AiVibeAPI Gateway
An API gateway is a single entry point that receives client API requests, applies policies such as authentication, rate limiting and validation, and routes each request to the appropriate back-end service.
An API gateway is a server or managed service that sits between clients and a set of back-end services and acts as the single entry point for API traffic. It receives each request, applies cross-cutting policies such as authentication, rate limiting and request validation, and routes the request to the appropriate service, sometimes aggregating responses or translating between protocols. Responses can be cached and every call logged for monitoring and billing.
API gateways are central to microservices and serverless designs, where they hide internal service structure from mobile, web and partner clients and let teams change back ends without breaking consumers. Managed examples include Amazon API Gateway, Azure API Management and Apigee on Google Cloud, while open-source gateways such as Kong are self-hosted. Gateways are also used to expose plant or machine data to enterprise applications through controlled interfaces.
As a shared entry point, the gateway can become a bottleneck or single point of failure, so it is normally deployed redundantly and scaled automatically. Business logic should stay in the services rather than the gateway. Security controls at the gateway complement, but do not replace, authorisation inside each service, and the OWASP API Security Top 10 is a common reference for testing exposed APIs.
Key points
- Acts as the single front door for API traffic to many back-end services
- Applies authentication, rate limiting, validation, caching and logging
- Managed examples include Amazon API Gateway, Azure API Management and Apigee
- Should be deployed redundantly to avoid a single point of failure
Where AiVibe comes in
AiVibe Software Services delivers cloud solutions on AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud or on-premise, together with cloud security, legacy modernisation, data analytics and AI and machine learning services.
Related terms
- Microservices ArchitectureCloud & AI Infrastructure
- Serverless ComputingCloud & AI Infrastructure
- Load BalancingCloud & AI Infrastructure
- Service MeshCloud & AI Infrastructure
- OWASP Top 10Cybersecurity & Compliance
- Identity and Access Management (IAM)Cloud & AI Infrastructure