelist in his own right, with over 9 years of development experience on the Microsoft stack. He actively writes and speaks about the technology he loves to anyone who is willing to listen and has recently been featured in the DNC Magazine, as well as presenting at Microsoft Dev4Devs conference.

Who this course is for:

This video tutorial is for web developers with a basic understanding of ASP.NET, HTML, and CSS.

RESTful Services with ASP.NET Web API

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction3 lectures • 12min

A Lap Around the Basics4 lectures • 15min

A Hands-on Example: The Book Store5 lectures • 20min

Securing Web APIs4 lectures • 16min

Extensibility5 lectures • 21min

Interacting with Clients4 lectures • 12min

Documentation Using Help Pages4 lectures • 12min

Hosting and Deploying5 lectures • 15min

Requirements

Description

About the Author

Who this course is for: