Use of APIs

Application APIs are the glue that connects applications. They manage the virtual discussions between users and the cloud services being consumed. APIs enable business agility, flexibility, and interoperability. These software modules are more than just connective tissue on the web, they are business model drivers and represent organizational core assets that can be reused, shared, and monetized. Using APIs, companies extend the reach of existing services or provide new revenue streams. In some instances, they are actually end products that, in turn, provide access legacy and third-party systems and data.

Infrastructure APIs are used to provision, de-provision, and scale cloud computing resources. As crucial solution components, the cloud solution architecting process should also consider the following:

• Creation and publication of a service endpoint as an API
• Deployment of APIs on-premises or in the cloud
• Use of versioning to control APIs throughout the solution life cycle
• Management and monitoring of solution-related web services

The predominant API design styles are Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) and Representational State Transfer (REST).