API Gateway
An API Gateway is a server-side component that acts as a single entry point for all API clients, abstracting the underlying microservices architecture. It handles routing client requests to the appropriate backend services, aggregates responses, and provides cross-cutting concerns like…
Key facts
- First appeared
- 2015
- Category
- technology
- Problem solved
- The API Gateway pattern primarily solves the challenges that arise when a single client application needs to interact with a multitude of backend microservices. Before API Gateways, clients often had to discover and call each microservice directly, leading to significant complexity on the client-side for concerns like authentication, rate limiting, data aggregation, error handling, and evolving service endpoints. Predecessors like Enterprise Service Buses (ESBs) attempted to address some of these, but they were often heavy, tightly coupled, and better suited for SOAP/XML, making them ill-fitting for the nimble, HTTP/REST-based microservices landscape.
- Platforms
- Kubernetes, Virtual Machines, Cloud (AWS, Azure, GCP, Alibaba Cloud), On-Premises Servers, Container Runtimes (Docker)
Related technologies
Notable users
- Netflix
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)
- Microsoft
- IBM
- Many large enterprises adopting microservices