API Strategy Introduction
- 1. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Strategy Introduction
- 2. • What is an API? • Three reasons to pay attention to your API Strategy • Fix Things • New Applications • Join the API Economy Objectives
- 4. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. What is an API and a Service? • Many complex and not always agreed upon definitions for a Service • A Service is a set of functionality that can be reused by multiple consumers. • An Application Programming Interface (API) provides a programmatic interface to a Service • APIs have been used since the early days of programming to define how one part of a system talks to another part • A Service has one or more Consumers: Web Applications, Mobile Apps, other Services. Consumer 1 Service Consumer 2 API
- 5. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Consumers Services and Data What is a Web API / Service? Data Web Application Mobile App IOT Device External Program
- 6. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. What is a Web API and Service? • Provides secure access to a Business’s Offerings and Data • Via standard Web Protocols • REST: HTTP, JSON • Web Services: SOAP, XML • And can be consumed by any Application or Program that can make an internet request • Modern architecture is moving toward MicroServices. • “API” has evolved to mean the Service itself In the modern internet, API and Service have specific meanings …
- 7. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Microservices • Monolithic Services • Access to each entity’s internals and data • Ball of Mud Maintenance Problem • Must deploy and scale as a single large unit • Microservices • Smaller services that work together • Separately deployable and scalable • Much simpler to maintainMicroservices is the latest term for good service design. Monolithic Web Service Orders Order Details Customers Inventory Product Catalog Self Help Help Desk Shopping Cart Users etc. etc. Shipping Warranty API ShippingShopping Cart Order Orders Order Details Shopping Cart Shipping API API API Inventory API Inventory
- 8. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Home Security Example • Visitor comes up to a door at a home while the home owner is at work • Security Camera detects Visitor and notifies the home owner via text message on her Smartphone • Before querying the home owner, the security system checks to see if this is a person the home owner has recognized before • The home owner reads the text message, opens the Web Application on her desktop, and looks at the image of the visitor. • The home owner then … • Doesn’t recognize the visitor, uses the uses the application to request security be alerted • Recognizes the visitor and selects to unlock the door. • The door lock gets notified and unlocks the door.
- 9. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API / Services Home Security Example – API Calls Facial Recognition Send Text to Home Owner Detect Visitor Gets Notification Review Visitor Image Unlock the Door Sends security alert Get Unlock Door Cmd Data Read Texts Alert Security Notify Home Owner Send Unlock Command Save Video Media Data
- 10. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API / Service Summary • The terms API and Services have become synonymous. • Web Services provide common functionality to multiple consumers, including other services • Standards based Web APIs are used by modern user interfaces to access Web Services and their associated Data • Customer demand is increasing for a business’ Services and data outside the applications supplied by the business
- 11. At some point a company realizes it needs to develop a cohesive strategy regarding it’s APIs API / Service Strategy
- 12. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Drivers for creating an API Strategy • API Growing Pains • Specific problems with APIs • Maintenance costs rise significantly • Security issues • New Applications • Desire to build a modern application using well designed, shareable API architecture • Join the API Economy • Monetize Services or Data by providing to customers, third parties, suppliers, etc.
- 13. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Security - “All” APIs are public facing Data Data Data Web Application Mobile App IOT Device Perceived Public Facing Actual “Public” Facing
- 14. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Security – Tips • Remember, an API also exposes any back end system it accesses (e.g., Salesforce, Financial Systems) • Authorize an authenticated user to only access data and take actions the are entitled to perform • Consider what needs to be protected • Be sure to consider multi-tenancy in your API • Use Open, Cross Platform standards such as OpenID and OAuth 2.0 • Use third party providers wherever economically possible All public facing APIs need to be secured like any public facing application
- 15. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Growing Pains APIs built for individual applications can experience growing pains as the number of APIs increases
- 16. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Organically-grown, separate APIs can eventually become a problem Data Data Data Web Application Mobile App IOT Device External Program
- 17. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Consolidating APIs • Create an API Roadmap • Implement a common set of APIs using a Microservices Design • Subject based (Customer, User, Order, etc.) • Make the common API a first class citizen peer of the consuming applications • Migrate applications to the common API over time • $$ - Consider the ROI carefully • Starting a new application is an opportunity to design and implement a common API
- 18. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Application Specific APIs API Gateway Architecture combined with MicroServices can help expose a business’ services and data to the API Economy Data Company Applications Web Application Mobile App Internet Device Internal MicroServices
- 19. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Best Practices • API as a First Class Citizen – The API/Service provides reusable business logic and data. The User Interface just provides access to that the API/Services business logic. • Use or Move to a Microservices Architecture – Use a single service for a given subject area (Customer, Order, etc.) • Honor Service Boundaries. Access to a service is via the API. Don’t directly access a Service’s internals or data. • Use consistent, REST based-conventions for defining APIs. If developers don’t like your API they won’t use it. • Low trust model – Validate everything coming from an external application • Test APIs Independently - Have QA focus heavily on API validation using automated tests • Organize for API Development - Consider a separate API team, but know this is not always the best option as it may introduce project delays • Create a version release strategy to enable backward compatibility
- 20. The API Economy
- 21. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Monetization Businesses are learning that their Data and Services have intrinsic value beyond the applications they provide to use it. APIs offer an opportunity to open new Sales Channels
- 22. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Growth Trends As of 2017, ProgrammableWeb.com has over 18,000 APIs in its catalog.
- 23. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. The API Economy “The API economy is an enabler for turning a business or organization into a platform” “We live in an API economy, a set of business models and channels based on secure access to functionality and exchange of data. APIs make it easier to integrate and connect people, places, systems, data, things and algorithms, create new user experiences, share data and information, authenticate people and things, enable transactions and algorithms, leverage third-party algorithms, and create new product/services and business models.” -- “Welcome to the API Economy”, Gartner Group
- 24. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Business Drivers • New Channel for selling Services and Data • New Offerings • Major changes to existing Offerings • Major changes to Back Office systems • Streamlining the purchase and delivery processes • Cost Containment – reduce maintenance, enhancement costs
- 25. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Gartner Steps to the API Economy (Abbreviated) • Your Digital Strategy drives your API Program • Business Strategy drives the API investment • Tailor your API experiences for your API consumers • Just like a well designed application, APIs must be usable by developers • If you build it, they might not come • You must reach the developers who want to use it • Monetization is much more than charging for (API) calls • Revenue and/or Development Cost containment • APIs are doors into your data and applications • Security Matters • Don’t build your own API Management • Use an API Gateway • Modern Application Architecture relies on APIs • Consumers want to know “Where’s the API”. It is the data conduit for Web, Mobile, IOT • Consuming APIs will be more common than exposing APIs • Manage external API usage across the enterprise © 2017 Gartner Inc.
- 26. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Internal MicroServicesInternal MicroServices External Consumers API Gateway Architecture combined with MicroServices can help expose a business’ services and data to the API Economy API Gateway External Program Data Company Applications Web Application Mobile App Mobile AppWeb Application Internet Device
- 27. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. API Gateways Provide • Service Level Agreement management • Quota and Rate Limits, Thresholds, etc. • API Consolidation • Security using open protocols • Cloud Scalability • Deployment / Versioning • Discovery
- 28. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Take Aways • APIs and Services have become first class citizens in the IT World • When starting new applications or major enhancements, consider using or migrating to well designed API/Service using MicroServices principles • Perform security risk assessments on you current APIs • Consider both the revenue and cost management benefits of joining the API Economy as part of your Digital Strategy
- 29. Inspired Software Services. Measurable Results. Contact Us Tony Timbol Vice President, Sales, SPC4, CSM [email protected] Mobile: 904-614-0931 Office: 610-644-2856 Shandi P. Fischer Regional Sales Director [email protected] Mobile: 970-690-4982 Office: 303-485-1880 Premiosgroup.com