ASP.NET Web API is a framework for building HTTP services that can reach a broad range of clients, including browsers and mobile devices. It was introduced by Microsoft as part of the ASP.NET framework, focusing on simplifying the creation of RESTful services.
History and Evolution
- Initial Release: ASP.NET Web API was first released in 2012 with ASP.NET MVC 4. It was designed to be an alternative to Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) for building web services.
- ASP.NET Web API 2: In 2013, ASP.NET Web API 2 was introduced, bringing improvements like attribute routing, CORS support, and OData support.
- Integration with ASP.NET Core: With the introduction of ASP.NET Core, Web API became part of the unified ASP.NET Core MVC framework, merging MVC and Web API into one framework.
Key Features
- HTTP-based Services: It supports the full spectrum of HTTP verbs (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, etc.), allowing for CRUD operations over HTTP.
- Content Negotiation: ASP.NET Web API can automatically serialize and deserialize data based on the client's request headers, supporting formats like JSON, XML, and others.
- Model Binding and Validation: It provides features for binding request data to action method parameters and for model validation.
- Routing: Utilizes attribute routing for more flexible URL patterns, alongside conventional routing.
- Dependency Injection: Built-in support for dependency injection to manage service dependencies.
- Security: Includes authentication and authorization mechanisms, with support for OAuth, JWT, and other security protocols.
Context
ASP.NET Web API was developed to address the need for lightweight, simple, and flexible web services, especially in the context of the growing mobile and web application ecosystem. It provides a straightforward approach to building APIs that can be consumed by a variety of clients, unlike traditional WCF services which were often more complex and less suited for web-based applications.
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