Accessing a simple database via a GraphQL API or REST APIs requires a lot of custom code, which adds to the complexity and time taken to build these APIs for your application. Today, we're pleased to announce that the Data API builder for Azure databases is now in public preview. You can use it to enhance developer productivity by making it easy to create GraphQL endpoints and REST endpoints with minimal code. You can connect to and perform CRUD operations (Create, Read, Update and Delete) on your data residing in Azure Database for MySQL - Flexible Server, allowing you to use any platform, any language, or any device to do more with your data. With an integrated and flexible policy engine, granular security is assured, and the integration with Azure SQL, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Cosmos DB gives developers an efficiency boost like never before.
Developers can provide basic information for database connection, the entities, and the relationships between these entities in a simple configuration file. Data API builder can then use the configuration file to generate the REST and GraphQL endpoint to perform CRUD operations on your data.
Figure: Data API builder architecture
Difference between REST and GraphQL
In a REST architecture, the client makes an HTTP request to perform an operation and data is sent as an HTTP response, while in GraphQL, the client requests data with queries. In REST, the structure of the request object is defined on the server whereas in GraphQL, you can define the object on the client side which allows developers to do more with the data on the client side. GraphQL was designed to allow the client to ask for only the data it needs. Data API builder supports both REST or GraphQL and gives you flexibility to choose the option you need to work with your data.
Integrate with Azure Static Web Apps
Data API builder can help you integrate with Azure Static Web Apps which can at dynamic scale work with APIs built with Data API builder. You can quickly build your apps without waiting for new backend APIs to serve you’re you need to build out your app on Azure Static Web Apps. You can use Data API builder to quickly fetch data and focus on your code to perform data CRUD operations.
Build on your existing data
You don’t need to create the data in any specific format but use what you already have in any of the databases – MySQL, Azure SQL , SQL Server, Cosmos DB and PostgreSQL. This can help you innovate on streamlining any processes that use the data you already have whether it is a relational database or NoSQL database.
Reduce roundtrips on data requests
You can use any front end such as Next JS, React or even traditional frameworks like Python, PHP etc. to build your apps. Now when performing any data operations, we need your applications to be more responsive and faster than ever before. Data API builder helps deliver on the promise for fast data access for read, create, update and delete operations.
Get started!
If you don’t have a Azure subscription, try Azure for free. Data API builder works with both local MySQL servers and Azure Database for MySQL flexible servers. Check out the documentation for Data API builder to get started.
If you have any feedback or questions about the information provided above, please leave a comment below or email us at AskAzureDBforMySQL@service.microsoft.com. Thank you!