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HalClient.Net

A specialised http client that simplifies communicating with API's that support the HAL media type.

Build status

HAL Specification resources

Why a specialised HttpClient

Dealing with the responses from a HAL enabled API can be tedious. As a consumer you repeatedly need to extract the links, embedded resources and state values to be able to reason about these entities. This client aims to be a thin wrapper around the HttpClient that takes care of the initial parsing of HAL responses. In most cases, consuming code does not need to do any parsing so it can focus on interpreting.

The object graph returned by the client is a generic representation of the object, which makes contained data elements easy to traverse/access. Given the flexibility of JSON and the pace at which API's change these days, this strategy was chosen over ORM-like object mapping.

Using this library as a starting point, you could (relatively) easily build such behaviour into a wrapper class though.

Basic usage

At application startup (ie. Main() or Application_Start()) setup the ApiHalHttpClientFactory:

// Create the default parser
IHalJsonParser parser = new HalJsonParser();

// Create the factory
IHalHttpClientFactory factory = new HalHttpClientFactory(parser);

The factory is now ready for use and can be held, in your IoC container of choice, in singleton scope.

Within your code, you can now use the factory to create your clients as follows:

using (var client = factory.CreateClient())
{
	using(var response = await client.GetAsync(new Uri("http://example.com/orders")))
	{
		if (response.IsHalResponse)
		{
			// get the self link of the root resource
			var selfUri = response.Resource.Links["self"].First().Href;
	
			// get the order dates of all embedded order resources
			var orderDates = response.Resource.Embedded["example:order"].Select(x => x.State["Date"].Value);
	
			// automatically resolve the documentation uri for a named link relation based on curies
			var documentationUri = response.Resource.GetDocumentationUri(resource.Links["address:invoice"].First());
		}
	}
}

Note that both the client and the response are disposable!

Depending on how you set the ThrowOnError (default value is true)flag in the configuration, be sure to check the response.Message.IsSuccessStatusCode before deciding what to do with the returned information.

Working with ILinkObject instances

After parsing the application/hal+json response from the API, the returned resource contains a dictionary of links as they were encounteres in the _links property of the resource. The key in this dictionary is the link's rel, the value of each pair in the dictionary, is an IEnumerable<ILinkObject>. The reason for this being an enumerable is that the response might contain multiple links with the same rel attribute.

Each ILinkObject instance represents a link, as defined in RFC5988. Note that as specified in the hal spec, links may be provided as URI templates as defined in RFC6570. ILinkObject instances can subsequently represent templated or non templated links. In case the link is templated, the Href property will be null and the Template property will represent the template. Alternatively, the Href will be set to a vilud Uri and the Template will be null. Below is the recommended way of working with links.

//
// In case of embedded resources, you might have many links with the same rel ...
//

var productLinks = resource.Links["product"]; // list of links to all embedded products

Assert.IsTrue(productLinks.Any());

//
// A self link is never templated, and there is only 1 ...
//

var selfLink = resource.Links["self"].Single();

Assert.IsFalse(selfLink.Templated);
Assert.IsNull(selfLink.Template);
Assert.IsNotNull(selfLink.Href);

//
// Here we can export a resource in various formats
//

var exportLink = resource.Links["export"].Single();

Assert.IsTrue(exportLink.Templated);
Assert.IsNotNull(exportLink.Template);
Assert.IsNull(exportLink.Href);

var resolved = exportLink.ResolveTemplated(x => x.AddParameter("format", "xml").Resolve());

Assert.IsFalse(resolved.Templated);
Assert.IsNull(resolved.Template);
Assert.IsNotNull(resolved.Href);

Note that the ResolveTemplated returns a new ILinkObject instance, which is no longer templated. Although it is possible to instruct the UriTemplate instance, passed into the Func<UriTemplate, string> you should not do partial parameter replacements as the resulting ILinkObject will no longer allow you to replace other parameters.

For more info on how to use the UriTemplate class, please visit: Tavis.UriTemplates

Advanced usage

There are many ways you could customise the behaviour of IHalHttpClient instances and of the HalHttpClientFactory. Below is a list of scenarios and recommended approaches.

I want to cache the API root resource

Many hypermedia powered API's expose their entry points as links in the root response. In order to embrace this paradigm, and reduce chatter, it is possible to have the HalHttpClientFactory retrieve and cache the root response for future reference.

Possible CachingBehavior options are:

Value Description
Never The API's root resource will not be automatically retrieved nor cached.
PerClient The API's root resource will be automatically retrieved and cached every time a IHalHttpClient instance is created and will remain cached as long as the client is not disposed.
Once The API's root resource will be automatically retrieved and cached when the first IHalHttpClient instance is created and will remain cached as long as the HalHttpClientFactory is not garbage collected.

In order to make use of the built-in caching mechanism, use one of the awaitable CreateClientAsync() overloads.

using (var client = await factory.CreateClientAsync(CachingBehavior.PerClient))
{
	// client.CachedApiRootResource is set to a parsed IRootResourceObject instance
}

I want to access a non-HAL resource

In some situations, an HAL media type API may respond using a non-HAL content type for certain resources. Consider the download of an image or other binary. In these cases, you should use the IHalClient.HttpClient to do the communication.

I want to apply common configuration to all IHalHttpClient instances

If you want to configure all instantiated IHalHttpClient objects consistently, you should create a custom factory.

public class CustomApiClientFactory : HalHttpClientFactory
{
	private readonly string _apiKey;

	public CustomApiClientFactory(IHalJsonParser parser, string apiKey) : base(parser)
	{
		_apiKey = apiKey;
	}

	protected override void Configure(IHalHttpClientConfiguration config)
	{
		config.BaseAddress = new Uri("http://example.com");
		config.Headers.Add("Authorization",string.Format("API_KEY_SCHEME apikey=\"{0}\"", _apiKey));
		config.MaxResponseContentBufferSize = 1024;
		config.Timeout = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(10);
	}
}

The following options can be configured:

Setting Description
BaseAddress Exposes the BaseAddress property of the underlying HttpClient instance.
Headers Exposes the Headers collection of the underlying HttpClient instance.
MaxResponseContentBufferSize Exposes the MaxResponseContentBufferSize property of the underlying HttpClient instance.
Timeout Exposes the Timeout property of the underlying HttpClient instance.
ThrowOnError Wether a HalHttpRequestException should be thrown upon receiving a non-success response from the server. The default value is true.
AutoFollowRedirects Wether the client should automatically follow (ie. perform a subsequent GET request) in case the server returns either an HTTP 302 or 303 status code. The default value is true.

Note that, whatever Accept header you configure, the value will be overridden and set to application/hal+json unless you communicate using the IHalHttpClient.HttpClient.

I want to wrap all 'IHalHttpClient` instances in a custom object

Sometimes it might be useful to wrap all instantiated IHalHttpClient in a custom object. This is typically useful when you want to layer some logic on top of the provided behaviour. In such cases you should create a decorator for the IHalHttpClient as well as a custom HalHttpClientFactory.

public class CustomHalHttpClient : IHalHttpClient
{
	IHalHttpClient _decorated;

	public CustomHalHttpClient(IHalHttpClient decorated)
	{
		_decorated = decorated;
	}

	public Task<IHalHttpResponseMessage> PostAsync<T>(Uri uri, T data)
	{
		//
		// do something fancy with the uri and/or data
		//

		var resource = _decorated.PostAsync(uri, data);

		//
		// do something fancy with the result
		//
	}

	public Task<IHalHttpResponseMessage> PutAsync<T>(Uri uri, T data)
	{
		//
		// Custom code might go here
		//
	}

	public Task<IHalHttpResponseMessage> GetAsync(Uri uri)
	{
		//
		// Custom code might go here
		//
	}

	public Task<IHalHttpResponseMessage> DeleteAsync(Uri uri)
	{
		//
		// Custom code might go here
		//
	}

	public Task<IHalHttpResponseMessage> SendAsync(HttpRequestMessage request)
	{
		//
		// Custom code might go here
		//
	}

	public IRootResourceObject CachedApiRootResource => _decorated.CachedApiRootResource;

	public void Dispose()
	{
		Dispose(true);
		GC.SuppressFinalize(this);
	}

	protected virtual void Dispose(bool disposing)
	{
		if (!disposing)
			return;

		if (_decorated == null)
			return;

		_decorated.Dispose();
		_decorated = null;
	}
}

public class CustomHalHttpClientFactory : HalHttpClientFactory
{
	public CustomHalHttpClientFactory(IHalJsonParser parser) : base(parser)
	{
	}

	protected override IHalHttpClient Decorate(IHalHttpClient original)
	{
		return new CustomHalHttpClient(original);
	}
}

I want to pass an adhoc context object to my Configure and/or Decorate overrides

There are scenarios where you might need to pass a context object from the code calling HalHttpClientFactory.Create() to your custom Configure and/or Decorate overrides on you custom factory. This is typically useful when dealing with remote user impersonation, where your client makes API requests on behalf of a remote user.

To help you deal with such situations, there is a generic HalHttpClientFactoryWithContext<T> class from which you may derive your own custom factory.

public class CustomHalHttpClientFactory : HalHttpClientFactoryWithContext<string>
{
	public CustomHalHttpClientFactory(IHalJsonParser parser) : base(parser)
	{
	}

	protected override void Configure(IHalHttpClientConfiguration config, string context)
	{
		//
		// Custom Configure, in case a context was specified in the CreateClient() call
		//
	}

	protected override IHalHttpClient Decorate(IHalHttpClient original, string context)
	{
		//
		// Custom Decorate, in case a context was specified in the CreateClient() call
		//
	}
}

I want to use a custom HttpClient for my IHalHttpClient instances

In case this an adhoc need, ie. a differently initialised HttpClient is needed for each instantiated IHalHttpClient, simply use the appropriate overload of the HalHttpClientFactory.Create() method.

var custom = new HttpClient();

//
// Configure the custom HttpClient instance
//

using (var client = factory.CreateClient(custom))
{
	//
	// Do something with the client ...
	//
}

In case this an constant need, ie. a consistently initialised HttpClient is needed for each instantiated IHalHttpClient, you should create a custom factory, and override the IHalHttpClientFactory.GetHttpClient() method.

public sealed class CustomHalHttpClientFactory : HalHttpClientFactory
{
	private readonly long _apiClientId;
	private readonly string _secretKey;

	public CustomHalHttpClientFactory(long apiClientId, string secretKey)
	{
		_apiClientId = apiClientId;
		_secretKey = secretKey;
	}	
	
	protected override HttpClient GetHttpClient()
	{
		var custom = new HttpClient();
		
		//
		// Configure the custom HttpClient instance
		//
				
		return new HttpClient(custom);
	}
}

I want to use a custom HttpMessageHandler for my IHalHttpClient instances

In case this an adhoc need, ie. a differently initialised HttpMessageHandler is needed for each instantiated IHalHttpClient, simply use the appropriate overload of the HalHttpClientFactory.Create() method. This is typically useful for testing purposes

public class FakeResponseHandler : DelegatingHandler
{
	private readonly Dictionary<Uri, HttpResponseMessage> _fakeResponses = new Dictionary<Uri, HttpResponseMessage>(); 

	public void AddFakeResponse(Uri uri, HttpResponseMessage responseMessage)
	{
		_fakeResponses.Add(uri,responseMessage);
	}

	protected async override Task<HttpResponseMessage> SendAsync(HttpRequestMessage request, System.Threading.CancellationToken cancellationToken)
	{
		if (_fakeResponses.ContainsKey(request.RequestUri))
		{
			return _fakeResponses[request.RequestUri];
		}
		else
		{
			return new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.NotFound) { RequestMessage = request};
		}
	}
}

var custom = new FakeResponseHandler();

custom.AddFakeResponse(new Uri("http://example.org/test"), new HttpResponseMessage(HttpStatusCode.OK));

using (var client = factory.CreateClient(custom))
{
	//
	// Do something with the client ...
	//
}

Code snippet for the FakeResponseHandler taken from stackoverflow.com

In case this an constant need, ie. a consistently initialised HttpMessageHandler is needed for each instantiated IHalHttpClient, you should create a custom factory, and override the IHalHttpClientFactory.GetHttpClient() method. This is typically useful for message signing scenarios.

internal class CustomHttpMessageHandler : HttpClientHandler
{
	private const string AuthenticationScheme = "CustomScheme";

	private readonly string _secretKey;
	private readonly long _apiClientId;

	public CustomHttpMessageHandler(long apiClientId, string secretKey)
	{
		_secretKey = secretKey;
		_apiClientId = apiClientId;
	}

	protected override Task<HttpResponseMessage> SendAsync(HttpRequestMessage request, CancellationToken cancellationToken)
	{
		//
		// Calculate HMAC hash and set the appropriate headers on the request
		//

		return base.SendAsync(request, cancellationToken);
	}
}

public sealed class CustomHalHttpClientFactory : HalHttpClientFactory
{
	private readonly long _apiClientId;
	private readonly string _secretKey;

	public CustomHalHttpClientFactory(long apiClientId, string secretKey)
	{
		_apiClientId = apiClientId;
		_secretKey = secretKey;
	}	
	
	protected override HttpClient GetHttpClient()
	{
		return new HttpClient(new CustomHttpMessageHandler(_apiClientId, _secretKey));
	}
}

Thread-safety

  • IHalHttpClientFactory instances are thread-safe;
  • IHalHttpClient instances are not thread-safe;

Error handling

Handling errors, when using a IHalHttpClient is no different from when using a regular HttpClient. Given the asynchronous nature, you should catch AggregateException and deal with the inner exceptions.

There is one major difference in the type of exceptions that might be thrown. Rather than throwing a HttpRequestException the client might throw a HalHttpRequestException. Reason for this custom is that even an error response from the API might be a valid HAL resource. If so -- based on the Content-Type header of the response -- the response will be parsed and made available as a property on the exception for further interpretation.

try
{
	using (var client = factory.CreateClient())
	{
		//
		// Do something with the client ...
		//
	}
}
catch (AggregateException aggregate)
{
	aggregate.Handle(e =>
	{
		var hal = e as HalHttpRequestException;

		if (hal != null)
		{
			var statusCode = hal.StatusCode; // response status code
			var resource = hal.Resource; // error response (might be null)

			//
			// Deal with the error ...
			//
			
			return true;
		}
		
		return false;
	});	
}
catch(HalHttpRequestException e)
{
	//
	// Deal with the error ...
	//
}

Nuget

A nuget package for this library is available here: https://www.nuget.org/packages/HalClient.Net/

Work in progress

This library has spawned from an adhoc need i had to communicate with one of my own API's, which uses (WebApi.Hal)[https://github.com/JakeGinnivan/WebApi.Hal]. As time progressed, my experience with the mediatype grew and my needs changed. this has led to many small and big changes to the library.

As with any library, it may not suit all of your use cases. I am very much interested in your particular use cases and am eager to improve the library. Feel free to create an Issue or (even better) a Pull Request.

Credits

The parser makes use of Darrel Miller's UriTemplates project: https://github.com/tavis-software/Tavis.UriTemplates