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Version: v2.0

Level up your data-fetching game with Axios

In Godspeed, Axios is used as a datasource plugin for making HTTP requests to external APIs or services. This allows your application to communicate with third-party services or other microservices by sending requests and receiving responses in a structured way. Axios simplifies the process of making requests, handling authentication, managing headers, handling errors, and retrying requests, which is especially useful for complex workflows or external integrations.

Step-by-Step Guide:​

Step 1: Configure Axios as a Datasource​

  1. Create a godspeed project from the CLI and by default the axios plugin is integrated into your project if not, add the plugin from the CLI and select the "axios-as-datasource" plugin to integrate the plugin.

    godspeed plugin add

  2. Open the Axios Configuration file: In your project, go to src/datasources/<api.yaml>. This file will define the base configuration for Axios.

In this file, you can set the base URL and any custom headers or authentication needed for interacting with the third-party API.

Example api.yaml:

type: axios
base_url: https://httpbin.org   # Base URL of the third-party API. You can use `https://httpbin.org` for testing.

# Following fields are optional, you can use them as per your requirement
curlifiedLogs: true   # to print all api calls in curl format

authn:       # to do Authentication of API calls with token refresh logic
  fn: my_bank.authn
  refreshOn:
    statusCode: [401]

headers:      # to set Common headers in all API calls
  Content-Type: application/json
  Cookie: <%mappings.my_bank.auth_workflow_cookie%>

# Retry logic for failed API calls for ex on Internal server errors or request timeouts
retry:
    when: #the condition
      status: [500, 503] # an array or single value of codes (optional). Default 500
      message: my custom expected message for retry #And (optionally) when response has this message
    max_attempts: 5
    type: constant # or random, exponential
    interval: PT15s
    # type: exponential
    # min_interval: PT5s
    # max_internal: PT15s
    # type: random
    # min_interval: PT5s
    # max_internal: PT15s

Step 2: Set Up an Event​

  1. Create an Event to Trigger the Workflow: Define an HTTP event to trigger the workflow and call the third-party API. Example fetchData.yaml:
http.get./fetch-data:
  fn: fetchDataWorkflow
  authn: false
  params:
    - name: test_input
      in: query
      required: true
      schema:
        type: string
  responses:
    200:
      content:
        application/json:
          schema:
            type: object

Explanation:​

  • http.get./fetch-data:: The first line of any http event defines the (protocol.Method./end-point) Here, /fetch-data is the end point which will send a get request to third party API by calling a workflow.
  • fn: fn defines the workflow function to be called. here it is, fetchDataWorkflow.

Step 3: Set Up Workflow to Use the Axios Datasource​

Go to src/functions/ and create a file (e.g., fetchDataWorkflow.yaml).Use the Axios configuration to make the API call. You can specify the endpoint, HTTP method, and any parameters needed for the request.

  summary: Calls the third-party API using Axios
  tasks:
  - id: fetchDataWorkflow
    fn: datasource.api.get./anything
    args:
      data:
        <% inputs.query.id %>
    on_error:
      continue: false

Explanation:​

  • fn: datasource.api.get./anything - References a predefined Axios function axiosRequest to make the API call which contains:-

    • api: it will be the name of confguration file of the axios datasource. User can give it any name like api1, api2. Same name will be used here.
    • get: HTTP method for example, Get/Post/Put
    • /anything: The endpoint of the API, relative to the base URL. Here, /anything is the endpoint given by user relative to the base url defined in api.yaml above. So it will send request to this url https://httpbin.org/anything
    • params: Optional query parameters.

  • on_error: Defines error handling if the API call fails.

Step 4: Start the Server and Test the API:​

godspeed serve
  • Go to http://localhost:3000/api-docs to access Swagger UI.
  • Test the /fetch-data endpoint to ensure the third-party API call is working and data is being returned.

Following these steps, you’ll be able to interact with third-party APIs in Godspeed using Axios while keeping the configuration modular and manageable.