Auto-documentation for application program interfaces based on network requests and responses
Disclosed embodiments are directed at systems, methods, and architecture for providing auto-documentation to APIs. The auto documentation plugin is architecturally placed between an API and a client thereof and parses API requests and responses in order to generate auto-documentation. In some embodiments, the auto-documentation plugin is used to update preexisting documentation after updates. In some embodiments, the auto-documentation plugin accesses an on-line documentation repository. In some embodiments, the auto-documentation plugin makes use of a machine learning model to determine how and which portions of an existing documentation file to update.
1. A method for managing Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) in a microservices architecture, the method comprising:
communicatively coupling a control plane to a plurality of APIs organized into a microservices application architecture via data plane proxies;
receiving an incoming proxied request from a first API of the plurality of APIs directed to a second API of the plurality of APIs, the proxied request relayed to the control plane via a first data plane proxy associated with the first API;
receiving a proxied response from the second API, the proxied response relayed to the control plane via a second data plane proxy associated with the second API;
parsing the proxied request and the proxied response and extract current data; and
executing an auto-documentation plugin, wherein the auto-documentation plugin is configured to generate documentation based on the current data.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
configuring a first gateway node and a second gateway node as external end-points of the microservices application architecture;
saving, by the first gateway node, software code in a data store, wherein the software code is associated with a given plugin included in a plurality of plugins;
retrieving, by the second gateway node, the software code from the data store; and
installing, by the second gateway node, the given plugin at the second gateway node, using the retrieved software code associated with the given plugin.
3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
providing a memory architecturally separate from the plurality of APIs, the memory including a program code library configured to execute functionalities common to execution of the plurality of APIs on a node in communication with the memory.
4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising:
provisioning, by an administration API, the plurality of APIs to the microservices application architecture via a configuration and installation function.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request is parsed subsequent to the receiving the response from the API.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request is parsed independently from delivery to the second API.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the auto-documentation is in the form of a Swagger file, a RAML file, or an API Blueprint file.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the auto-documentation includes one or more endpoints, one or more parameters, or one or more methods.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the request and the response is associated with an endpoint, wherein executing the auto-documentation plugin includes:
retrieving previously generated documentation for the endpoint;
comparing the previously generated documentation with the current data to determine a difference; and
upon determining the difference, generating the documentation based on the current data.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the previously generated documentation associated with the endpoint and includes at least one of: a body, one or more headers, or one or more parameters.
11. The method of claim 9 , wherein executing the auto-documentation plugin includes:
upon determining the difference does not exist, entering a state associated with not generating the documentation.
12. The method of claim 9 , wherein executing the auto-documentation plugin includes:
upon determining the difference, electronically generating a notification for alerting the difference to a user.
13. A method comprising:
forwarding proxied communications between a plurality of APIs that operate a microservices application to an application program interface (API) gateway, the proxied communications are transmitted via data plane proxies that correspond to each of the plurality of APIs;
extracting current data, by the API gateway, via parsing of API requests and responses in between the plurality of APIs; and
executing, by the API gateway, an auto-documentation program function, wherein the auto-documentation program function is configured to generate auto-documentation in response to the requests and the responses and based on the current data.
14. The method of claim 13 , the method further comprising:
API gateway further comprises:
executing a program code library, by a network interface of the API gateway; and
load balancing the network interface that receives client requests.
15. The method of claim 14 , the API gateway further comprising:
caching, in a gateway cache, portions or all of the functionalities common to execution of the plurality of APIs.
16. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
executing, by the API gateway, functionalities common to execution of the plurality of APIs, including any of:
authentication;
logging;
caching;
transformations;
rate-limiting; or
any combination thereof.
17. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
executing, by the API gateway, functionalities common to execution of the plurality of APIs, wherein the functionalities common to execution of the plurality of APIs includes a first program function and a second program function.
18. The method of claim 17 , the API gateway further comprising:
configuring, installing and provisioning a first API of the plurality of APIs, by an administration API.
19. The method of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of APIs cannot perform the first or second program functions without code from a program code library on API gateway.
20. A method for extending functionalities of a plurality of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) in a microservices architecture, the method comprising:
receiving, by a control plane, an incoming proxied request from a first API of the plurality of APIs directed to a second API of the plurality of APIs, the proxied request relayed to the control plane via a first data plane proxy associated with the first API;
receiving, by the control plane, a proxied response from the second API, the proxied response relayed to the control plane via a second data plane proxy associated with the second API;
parsing the proxied request and the proxied response and extracting current data;
identifying, by the control plane, that the first API and the second API of the plurality of APIs belong to a service group; and
in response to said identification of the service group, executing an auto-documentation plugin, wherein the auto-documentation plugin is configured to generate service group level documentation based on requests and responses within the service group.
21. The method of claim 20 , wherein APIs that belong to the service group are along a same execution path.