Best Practices for Using @PathParam vs. @QueryParam
When developing RESTful APIs, the choice between using @PathParam and @QueryParam can impact the organization and performance of your URLs. While there is no universal convention, certain guidelines can help you make informed decisions.
Using @PathParam for Category Delineation
Consider using @PathParam for defining the categories or types of resources. This allows you to drill down into the hierarchy of entities by using PathParams to specify branch levels. For example:
/Vehicle/Car?registration=123
Here, /Vehicle/Car represents a category, and registration=123 is a query parameter used to specify an attribute of the Car object.
Using @QueryParam for Instance Selection
In contrast, @QueryParam is more suitable for specifying attributes or filters used to select a specific instance of a class. This approach allows for more flexible filtering and pagination options:
/House/Colonial?region=newengland
In this example, /House/Colonial defines the category, while region=newengland is a query parameter used to refine the search to specific attributes.
Path Parameters vs. Query Strings
The example below illustrates the different ways you can structure URLs using PathParams and QueryParams:
/category?instance @Path("/employee/{dept}") Patient getEmployee(@PathParam("dept")Long dept, @QueryParam("id")Long id) ;
/category/instance @Path("/employee/{dept}/{id}") Patient getEmployee(@PathParam("dept")Long dept, @PathParam("id")Long id) ;
?category+instance @Path("/employee") Patient getEmployee(@QueryParam("dept")Long dept, @QueryParam("id")Long id) ;
In general, it's best practice to include required parameters in the URI path and optional parameters in the query string. This approach ensures clear and concise URLs while providing flexibility for filtering and pagination.
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