CODEWITHSUNDEEP
restpostput
Pritam
Pritam

Reputation: 61

What happens if i try to post one POST request with existing record in the database

As per my knowledge the main difference between PUT and POST method in REST is that POST request will create a new record where as PUT request will update the existing record/ create new record if not present.

Now my question is that : Suppose we have a User with Id = 1 and name= "Pritam" in database. Now if i try to make a POST request with request body Id = 1 and name= "Pritam", then what happens. (Duplicate records). will a new record will get created or what happens exactly.

Please help me to understand the difference between PUT and POST method. When to use PUT and When to use POST in real time scenarios.

Upvotes: 1

Views: 1647

Answers (1)

VoiceOfUnreason
VoiceOfUnreason

Reputation: 57257

As per my knowledge the main difference between PUT and POST method in REST is that POST request will create a new record where as PUT request will update the existing record/ create new record if not present.

That's not right. (It's also not your fault -- that misunderstanding is common). The real differences in the semantics of POST and PUT are currently described by RFC 7231

  • POST is the more general method, which can be used for any operation on the target resource
  • PUT is more specific - it indicates that the included document is intended as a replacement for the representation on the server.

Suppose we have a User with Id = 1 and name= "Pritam" in database. Now if i try to make a POST request with request body Id = 1 and name= "Pritam", then what happens. (Duplicate records). will a new record will get created or what happens exactly.

Those are implementation details; precisely the sort of thing that the REST API is insulating the client from needing to understand (as far as the client is concerned, the server is just a web site).

The "right" thing in your domain might be:

  • create a new user in your domain model, using the information in the POST message-body, and possibly creating a duplicate, or
  • report an error to the client, because of the conflict
  • report success to the client, with reference to the previously created user

None of those things happens by magic, you actually have to choose what makes sense for your circumstances and implement it, then work out the right way to describe what has happened in the body of the HTTP Response, and what information to include in the metadata so that generic components can intelligently participate in the exchange.

Upvotes: 1

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