ASP.Net Web API

Getting started with Web API

ASP.NET Web API(Application program interface) is a framework that makes it easy to build HTTP services that reach a broad range of clients, including browsers and mobile devices. ASP.NET Web API is an ideal platform for building RESTful applications on the .NET Framework

Web API Features

   A. It supports convention-based CRUD Actions since it works with HTTP verbs 

• GET
• POST
• PUT
•  DELETE.

  B. It also supports the MVC features such as routing, controllers, action results, filter, model       binders, IOC container or dependency injection that makes it more simple and robust.

  C.  It can be hosted with in the application or on IIS.

Why to choose Web API ?

• If we need a Web Service and don’t need SOAP, then ASP.Net Web API is best choice.
• It is Used to build simple, non-SOAP-based HTTP Services on top of existing WCF message pipeline.
• It doesn't have tedious and extensive configuration like WCF REST service.
• Simple service creation with Web API. With WCF REST Services, service creation is difficult.
• It is only based on HTTP and easy to define, expose and consume in a REST-ful way.
• It is light weight architecture and good for devices which have limited bandwidth like smart phones.
• It is open source.

Asp.Net Web API Vs Asp.Net MVC

• Asp.Net Web API is used to create full blown HTTP services with easy and simple way that returns only data not view.
• Asp.Net MVC is used to create web applications that returns both views and data
• Web API helps to build REST-ful services over the .NET Framework and it also support content-negotiation(it's about deciding the best response format data that could be acceptable by the client. it could be JSON,XML data).
•  self hosting which are not in MVC.
• Web API also takes care of returning data in particular format like JSON,XML or.
•  MVC only return data in JSON format using JsonResult.
• In Web API the request are mapped to the actions based on HTTP verbs 
•  in MVC it is mapped to actions name.
• Asp.Net Web API is new framework and part of the core ASP.NET framework. The model binding, filters, routing and others MVC features exist in Web API are different from MVC and exists in the new System.Web.Httpassembly. 
• In MVC, these features exist with in System.Web.Mvc. Hence Web API can also be used with Asp.Net and as a stand alone service layer.
• You can mix Web API and MVC controller in a single project to handle advanced AJAX requests which may return data in JSON, XML or any others format and building a full blown HTTP service. Typically, this will be called Web API self hosting.
• When you have mixed MVC and Web API controller and you want to implement the authorization then you have to create two filters one for MVC and another for Web API since both are different.