API
An API defines how software can use functions or data offered by other software.
An API, or Application Programming Interface, is a defined software interface. It specifies which functions or data a program makes available to other programs and how they can use them. APIs exist within systems and between separate systems; not every API is reachable over the internet.
A fictional shop might ask an ERP API for the available stock of product B-6. The request, response and access permissions need to match. The interface alone does not decide which stock figure to show or what happens when no response arrives.
An API is therefore not a completed integration. Integration also maps data fields and business rules and handles errors or repeated operations.
Sources
Related terms
- ERPERP connects core business processes such as purchasing, inventory, orders and finance through shared data.
- Transactional inboxA transactional inbox uses durable message records to protect local processing against duplicate deliveries.
- Message acknowledgementA message acknowledgement tells the broker that a delivery has been received or processed according to the agreed rule.
- Retry jitterRetry jitter varies waiting times randomly to spread retries and reduce simultaneous requests from many clients.
- Test tenantA logically bounded customer context of a multitenant application, configured for testing.
- Webhook replayWebhook replay means sending a webhook notification again. Deliberate recovery and replay attacks require different checks.
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